Our bright, bold, overwhelming and devastating God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Samuel 11:7,

"Then the terror of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out together as one."

I have seen, from time to time, where folks have interpreted God's character and nature as warm, soft and fuzzy. A lovable old fuzzball that might dress himself in pastels and speak softly, meekly and in what may appear as a piously kind of disposition. Sort of a milquetoast lovey-dovey kind of person.

Not me. I see God in bright bold colors! The One who thunders from heaven, whose presence frightens the daylights out of any who have experienced his proximity, the One whose path slashes the cosmos with an unfathomable brilliance. "The terror of the Lord" fits into this perception. 

David, in Psalm 29 captures this well,

"Ascribe to the Lord, you heavenly beings,
    ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
    worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.

The voice of the Lord is over the waters;
    the God of glory thunders,
    the Lord thunders over the mighty waters.
The voice of the Lord is powerful;
    the voice of the Lord is majestic.
The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars;
    the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.
He makes Lebanon leap like a calf,
    Sirion like a young wild ox.
The voice of the Lord strikes
    with flashes of lightning.
The voice of the Lord shakes the desert;
    the Lord shakes the Desert of Kadesh.
The voice of the Lord twists the oaks
    and strips the forests bare.
And in his temple all cry, 'Glory!'

The Lord sits enthroned over the flood;
    the Lord is enthroned as King forever.
The Lord gives strength to his people;
    the Lord blesses his people with peace."

How about you? Do you envision God as hanging out in flannel house-pants? Or do you see him as one who might inspire some terror?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com