During my prayer time this morning I found myself asking God to help me relate to Him as the great and awesome God He is, as well as the friend He chooses to make Himself.
That thought stopped me for a moment. I had asked God to place me in dichotomy. I wanted to relate to God in two opposite ways simultaneously. Strictly speaking that is not possible. However, on reflection I realized as impossible as it is, it's also necessary.
God gives us paradoxes in other situations as well. One common conundrum that people struggle with is the co-existence of God's unfailing love and unyielding justice. It is hard for us to understand that God can love someone completely and still send them into eternal punishment. It stands against every part of our western thought, yet it remains a spiritual truth. Many more wise than I have tackled this question, yet at the end of all the arguments and postulation we still either take it on faith, choose to twist the Biblical facts, or reject both ideas and God with them.
This holds true for our dichotomous relationship with God as well. Are we willing to look at God two ways at once? Can we see Him as to great to understand and as our closest friend simultaneously? I guess if we want to be true to the Biblical record, we will have to.
On a personal note, I like it this way. I'd rather have a God I can't understand than one that's within my mental abilities to fathom. God's mystery makes Him more "God-ish" to me.
The problem comes when we must teach our kids this truth. Do we pick one or the other? Do we make one more real than the other? My personal opinion is that we should give our kids the whole truth. I truly believe children are not stupid. They can understand that God is big yet He is our closest friend. In some ways kids can grasp this better than we can. I think they are better off if they do.
So here's my question: Do you choose one side of God to portray to your children's church or do you give them the whole deal?
