Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high, who looks far down on the heavens and the earth? He raises the poor from the dust, and lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes ..." (Psalm 113:5-8)
With all due respect to the great Bette Midler, ours is not a God who "looks down from a distance" on us our lives. I can understand the thought and the image, yes. However, if the Christian faith says anything about God, it is that God is not aloof nor removed from the world God created. Instead, our God is the one not only dwelt with us Jesus, but dwells with us still in the Spirit of Jesus.
In doing so, God is able to do quite a remarkable thing: God lifts us from our struggles and pains and raises us to new life and renewed life time and time again. This is at the heart of the witness of Jesus. This is the central aspect of His ministry and teaching. It remains the most vital confession and profession that we make as followers of Jesus.
My dad says it this way: God is "God-enough" for our sin, shame, sufferings, and pain. Through the Spirit of Jesus, and activated amidst our faithful response to the promise, we come to find that our lives are redeemed and restored no matter the circumstance and no matter the brokenness.
As we know, this can be and often times will be a long and winding road. Still, it is the primary work of God to raise us up from our moments and experiences of desperation, to offer us hope beyond hope for each and every struggle and each and every shame.
Our God is "God-enough" to help us face our trials and "God enough" to not only offer us comfort amidst our trials and see us through them, but to hasten the time when peace and restoration will once again reign in our lives, and prayerfully, in our world.
God-Enough, may we cling to your promised presence always and in all ways. Amen.
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