How do you explain God?
I can give you plenty of reasons why God is far-fetched. How can He know everything about us? How can He listen to the prayers of an entire planet at the same time? How can He stand by and watch people hurt? How can He take the lives of innocent children in accidents? How can He bring thousands of people to their death in a natural disaster? Why would He let those who follow Him risk their lives to meet together? He doesn't make sense.
Yet as I think about how to refute such things, I am blank. When someone says, "How can God be in this tragedy?" I have no answer. When they ask, "Why would a loving God let this happen?", I am speechless. Oh, I can come up with the standard responses, "God is in control", "You just need to ask Jesus in your heart", "Trust in the Lord". But those answers seem too pretty. I absolutely believe them, but they're too churchy, too pat, not real. If I'm a Christian and those answers turn me off, what do they do to skeptics?
What is wrong with me that it is easier to come up with questions regarding His existence than it is to come up with original ways to explain Him? Why do the trite, cliche answers of Christendom annoy me more than the trite, cliche phrases of the world? Is it because God is so much more than our answers? Is it because you can't explain God, you can only experience Him?
And why do I TRY to explain God? I can't explain why I love my husband. I can tell you what I like about him, what I find attractive about him, yet I don't feel the need to defend my feelings for him to anyone. Others may think I'm stupid, I'm ignorant, I'm crazy, but it doesn't bother me in the least. I love him, period. Why can't I think of my relationship with Jesus the same way?
This frustrates me so much because I WANT to point others to God. I want them to experience the same peace I do. I want them to know there is more to this life. I want them to have the assurance they are more than what the world tells them they are. I want them to see His transforming power at work in their lives. And I feel so inept because they want specific answers and I have so few. God is too big to be explained and my meager attempts to do so always come up short.
How do you explain God?
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6 comments:
Good Question? I have wondered that often also, I don't know a lot of the verses by heart yet in the Bible so I feel inadequate to spread the word of God on, but I know thats not what God wants of me. So how do you explain God and how do we know when the right person is in front of us to explain it to them? I can reply the same answers as well, "Trust in God", Believe in God, He knows whats Best - but is that good enough?
Pam
How do I explain God? Wow, I've never attempted to explain Him just what I have seen Him do in the lives of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
He is just too big to fully understand or explain, whether you believe in Him or not.
Romans 8:28~ For we know that God works in ALL things for the good of those who love Him.
Faith is scary and doesn't come easy but God has made us a promise and He never lies. Why do bad things happen? I don't know. But I do know that I would never lean on God if I never had a reason to.
I think you nailed it when you said, "You can't explain God, you can only experience Him." They always say, "Actions speak louder than words" which is why I feel it is so important to pray each day for God to fill me up with the Holy Spirit. I believe that if I focus on my inside being filled with God, anything that appears on the outside will reflect that (and that is an equally important type of ministry). I can always tell when I have forgotten to take a great big gulp of God - because I, along with others can see that through my responses. I believe that when we allow God to be within us, the reflection is so great that sometimes words are just not necessary! Great reminder for today!!! Denise R.
The question that haunts all of us. The song "indescribable" always catches my attention. It reminds me of Job and God's conversation. After Job heard from God, he spoke less, not more. He put his hand over his mouth saying he spoke of things too great for him. I don't know if that means anything or not. But how are we then supposed to communicate to the world the indescribable God??? I'm right there with you friend. It befuzzles me too.
Wow, those are some pretty deep thoughts there, Tami. Ones that I have struggled with as well. I think the part about "experiencing God" is a big part of it. At one point, I had to come to the conclusion that if I could understand and explain God, he'd be much too small of a God for me. The things I can't understand about him are the things that make him God.
I know what you mean about talking to others. I'm learning to 1) just listen to others, not feel the need to have answers and 2) just be more open about what God's doing in my life. I hear you about the trite answers - it's so much more than that.
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