Edition 42 › Guaranteed Success... If You Do It God's Way › Tom Blackaby

Knowing Him

Sat, 05/08/2010 - 20:05 — GentleVic

"OH, GOD…"


If you are like me, you likely hear God or His Son brought into conversations on a daily basis. It is not that people around me are particularly religious; it is just that they like to use their names. Even young children have been taught to use God's name in times of exasperation or amazement. I have lost count how many times while children are over playing on the PS2 that I have heard, "Oh, God" or "Holy ______!" (you can fill in the blank) during game play. The other phrases I hear frequently is "Oh my Lord!", "Good Lord!" (which I personally prefer), "God help us" and "Lord preserve us".


What fascinates me is that people whose lives or conversations generally have nothing to do with Christianity or church so often invoke the name of God and many times at greater frequency than many devout Christians do! Granted, these invocations may not be deliberate, or even consciously done, but just the same don't you find it interesting that in times of frustration or excitement, the first thing that comes to people's mind is God or His Son Jesus Christ?



Though it bothers me when people needlessly use God's name in an empty fashion, I secretly am pleased that they call on God at all! It is my conviction that people are created with an innate need or desire to connect with their Creator in some way. No matter how many scientists tell us we evolved from goop, or how many philosophies try to discredit the existence of God, or how many psychologists suggests a dependency on religion is in fact a weakness of mankind, still we cry out for someone beyond ourselves. Maybe it is the hope we have that life is not meaningless beyond our seven or eight decades, and that in times of trouble there is someone out there who hears us and who can respond to our cries for help


.


My grandfather fought in WW1 and survived the mustard gas and trench warfare (fortunately for me!). On several occasions he narrowly escaped a bullet or an incoming shell that would have otherwise ended his life. Others fell beside him including a close friend. Many perished in the never ending battles when he survived. He was with the Canadian troops in some of the most heated and difficult battles. He was firmly convinced that even in the midst of the horrors of war, his life was firmly in the grip of God's hands, and he regularly thanked God for it.



He was just as ready to meet his Maker face to face as he was to live out his remaining days demonstrating his thankfulness to God. Even in the midst of the worst humanity has to offer, while others would despair, he was keenly aware of God's presence around him. He returned home with shrapnel in his leg and back complementing the mustard gas burns on his legs, but with a greater conviction that life had purpose and meaning and that God was very much a part of it all.



My prayer, every time I hear God's name or the name of Jesus Christ used, is that the person using it will come to know the God behind the name. The step is very small between, "Oh, God!" and "God help me!" I believe each time God's name is used, He is there ready to respond, to act, to listen, and to demonstrate His love. The Bible says, "Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved" (Romans 10:13). Calling on the name of the Lord requires faith, trust, and a desire to know Him personally. Calling on His name requires a belief that He exists and that He, in fact, wants to respond to your prayer.



The next time you say, "Oh, God!" go ahead and finish the sentence. "Oh, God…help me know you personally", "Oh, God…draw me close to you", "Oh, God…I know I have not acknowledged you before, but I do want you to be a part of my life."



815 Words

0
Your rating: None