God Is, Always

I have been reading Journey to the Cross by Paul David Tripp. Last week on Day 22 his summary for the daily devotion was “On this side of eternity, it is easy to love the gift more than the Giver.” This is a challenge I was personally confronted with in 2011. Some of you may have heard this, but I thought it was good to rethink it in the context of loving the gift more than the Giver.

In the Fall of 2011, one of my specialists in Dubai ran tests that showed I had cervical cancer. This was before any of my melanoma. I am ashamed to say that my initial reaction was not trusting God. I went through many of the usual questions like what if I die and what will happen to Jeremy and my family? Thankfully, God intervened in my despair. I remember having the clear thought that if I really believed that God was sovereign over everything, I was not living that way.

In that first day or two, all I was really focused on was the gift. In this case, it was the gift of no cancer. The gift of being healed and preferably miraculously and not through the hardship of chemo, surgery and radiation. I wanted the gift of an uninterrupted life. The gift of a life free from suffering.

I think of Job. God allowed Satan to take basically all his possessions and even the lives of his children. Job’s immediate response – “Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed by the name of the LORD.’” Job 1:20-21

Job loved God the Giver more than he loved the gifts God had given him. We know that Job grieved certainly the death of his children because he tore his robe and shaved his head, signs of grieving, but it didn’t change his trust in God. He worshiped God. His worship tells us that he still knew who God was and that He was worthy of Job’s praise. God’s character didn’t change when Job’s circumstances changed. In fact, God will never change (Hebrews 13:8).

Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah (their Hebrew names) had a response similar to Job when Nebuchadnezzar was going to throw them into the fiery furnace. They knew God was able to save them (sovereign, omnipotent). I love verse 18 of Daniel 3, “But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” These three men were not willing to abandon their trust of God even if He chose not to save them from this earthly death. Their worship was still for God alone.

From my situation and walking with others going through suffering or trials, I can see that although we may know in our heads who God is, we often don’t live in accordance with the truth. Instead, the way we respond says that God isn’t good, faithful, loving, sovereign, omnipotent or wise. Once we open that door in the immediate circumstance, it starts shaping our view of other situations as well. And it not only shapes our view, but it shapes our responses to God and our situation.

In Tripp’s same devotion, he gave a subtle example of loving the gift and not the Giver. A lady had several bills she didn’t know how she would pay. God provided for them to be paid. Her response was to praise God and say He was faithful. Now it is a right response to praise God for His blessings and to be thankful, but the danger we can fall into is tying His faithfulness or goodness or any other attribute only to what we see as a good gift. Do we say He is faithful or good when we lose a job, a family member or friend dies, a child gets involved in the wrong things or we battle lack of health? Do we praise Him for His kindness, His grace, His mercy or His justice every day just because God is, always?

It will be difficult for us to hold on to the truth of who God is if we are not cultivating our knowledge of Him every day and doing so apart from just blessings or gifts from God. A few weeks ago, when I wrote on Psalm 23, I challenged you to write down all the characteristics of God you saw in the Psalm. This is one reason why. We need to be reminded daily. We need that anchor of who God is firmly planted in our minds and hearts. Lately, I have been trying to make at least one characteristic of God my first thought when I wake up to get my day started in the right direction.

Here are a few ways to firmly anchor God’s character in our minds and hearts.

1) Start a “God Is” journal or maybe you highlight or some other method. As you read Scripture or listen to songs or read other books, write down all God’s characteristics.

2) Find ways to rephrase our responses to gifts to reflect God’s character remains the same whether or not there is a gift. In the same, way start sharing God’s characteristics with others in all circumstances not just the good ones.

3) When you pray, incorporate God’s characteristics into your praise and requests. For example, “Sovereign Father, I bring my friend going through chemo before Your throne of grace and mercy. I know You are healer. I ask that you would bring healing if that is Your will. Lord, You are omnipotent. You have given us Your Spirit to indwell us, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. Strengthen my friend with that power to persevere through this physical suffering. You are the God of all comfort. Comfort my friend in this time.”

Praying in light of God’s character gives our requests a different focus and hope while also reminding us of who God is.

4) Start a thankful journal. I know this can tie God’s character to the gifts but start thinking of those things you are thankful to in relation to who God is. You can also train your mind to be thankful for things you don’t normally think of as gifts. “Father, Your word says that You care and provide for the birds and the flowers. How much more You care and provide for me. Thank you that You have provided these piles of laundry because that means You have not only given us the clothes we need, but You have given me the family that wears them. Thank you for Your loving care.”

5) There are several songs that remind me of God’s character even in the difficult times. I will include some that have helped me below. Listen to songs and hymns that remind you of who God is, always.

Steven Curtis Chapman’s song Faithful is one of my favorites. He wrote it after his daughter died.

I am broken, I am bleeding, I'm scared and I'm confused, But You are faithful. Yes You are faithful. I am weary, unbelieving. God please help my unbelief! Cause You are faithful. Yes You are faithful.

I will proclaim it to the world. I will declare it to my heart And sing it when the sun is shining. I will scream it in the dark.

You are faithful! You are faithful! When you give and when You take away, Even then still Your name Is faithful! You are faithful! And with everything inside of me, I am choosing to believe You are faithful.

I am waiting for the rescue That I know is sure to come, Cause You are faithful. Yes You are faithful. I've dropped anchor in Your promises, And I am holding on, Cause You are faithful. God You are faithful.

Though I cannot have the answer That I'm wanting to demand, I'll remember You are God And everything is in Your hand. In Your hands you hold the sun, the moon, The stars up in the sky, For the sake of Love, You hung Your own Son On the cross to die

Other songs specifically relating God’s character to trials:

Blessed Be Your Name by Tree63 (or you may have another artist)

Even If by MercyMe

I Am Not Alone by Kari Jobe

Even Then by Micah Tyler