A PERSONAL GOD
16th Jul 2025
At the moment I am reading a book “Incomparable” by Andrew Wilson, its subtitle, “Explorations in the Character of God.” It is not a quick read, its short chapters need to be read slowly and thought about, to gain the most out of the book.
On the one hand, God is the Creator, who has made the world and who “Flung stars into space.” He is mighty, majestic, amazing, all powerful, and yet He has chosen us to be His children, to know Him and to be His friend. The contrast could not be greater.
As I am slowly working through the chapters of this book, I am amazed by the scope of God’s character, and yet the greatest challenge is to get to know Him better at a personal level.
We are living in a world where loneliness is a very big problem. However, for those of us who have a personal relationship with God, we have someone who comes into our lives and takes away that inner ache. Jesus said of His relationship with God, “I am not alone, for my Father is with me.” (John 16:32)
In John 14, Jesus is telling His disciples about what is going to happen once He has gone back to heaven. In verse 18, He says concerning the coming of the Holy Spirit, “I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you.” and later on, “On that day you will realise that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.”
Isn’t it amazing that the holy God would want to know me personally, be my friend, share all my joys and sorrows, lift me up when I fall down, comfort me when I am sad, rejoice with me when good things are happening in my life. A Father who will listen to me as I pour out my heart, and speak to me as I listen to His voice every day.
What kind of God do you have? Is he remote and too big to know? Or is he your friend?
Proverbs 18:24 says, “There is friend who sticks closer than a brother.” That friend is Jesus who together with the Father and the Holy Spirit can meet your every need, and be close to you when you could feel very lonely.
by Charles Sibthorpe
