by Patricia
Who we understand God to be has enormous significance in our lives. How we picture what He is like will have profound implications upon how we view the world, how we see ourselves, and how we interpret what is going on around us. It is one of the most important things in all of life to have a “correct” view of God—to have truth brought into our hearts and minds concerning the wonder and mystery of who He is.
Something that occurred in my life one morning has served as a special moment of truth illustrated and amplified. I can recall being gripped by the sight of a raindrop on my bedroom window one morning. A sudden ray of the sun broke through and turned that raindrop into a kind of prism which caused all the colors of the rainbow to appear and begin to sparkle. It was just a breath-taking moment! My heart was so impacted by that sight that I found myself treasuring that moment and often thinking about it. From that moment on it seemed that as I read the Scriptures, I was constantly finding references to God and Light. Of course there are many companion words to “light” such as radiance, fire, sun, lamp, shine, glory etc.
In the Psalms we read : “The Lord is my light and my salvation” Ps 27:1; “The Lord God is a sun and shield” Ps 84:11; “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” But for me it gets “goose-bumpy” when we encounter passages such as that found in Ezekiel 1:1-29. Ezekiel describes the occasion when “…the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God….I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming—an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light.” He went on to describe seeing “what looked like a throne of sapphire, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man. I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown. . .” Surely there could be no more appropriate response! The Ezekiel experience leads us on to something even more wonderful.
“After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light…While He was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him!” Mt. 17:1-2,5.
And finally, for this posting, these verses: “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.” Heb.1:1-4. When I wonder what God is like, this satisfies my heart—JESUS.
That was the perfect word for me at just the perfect time. I needed to feel that tingle just now, at the very wonder of God peeking into a human life. I treasure gifts like your raindrop, as tiny as they are sometimes. They’re like lovers’ notes, hidden in sure-to-be-found places. We are truly loved and treasured, aren’t we?