Jeremiah 49
Okay, so maybe “abuser” isn’t the right word, but I’m getting at the concept behind the word—the idea that God doesn’t discriminate. He is ultimately invested in all His children equally.
God loves braggers.
Jeremiah 9
We all know them: people who brag, boast, and show-off. Often, this isn’t an appealing quality in a person, but I suppose we all do it from time to time. Sometimes, the bragging is “legitimate” (meaning that even though it might not be an attractive character trait, a person like Michael Jordan could brag about being a basketball superstar). Sometimes, it’s just a lot of hot air.
God wants to be held.
Song of Solomon 3
In this chapter, the maiden is having a dream that she can’t find her beloved. She jumps out of bed in the middle of the night and scours the city, looking everywhere for him. Finally, she finds him: “Scarcely had I passed them when I found the one my heart loves. I held him and would not let him go.” (vs 4)
God practices true love.
Proverbs 27
A few months ago during a Bible study, a friend of mine said something that has been nagging at me ever since: We don’t often know what love is. He said that in the context of discussing how to be loving toward people, and he suggested that there might be many times when we wouldn’t immediately recognize what would be the “loving” course of action in a given situation.
God wants to be owned.
Psalm 144
As I began reading today’s psalm, I noticed something interesting in the first two verses. Let’s see if you notice it, too: “Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.” (vs 1-2)
God loves peace.
Psalm 122
I think it has to be one of the most universal things we believe about God—that He is a peacelover. At least, I don’t know many people who would race to characterize God as a warmonger. (Maybe you do!) Yet one of my favorite Jesus quotes is this one from Matthew 10:34—”Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
God values the death of His friends.
Psalm 116
This psalm contains a verse that has always been intriguing to me: “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his faithful servants.” (vs 15) I’ve heard it quoted at funerals sometimes, but its full meaning eludes me. At best, I can only make speculative comments about it, but since it was on the plate for today, I thought I would say a few words about it.
God loves... for better or worse.
God is so misunderstood.
Psalm 76
I think God must feel like a woman sometimes… so misunderstood. I wonder if He sometimes looks at the Bible and sees what amounts to a cartoon caricature of Himself—where one teeny, tiny aspect of His character is magnified and blown out of proportion. This particular psalm seemed to be emphasizing the fear factor:
God wants to be your girlfriend.
Psalm 55
Okay, so the title of this blog is aimed at women, not men (just in case you guys were starting to sweat a little bit). Although what I am about to say in this blog applies just as equally to men as it does to women. Guys aren’t the only ones who have girlfriends. Girls have girlfriends, too—you know, the kind you can talk to on the phone for hours or stay up half the night giggling with. For girls, a good girlfriend is someone to whom you feel comfortable pouring out your heart—down to the very last, nitty gritty detail. Most guys have an equivalent to the girlfriend relationship—someone they feel comfortable being completely honest with, except it often doesn’t involve as much talking.
God is always drawing us closer.
Psalm 43
God has an agenda. It’s a simple one—to draw us ever closer to Him in relationship. I believe He does this even with His perfect creatures—those who have never fallen into sin. Why? Because no creature—even a perfect one—can ever fully understand the mind of the Creator. There will always be more to learn, more to be revealed. And so God is in the business of personal revelation.
God hears it all.
Psalm 6
A few years ago, my husband read a book called Why Men Hate Going to Church by David Murrow. Out of the many things he told me about the book, the one thing that has stuck with me is that a lot of men are a bit uncomfortable with all the “relationship” imagery the church uses when it comes to God—especially referring to God as a Lover. And I will agree that much of church (and church language) has become “feminized.” Here’s one example from Murrow’s book:
God wants to show us more.
Job 42
After having gone through the book of Job, chapter by chapter, with a fine-tooth comb, I find that I love this final chapter now more than ever before. I used to love it for the fact that God exonerated Job and put Job’s friends in their place when He said, “I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has” (vs 7), but I see so much more in this chapter now than I did previously. I guess that’s because God is always wanting to show us more! And that’s the picture of Him I saw here.
God is the answer.
Job 39
I have to admit that the way God comes to Job at the end of the story has always perplexed me somewhat. I mean, Job has been suffering, really suffering, and when God shows up, He almost doesn’t seem to care. Out of nowhere, He comes and just starts asking questions—and questions that seemingly have nothing to do with anything. It’s easy to think, Doesn’t God know what’s going on here?
God shows up.
Job 38
For most of his short history, man has been consumed with one thing—his god(s). Story after story in the Bible talks about the lengths man will go to in order to win the attention or approval of whatever god he believes in. From Baal to Molech to Dagon, and from bodily sacrifice to animal sacrifice to human sacrifice, men have employed bizarre (and often tragic) means to rouse their god to action. To no avail. It’s hard to get the attention of someone who doesn’t exist.
God wants us to be real.
Job 34
Didn’t Elihu say he had something new to add to the conversation? Instead, he ends up repackaging and regurgitating the arguments of his older, supposedly-not-as-wise counterparts: “Job claims that he is innocent, that God refuses to give him justice. He asks, How could I lie and say I am wrong? I am fatally wounded, but I am sinless. Have you ever seen anyone like this man Job? He never shows respect for God. He likes the company of evil people and goes around with sinners. He says that it never does any good to try to follow God’s will.” (vs 5-9)
God is all.
Job 23
Job, with yet another reply to his so-called friends: "Even today my complaint is bitter; his hand is heavy in spite of my groaning. If only I knew where to find him; if only I could go to his dwelling! I would state my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments. I would find out what he would answer me, and consider what he would say to me." (vs 2-5)
God takes pleasure in us.
Job 22
In the opening of Job 22, Eliphaz starts in again with Job: "What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous?" (vs 2) Actually, The Message Bible does an even better job of capturing Eliphaz’s "so what" attitude: "So what if you were righteous—would God Almighty even notice? Even if you gave a perfect performance, do you think he’d applaud? Do you think it’s because he cares about your purity that he’s disciplining you, putting you on the spot? Hardly! It’s because you’re a first-class moral failure, because there’s no end to your sins." (vs 2-3)
God is always bringing us new light.
Job 20
Are you feeling like I am about the speeches of Job’s friends? Come on, enough already. When I opened my Bible to chapter 20 today and saw that Zophar was going to launch off yet again into the same, old thing, I felt a huge yawn coming on. It’s like being on the telephone with an automated answering service—no matter what number you press, you get the same recording: Thank you for holding. One of our representatives will be with you shortly. It gets frustrating when there’s no way to break through the monotonous drivel and reach someone who is actually alive and breathing.
God trusts His servants.
Job 4
In this chapter, Job’s friend, Eliphaz, related something he had seen in a dream: "A word was secretly brought to me, my ears caught a whisper of it. Amid disquieting dreams in the night, when deep sleep falls on people, fear and trembling seized me and made all my bones shake. A spirit glided past my face, and the hair on my body stood on end. It stopped, but I could not tell what it was. A form stood before my eyes, and I heard a hushed voice: 'Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker? If God places no trust in his servants, if he charges his angels with error, how much more those who live in houses of clay, whose foundations are in the dust, who are crushed more readily than a moth!'" (vs 12-19)