God's Realness

I love it when people say something that seems insignificant to them but is meaningful, uplifting and powerful to me, especially when they fail to realize how it has impacted me (on the flip side, I hate it when people say something that seems insignificant to them that has the opposite effect, which unfortunately, is much easier to do).  You know that means it happened to me recently (the former example).  I'm teaching a class on the book of Job and after the 3rd class, I had some internal wonderings about why I was doing it.  The book of Job is difficult to read and even harder to study.  It challenges you theologically, emotionally and I would even say pyschologically.

Well, in the middle of the week I saw a member of the class and she said that she really liked the class.  And I said something like "Good, I just hope its not hurting people's image of God, with it being so depressing."  And she said without thought "No, not at all, it makes him more real for me."  I had not thought of that before.  I felt so uplifted and encouraged about teaching the class.  It was one of the best things said to me in a long time.

I haven't quite processed how the book of Job has made God more real for me (even though I think it has).  But I'm so glad it is happening so naturally for someone else.  I mean what better thing to happen to a person than for God to become more real to them.  I can't think of a better way for that to be communicated.  So many people talk about having a "personal relationship with Christ," which is good (of course its only half the point of Christian faith), but how can you have that personal relationship with someone that is not "real" to you.  And I don't just mean real in the sense of "belief of existence," I mean real in the sense of "a living active being that is in you, above you, under you, beside you, in front of you, behind you and walking with you."  Its so easy to let God remain as just a concept to believe in, which is why so many people who are Christians don't know God's "realness."

Are you there?  Why not try the book of Job?  Its not pop theology and it doesn't paint a picture of God that's easy, but maybe that's exactly what we need for God to be more "real" to us.