An exceptional God

I want to start this blog with a statement that I will expand on in the essay:

If you do not acknowledge that God is exceptional, you should not expect exceptional treatment from Him.

Recently the folks had been on holiday with someone they love and respect. During this time, there were lots of opportunities to sit and talk and share ideas, thoughts, philosophies, and so forth. One of these philosophies the person shared with them, was the popular ideology, held by many these days, that all gods are the same God and that we merely call (H)him by different names. Who of us have not yet been confronted by this humanist idea?
It is a beautiful idea that advocates in favour of peace and acceptance. It strives towards doing away with differences and focuses on unifying factors. As a philosophy it is a beautiful hypothesis. But that is all it is - a hypothesis. Closer inspection will find that it does not hold water. All gods are not the true living God.
The word living is key here. You see, God is alive. He exists. If God were only a figment of man's imagination, we could easily adapt our vocabulary to accept any amount of names by which to call Him. We could then ascribe attributes and characteristics to Him as our hearts desired. In short, we could create a god in our own image, as we preferred him to be, as fitted comfortably into our modern age and lifestyle. Better yet, we could shape and reshape him with the changing times. An adaptable god! What a novel idea.
If I had told you to go and select a choice peace of timber from the local supplier, or even to import it from the best source in the world, and to carve your own god from it, you would probably have balked at the idea. Yet, this is what we do daily, when we decide for ourselves who God is, what His likes and dislikes are, what He approves and disapproves of, and by which names He can be called. Only, we distance ourselves from that carved wooden image, by carving him only in our imaginations.
I repeat what I said earlier on. God exists. He is. You do not get to create God in your own image. He already has an image. He is a certain way. He reasons a certain way. He speaks a certain way. And He has a name by which He has identified Himself. I AM! That says it all, doesn't it?
Because God is, we do not get to decide Him of our own imaginations. He already IS.
So, let's get back to my opening statement. During the course of the vacation, my folks had many opportunities to testify about God's provision for their lives. You need to know my parents to understand that they probably did not even think of this as testifying. This is simply normal everyday conversation in our house. It has been this way since I can remember. For us, this is normal. This means that we tend to forget that it is not the norm for other people. This oversight became an accusation during this trip. They were told off for being considered 'exceptional' by God! The person was offended by the fact that God appeared to single them out for miracles and provisions. They were accused of being so-called 'big Christians' and for flaunting their special status in front of the less fortunate (at least as far as God's care is concerned).
When I learned of this, I was dumbstruck. Then I started to recall what I know about the folks. They have always searched for God on their knees (literally) before they went to bed, and when they got up in the morning. Growing up, we had worked our way through the Bible repeatedly as a family, during the nightly family Bible Studies. My dad had read through the Bible countless times in his own personal Bible Study, to search for the truth of who God is, and what His will is. My mom reads daily, but follows a less structured approach, although I suspect she must have read through it a number of times as well.
These are not people who decide for themselves Who God is. They do not randomly pick names by which to call Him. They know He has an actual identity, character and is a real Person. They realize that He is the Creator and that they are the creation. They strive towards obtaining and reflecting the image of God, rather than to shape God into an image that they are comfortable with.
Does God afford them exceptional treatment? Perhaps. Though I doubt that any of us has ever thought of it as such. To us, this is simply what it is like to live in a relationship with God. Let me define the nature of that relationship shortly. We subject ourselves to God, He gives direction, and we follow instructions willingly and obediently.
We acknowledge that God is exceptional, and as a result, upon reflection, it appears that He treats us exceptionally.

But why in the world would you expect Him to treat you exceptionally, if you refuse to acknowledge that He is exceptional?

God is forever the same, yesterday, today and into eternity. If things are not working out for you, you will have to change, for He won't. Submit yourself to God, acknowledge Him, and see the deliverance He brings about for you as well.
Perhaps I should re-word my opening statement to read somewhat differently, although in essence it remains the same:

Why should God single you out, if you do not single Him out from among a host of other gods?

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy my books here:
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