Within the Lines

(I wrote this for our church newspaper, and decided to share it here as well.)

     “Hi! I’m Emily Elizabeth, and this is my dog, Clifford.” Anyone with kids has probably read this opening line from the Clifford book series. Clifford, the Big Red Dog, taller than an average house, kind and generous to a fault, tho his efforts to help sometimes backfire.

     Recently it occurred to me that we often unconsciously see God like Clifford. We know He’s big; we like the protective feeling in His long shadow. We know He’s loving, kind and generous, always on the lookout for someone needing help. We like to introduce others to “our God”; it kind of gives you a big feeling to say, “This is my god, God,” and “by the way, did you notice my God’s bigger than your god?“ We also can get frustrated at His “clumsy” attempts at help that sometimes don’t seem like help at all. Sometimes we’d prefer if He would just not show up because He‘s pretty tough to control. He’s kind of unpredictable and disruptive. Mainly, I think we prefer to see Him like Clifford because that makes Him seem tame.

     In the Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis describes Aslan (the symbol of Jesus) as “good, but not tame.” The God of the Bible is never tame.

• He spoke the universe into existence, making the winds His messengers and flaming fire His ministers (Psalm 104:4).
• He decided to save Noah from the flood, but instructed him to take 100 years building a boat first; then sent a whole jungle of animals and locked them all in together.
• Although He only destroyed the earth with a flood once, He destroyed two cities by raining fire, turning a woman into salt in the process.
• He made Joseph a criminal and then a ruler; He made Moses a ruler and then a criminal.
• He gave Eve two sons, but let one kill the other; He gave Sarah a son FINALLY, and then told Abraham to kill him; He gave Hannah a son that she had to give back after just a few years, and He gave Mary a Son to be crucified.
• He sometimes appeared in fire, sometimes in cloud, sometimes spoke thru animals, sometimes thru man.
• He changed water into blood, parted water, caused water to flow out of rock, walked on water, and changed it into wine.
• He healed some with a look, some with a touch, some with a word, some with mud, and some not at all.
• He took some to be with Him without death, raised some after death, and allowed others to die horrible martyr’s deaths.
• And He never apologized to Job.

     We say we know this about God. We say we like His bigness. We sing about His greatness. But still we often try to leash Him. He is uncontrollable. He is incomprehensible. He won’t be told what to do. He doesn’t do tricks on command. He doesn’t fit in boxes. Anytime we confine God to our parameters, limit Him to what our reason comprehends about Him, we are attempting to make Him manageable. Any time we say, “God wouldn’t do that,” or “God doesn’t work like that now,” we are containing God to our understanding. I believe that when we do this, we are in danger of eliminating the true God from our lives, replacing Him with a god more to our liking.

     We promote this idea of a pet “God” that can be kept for protection here and a ride to heaven later. Problem is nothing in the Bible supports this idea. God is nobody’s kept pet. He is Lord of all. He mercifully gives you the choice to love and follow Him -- His way -- or not, with natural consequences to either choice. But He allows no one to contain Him, to tame Him, to leash Him. Those who think they do have lost connection with the Head. They no longer know the One True God they were created to serve.

     Join Him. Love Him. Serve Him. Obey Him. Or don’t. But never imagine you own or control Him.