Simplicity of God
Elisa Morgan
If I’m not careful, I can complicate very simple things.
Take the task of hosting a dinner for friends. Could be simple. Should be simple. But I can make it so very complicated. Instead of a one dish meal like a soup filled with items from every food group, I get going and can’t seem to stop. The meat, then the side dishes, then the dessert, oh, and then I add on an appetizer, oh they might not like what I picked so I make two, then the drinks, and on I go to the table, the placemats and dishes and candles and… oh, a centerpiece. I scour my home for something unusual to use, end up digging through boxes in the basement for some put away item. By the time the doorbell rings, I’m done and undone and in no shape to enjoy my friends. What could be simple, should be simple, becomes a complicated mess.
I think I do this with God too. I know he loves me. That’s the simple truth. The Bible tells me that he actually sacrificed his Son, Jesus, on a cross which makes it possible for God to forgive me of the mistakes I make. Wow! The God of the universe wants to have a relationship with me. Every day. In all the spots of stuckness or sadness or suffering…or even in the fun I face. All I have to do is listen to him, talk to him, want to know him, and come to him. No big deal. Pretty simple, huh?
So why don’t I take him up on his offer more often? Well, because I make his offer complicated. Even though I asked God into my heart a long time ago and do indeed relate to him in my daily life, I still keep him out of certain corners. Why? Because I lose the simplicity of his love. I start thinking about him the way I think about people in my life. He doesn’t understand. He’s busy. Or I have to do something to earn his love. Or he can’t offer a prescription for this particular ailment. In short, I ascribe my nature to him. I make him less than all-powerful. I see him selectively loving instead of unconditionally loving. I make him convoluted rather than pure, complicated instead of simple.
It’s not that God isn’t ever complicated. He certainly can be. For centuries, theologians have pondered his being, nature, character, presence and expression. Sometimes they make progress in explaining him to the rest of us. Sometimes they further confuse our beleaguered brains. But what we all tend to forget is that God explains himself best personally, to each individual heart. He doesn’t require us to pull out fourteen commentaries to know him, although such a study of him can reveal more of him to us.
While I tend to make the simple things of life complicated God does just the opposite. He makes himself as simple as possible by being born a human, living, breathing, working and walking on our planet to show us just how knowable he can be. The infinite, all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present God of the universe communicates through simplicity to us, when we leave him the way he is.
Jesus loves me. This I know. For the Bible tells me so. That’s a pretty simple truth. I think I’d better leave it at that.
Elisa Morgan is the cohost of the podcast, God Hears Her. She is also the cohost of Discover the Word and contributor to Our Daily Bread. Her books include,You Are Not Alone, When We Pray Like Jesus, Christmas Changes Everything, Hello, Beauty Full, and The Beauty of Broken. Connect with Elisa @elisamorganauthor on Facebook and Instagram.
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