God Gracious

My wife and I have a 5 year old grandson who has a very limited menu. He hasn’t yet learned that unexpected delights, even for a 5 year old, are as close as the kitchen table. No amount of persuasion it seems will convince him that the fare that the rest of us are feeding on is worthy of his attention. As a result he often leaves the table very hungry indeed.

Many of us witness this same phenomena played out on a daily basis in other areas of our lives. Fear is most often the culprit. We are afraid to experience many things that are outside of our comfort zone. We may be hesitant to develop what skills or gifts we have afraid that we are not up to the task. We avoid relating to people fearing that they will not like us or accept us. I think that most of us, if we are honest with ourselves, have had to struggle with these issues or similar issues in our lives.

The uncertainties of life can, if we let them, expose us to a culture of fear that may dramatically affect our physical, mental and emotional well being. Will I hold on to my job? What about my economic future? Will I have what I need to look after myself and my family? I have cancer! Will I survive? Will I be a burden on others?

In the spiritual realm, fear is the antithesis of faith. When a person begins to let go and let God be, fear begins to dissolve. Much of the process of replacing fear with faith involves recognizing that while bad things can happen to good people nothing can deprive us of the love of God. That realization assures us that no matter what may happen to us in the material realm, our security in the spiritual realm is secure if we respond to God in faith. We can be assured as well that our material welfare is important to our Creator and we know that our petitions for help will not go unanswered.

Each of us is invited to experience our Creator. We don’t need to go away from the table hungry. God longs for a relationship with each of us that will allow Him to reassure us that our fears can be addressed within the context of that relationship. If God is with us who can be against us?

If you haven’t yet made it a priority to develop a close relationship with God, Taste and See! Don’t leave the table hungry!