“You, God, are my God….
I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.”
Psalm 63:1, 2-3 (NIV)
Life brings many good things, good times, rewards, relationships and love from lots of different people, all in a single lifetime. As good as life can be, David wrote that God’s love is better than life itself. David knew that there is an intimacy with God that far exceeds all the best things this life can offer.
The words recited at Jewish wedding ceremonies since antiquity, are,
“Dodi li, ve ani lo,” which means,
“My beloved is mine and I am theirs.”
David referred to God as “my God”, whether it was in the blessings or the storms of his life. It was a covenant of love.
God isn’t just our pastor’s God, our mother’s or father’s God, or the God of the scriptures. Neither is He found only inside houses of worship. C.S.Lewis once said, “The world is crowded with God, because He walks everywhere, incognito.” Knowing the story of Moses at the burning bush, God’s presence extends to however He chooses to manifest Himself, whether incognito through a voice in a flaming fiery bush or openly, through Jesus as His son walking among us.
We call Him our God, like David did, because He loves us more than anyone else on earth ever would or could, and we love Him back by trusting in His steadfast love. Even in the times when we hurt the most, we can still expect nothing less than the goodness of a loving God, because we are His and He is ours.
When I was around nine years old, my mother worked full time, and took a city bus to and from work each day. I had a neighborhood friend, named Mary Margaret, who was a few years younger than me. While we were playing outside, she would stop as soon as she saw my mother getting off the city bus, a half a block away. Then Mary Margaret ran toward my mother, with open arms, and received a big hug from her, even before I could.
The first time I saw her do this, I was perplexed and wondered why she was so excited to see “my” mother. She had her own mother and father, so why did she greet my mother so enthusiastically each day. I may never fully understand why, but I did know that my mother was the kind of person, that one little girl couldn’t wait to hug every day.
I became adjusted each day to Mary Margaret’s zeal to be first to run into my mother’s arms, because I was secure in knowing that my mother loved me. She was still my mother, and I was her daughter. I actually began to feel proud, knowing she was so special to someone else.
That’s how I interpret an intimate relationship with a loving God. It is personal enough, to give us a sense of security, knowing that nothing and no one could ever change how He loves us. I was secure in being loved by “my mother”, just as I came to be secure in being loved by “my God.” That’s the kind of love that is better than life.
When we see someone else receive a blessing, instead of feeling left out, we’re proud of God’s goodness being shown to them, as if to say, “That’s my God.”
Jesus set aside time to pray every day, but since He was divine, and one with His Father, He could do any miracle and make anything happen, if He wanted to. So what was there for Him to pray about every day?
Jesus prayed every day simply out of mutual love for His Father. He wasn’t driven by obligation or duty, but by love, and love desires never ending dialogue, especially when hugs are not feasible. Jesus prayed every day, for dialogue with His Father, who He loved more than His own life. We have all been created for perpetual dialogue and spiritual hugs with “our” Heavenly Father.
Lord, thank you for your steadfast love which secures us in ways no one and nothing else could. We praise and adore you because your love is truly better than life. Amen
