God in You!

Let's look at a few of these affirmations from the prior article, "You and God."

The God who created the universe dwells within you. Think about this, see it in your mind's eye, feel it resonate within your heart. The God who created stars, orchids and dolphins is residing in you as you read these words. Is it possible that this may have some implications for your own capacity for creativity?

Where do you think Shakespeare, Michelangelo and Bach found their inspiration and guidance for what they produced? Was some other God than the One who dwells within you directing them? Any lack of creativity on our parts, whether it's in producing works of art, solving problems at the office or creating more beauty in our relationships, is either a matter of choice on our parts or a matter of not giving ourselves over more fully to God, allowing Him to transform us with His grace.

Every day, we should look around us and see where we can be more creative - not simply so as to be more effective and efficient, but to create more beauty in our world. Frequently call on the God within you to open your eyes, your ears, your feelings, and your capacities for tasting and smelling new perspectives, new juxtapositions, and new ideas. Do it in regard to every area of your life.

God the miracle worker lives in you. The same God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead lives in you. The same God that parted the Red Sea to deliver the Israelites from the Egyptians, the same God who turned water into the very best of wines at the wedding party in Cana, lives in you. Mind boggling, isn't it?

If God the Miracle Worker is everywhere, where are all the miracles?

Those people who say miracles no longer occur often amuse me. It doesn't seem to occur to them that their very existence is shouting, "You ninny, what a foolish thing to say!" They see or experience no miracles because they choose not to see them. Their belief systems dictate what they will see and experience. The same goes for you and me. I don't know about you, but I choose to believe that God the Miracle Worker is everywhere at all times, as well as living within me. Miracles are God's specialty. And if you haven't yet witnessed any, it may only be a matter of changing your beliefs like you would change a pair of glasses, so you can now see the mysterious and miraculous that's all around you.

Jesus said, "Whatsoever you desire when you pray, believe you have received and you shall receive" (Mk. 11:24). Does this sound like He thought doing miracles was restricted to Him and His 12 disciples? Many believe miracles were only for a certain time or a certain class of Christians. But too many people know by experience that this is a promise to all who will believe, for us to take these "unbelieving" believers all that seriously.

So don't argue with people who wish to deny that God lives within you or that miracles are possible. They aren't seeking to discover more truth; they are not looking for increased understanding. It's a waste of your energy and time to debate with them. Wish them well, pray for them, and keep walking on your chosen path.

The God who is everywhere at all times is in you. Feel this. God who is right now wholly in San Francisco is also just as wholly in Beijing, as well as on Mars. The same God who is wholly inside you is also wholly within your fellow travelers and-hear this-is also wholly in and through and around every space in between. God doesn't travel anywhere; God simply "is." Yes, this is beyond our comprehension. Of course, if you could comprehend God, would He be a God worthy of worship, or merely a superhero worthy of respect?

In his letter to the Christians in Colossi, Paul said that not only did Christ create all things, but that by Christ all things subsist and are held together (Col. 1:16,17). God is actively engaged in and a part of all that He has created. Everything and everyone lives, moves and has its existence in God. God didn't wind up creation like a watch and leave it alone; He actively participates in and over His creation.

As scientists delve deeper and deeper into quantum physics, they have begun to speculate that on a molecular level, everything is connected. Whereas an atom used to be considered the smallest particle of creation, we now know that the atom is composed of tinier bits of matter whirling at lightning speed around.a huge empty space! Moreover, when you focus on these bits of subatomic matter, they're not "material;" they're vibrations of energy that have taken on the appearance of solidity. What appears solid to us is actually a ghostly bundle of vibrating energy and information with no well-defined edges.

This relatively new model of the building blocks of creation suggests that everyone and everything just may be connected at the quantum level. Be that as it may, we do know that because Christ is holding all of creation together, on a spiritual level, all of creation is certainly connected.

God is both above us (transcendent) and with us (immanent). He commands us and gives us the power to obey Him. God is both our Creator and the One who sustains us moment by moment for our journey.

Given this reality, how can we ever feel or see ourselves as being inadequate for life's challenges? What brings us to ever say, "I am overwhelmed?" As St. John said, as we live in (abide in) Christ and He in us, we can ask what we wish and it will be done!

As we mature in the process of relating to God, the more fruitful and productive we become, learning how to draw on the infinite resources of our Creator and Savior. Given our Spirit-energized human potential, how is it that we so often lead such dreary lives? Given who we are, in and with God, how are we not exploding with power to do good, demonstrating mercy and love?

Lightening the Load