GOD MEETING US WHERE WE ARE

January 18, 2022

“God is easy to live with,” wrote Tozer. The world and its Prince paint a caricature of God as a demanding, unloving tyrant. But in His perfect love, how could this possibly be true? He is perfect in righteousness, but also perfect in grace. He meets us where we are to bring us to faith.

EXHIBIT #1

… is Abraham, the father of faith. The first we read of Abraham (then known as Abram) was an encounter with God in Genesis 12. God initiated a conversation with Abraham, making him amazing promises. Four times God told Abraham “I will,” and stated what He was going to do to birth multiplied nations through Abraham and bless “all the families of the earth.” Abraham was 75 years old.

Time rolled on and no child was conceived. In Genesis 15 God comes again, reassuring Abraham of the promise. Abraham offers an alternate plan, but God strengthens the promise with a view of the night sky and a reminder that Abraham’s descendants would be as many as the stars. This reaffirmed promise brought Abraham to renewed faith.

AND AGAIN

Once more God appears to the aging servant, now 99 years old, to reaffirm His promise. The Bible does not record Abraham’s doubts, but you wonder why God would come again if He did not know that Abraham was struggling to believe.

And then, the final appearance. Christ came in physical form and appeared to Abraham at his tent door, encouraging him to be faithful for the time was near for the birth of his son.

GOD KNOWS US

God is not whipping us in our struggles to believe. He has everything to gain by our faith, but He knows our frame and understands our frailty. He will come as often as we need to reassure us. He is not fighting with us but helping us along to faith.

Do not think less of God in what He does, the way He does it, and His timing. He knows what He is about. God is easy to live with and He lovingly, continually invites you to join Him this and every day.

Father, thank You for Your perfect character. Your matchless love. Your kind mercy. Your enticing holiness. Your gracious invitation to join You through faith. I can trust You this morning and follow You explicitly. Give me the grace to believe and in my believing, to obey with no hesitation.

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