In the previous post, I boldly exclaimed I don’t know God. I don’t say this for mere shock value, as I believe it to be true. I really don’t know God.
How do I know I don’t know him? In Knowing God (please pardon the redundancy) Packer asserts that “when people know God, losses and “crosses” cease to matter to them; what they have gained simply banishes these things from their minds” (p. 27). He then lists four effects that knowledge of God has on a person:
- Those who know God have great energy for God;
- Those who know God have great thoughts of God;
- THose who know God show great boldness for God;
- Those who know God have great contentment in God.
I confess I’m lacking in these effects. I’m spiritually lethargic, have rather little thoughts about him, am afraid to take biggish steps forward, and am restless. Mind you, I once had the effects Packer describes. But 2009-2010 have proven to be watershed years for me, with unexpected highs and lows that have shaken me to the core. I won’t get into all the sordid details except to say a fair bit of suffering was/is involved, resulting in equal amounts of humility. Prior to my world being rocked, I thought I knew God. But I admit that I often excercise on the gerbil wheel of replaying what happened, fixating on what I’ve lost, dwelling on my “crosses.”
Perhaps I’m not alone in my predicament? May God grant me grace to move from knowing about him to knowing him.
