The reality of God

So often today I think we take the reality and glory of God far too lightly. We are nonchalant with God, seeing Him merely in light of His love and goodness and forgetting His majesty and power. We claim to have "experienced" God in a church service or special gathering when emotions are high and people are happy or when we go through seasons of blessing in our lives. To us, experiencing God is this happy-go-lucky thing. This is not at all, though, how those who experienced God in Scripture felt. When Isaiah received his commission from God and was brought into the Presence of the Lord he was struck with the realization of his utter depravity and hopelessness as a sinful man (Isa. 6). When John saw Jesus in his vision while on Patmos he "fell at His feet as though dead" (Rev. 1:9-17). When Saul, the leading persecutor of the early church, met the risen Christ face to face on his journey to Damascus he was blinded for three days and never the same (Acts 9:3-9). And when Moses asked to see God he learned that the Glory of the Lord was so potent that he could only catch a glimpse of His back lest he die (Exod. 33:18-23). After this encounter his face was literally radiating light
(Exod. 34:29-35).

God is not some old man with a long beard sitting in the clouds all day. He is not a magic genie in a bottle or simply an "Intelligent Designer." And He is not your "homeboy." Our God is a fierce God more powerful than anything we can imagine. He created the entire universe with the Word of His mouth. He makes the earth tremble at his call. He is transcendent above all things. He is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. He is the ruler and the sustainer. He is eternal, and He is omnipotent. He is sovereign over all. He is LORD over all. He is God.