I repent me of the ignorance wherein I ever said that God made man out of nothing: there is no nothing out of which to make anything; God is all in all, and he made us out of himself. He who is parted from God has no original nothingness with which to take refuge.
~George Macdonald (1824-1905)
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of His glory He may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
~ Paul, the least of the Apostles, in Ephesians 3
~ Paul, the least of the Apostles, in Ephesians 3
Everywhere. Everything. Always. Him. Is He our
Friend?
Lover?
Savior?
Heart?
Captain?
Life?
Helper?
Light?
Master?
Buddy?
Way?
Comforter?
King?
Yes.
This writer is seeing a shadow of this in his soul-mate. She is a woman of spiritual depth; A Spirit-filled woman who honors G_d with her life and speech. She has come alongside me and almost immediately she has become so many of the things on the list above. And she has become them very quickly. And this is a source of great riches in my life.
But can we see it beloved? Any human relationship, even the best of them, is but a shadow of the relationship we are able to have with our Creator. He does indeed begin to make us like Himself in so many ways. And we are then able to impart the effect of these qualities on other people. And this is good. But, these qualities are impartations or simply shadows of the reality of the One who has done the imparting.
So, when people love us, that is great. When people comfort us, that is great. But, let us never forget wherein lies the Source of the Love and Comfort we receive.
Said simply, G_d gives love and comfort to people that they might love and comfort others. G_d did not create us to take love and comfort from others. He designed us to get Love and Comfort from Him, and to pour that same Love and Comfort out on others.
Even more simply: We are who we are, because He is who He is.
Would that we might always remember that He is the Source of everything. Surely we enjoy the light and shade of our human relationships! But let us never believe that another human can be an actual source of love and comfort in our lives.
I began to draw near to the believers among the poor, simple, and ignorant, the pilgrims, monks, and peasants. The more I contemplated the lives of these simple folk, the more deeply was I convinced of the reality of their faith, which I perceived to be a necessity for them, for it alone gave life a meaning and made it worth living. The more I learned of these men of faith, the more I liked them and the easier I felt it so to live…. Still I did not find him whom I sought…. I realized that the conception of God was not God himself. I felt that I had only truly lived when I believed in God. God is life. Live to seek God, and life will not be without him. The light that then shone never left me…. I came to know that God is all we need.
~Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910)
