“God is not a cosmic bellboy for whom we can press a button to get things.” ~ Harry Emerson Fosdick
A grantor of wishes
A fairy godmother
A genie
Santa Claus
These, and other images, are all what God is not. Yet, there are many people who think that is what God is all about. They think that God exists to take care of them and to fulfill all of their wishes, dreams, and fantasies. If they don’t find fulfillment, they exclaim that God does not exist.
God loves us so incredibly and completely. He created us in His image and likeness. He sustains us on a daily basis and He walks hand-in-hand with us on this earth. It amazes me that we so often do not see or acknowledge that. If things are going well, we often say that it is because of our own doing. If things go bad, we blame God.
What we need to do is develop a relationship with God. When we can go to Him as we would to any other best friend, we will have the right kind of friendship. That is what God wants to happen. He wants us to be comfortable around Him. He wants us to invite Him into our inner circle. He wants us to confide in Him, to rely on Him, and to include Him in our daily life.
Have you ever made a friend in grade school, high school, or college from somebody you knew and held off at a distance? Maybe it took a long time before you invited that person into your circle of friends. Once there, you discovered that you had the wrong idea about him or her all along. You wondered why you didn’t extend an invitation to friendship sooner.
That might be what you’re doing with God at this point in your life. You might be keeping Him at a distance. Maybe you’ve never invited Him in to a close relationship with you because you were uncomfortable with Him or did not really know Him well. How can you know Him if you don’t speak to Him and spend time with Him?
FAITH ACTION: Spend some quality time with God today in an attempt to get to know Him better.