Do you believe in God? Do you trust God? Even people who say they don’t believe in God find themselves praying to God sometimes, usually when they’ve come to the end of their own resources and realize they cannot accomplish what they need. “IF there’s a God out there, will you help me?” By the way, that’s a legitimate prayer! Don’t be afraid to ask God for help!
The other time people who don’t believe are likely to address God is when they’re angry about something horrible that’s happened. Then, they’re likely to curse God as the evil perpetrator who allowed such evil to occur. As strange as this seems, this is also a form of prayer, which is communication with the Almighty. True? It’s like throwing a tantrum, but you are talking to God, and He knows what you’re saying!
The older I get, the more convinced I become that most people who say they don’t believe in God are actually saying they don’t “trust” God. “If” he exists, then he must be evil, because the world is such a mess. Why the world is such a mess is a worthy topic (for another day), but today I want to share with you just a little bit about who the God of the Bible is.
Want to guess what word is most commonly used in the Bible (not counting the articles: a, and, the)? “Lord,” which is used 6,781 times (in the KJV, ±in other translations). I discovered this while studying the Proverbs, because I’ve been tracking how often various words are used and was captivated by the realization that “Lord” is one of the most often used words in the book of Proverbs. It’s also by far the most common name used for God. It’s repeated over and over and over again! So, not only is Lord the most commonly used name for God in Proverbs, it’s the most commonly used word in the entire Bible!
What does “Lord” mean, and what’s the significance of this being God’s favorite designation for himself? First, you won’t like the definition if you don’t like God, because “lord” means “one having power and authority over others: a ruler by hereditary right or preeminence to whom service and obedience are due,” and when Lord is capitalized, it refers to God or Jesus (Merriam Webster).
So, the first thing we need to understand is that the Lord God has legitimate authority over us, both by “inheritance” (He is our Creator and the sustainer of life on earth) and by preeminence (He’s the Almighty Lord God! see Gen. 17:1). But, what I’ve learned over the years is that this fearsome Lord who can snuff our our lives in an instant is actually a more amazingly loving, merciful, longsuffering, compassionate, gracious master than can be found anywhere on earth or in heaven above! He is the ruler over all, but He is love, and He loves you and me!
How do I know? By faith, but also by training and by experience . . . the way we humans learn most everything we think we know! How does a baby learn to trust his mother? By crying out when he’s in distress and having her come, meet his needs, and comfort him. This is also true with God when He becomes our Father and our Lord. Just look at this incredible list of things that our Lord is and provides for those who turn to him in faith:
- He becomes our shepherd . . . the One who leads, feeds, and cares for us. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Psalm 23:1-3).
- He becomes our rock of refuge and stability and provides strength for us: “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower” (Psalm 18:2).
- He becomes our salvation and lights our way, so we know which way to go and don’t have to fear the future: “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1).
- He gives us wisdom to know right from wrong and the courage to stand for right against evil: “I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved” (Psalm 16:8). “The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?” (Psalm 118:6).
- He fills our hearts with gratitude and praise: “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him” (Psalm 28:7).
- He becomes our source of confident hope: “And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee” (Psalm 39:7).
- We learn to trust him completely: “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust” (Psalm 91:2). “But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all thy works” (Psalm 73:28).
- He becomes all we need to feel satisfied and happy in life: “The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot” (Psalm 16:5). “Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Psalm 16:11).
So, although God is and wants to be our legitimate “Lord” and master, it is not so He can oppress us or make us miserable. God calls us to himself to bring us out of the darkness of our self-obsession and self-rule into the light of His peace and presence! I’m taking a prayer course with several friends, and this week we were discussing the concept of contemplative prayer, where instead of having an agenda of petitions for God, we come to Him in stillness, waiting for Him to commune with us. The author likened the experience to floating in the dark on water. When you’re floating, you can’t really lift your head up to see where you’re going, and when it’s dark, you can’t see much even if you did try to look around. One of my girlfriends mentioned that trying to envision opening herself up to the Lord God in this way seemed very scary. I understand that! It requires a lot of trust, because you won’t exactly know where you’re going and have to trust that the Lord is good!
I reflected back to one night when I had the incredibly pleasurable experience of floating in a dimly lit saltwater thermal spring in Badwindsheim, Germany. Because I trusted my son and daughter-in-law, who had brought us, I was able to relax completely, and the salt content was so high that I floated almost effortlessly. I was transported to a state of warm, womb-like comfort. What if that pool had a current that took me away? Ah, this is life. But, this is also death! We are in a sense either swimming or floating on a dark current that will eventually bring us to death!
Thankfully, for the Christian, we will find that at the end of the dark tunnel there is light. Near-death survivors almost universally report being drawn toward an incredibly peaceful light. What is the light? It is the Lord himself! Death is the passageway to life, just as a baby has to pass out of the womb to enter into a new life in this air-breathing world. Are you afraid? Are you ready?
The rest of Psalm 23 says this of the Lord: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever ” (Psalm 23:4-6). This is the blessed ending of life on earth for all who are willing to make “the Lord” our Lord!
(Photo Credit: Painting: “Come Follow Me” by Yongsung Kim, used by permission of Haven Light ministries http://havenlight.com).
Summer Setting 