A short post about something I've been considering lately.
It is almost second nature to assume, when we hear "Be sure your sin will find you out" or similar mentalities, that the thing God notices the most when He sees us is our sin.
Do you tend to think that way? Do you feel most aware of what God is thinking about you in moments of sin or immediately after?
I wonder this, because as I've been around parents of young children lately, I've realized something that I never noticed before, and will probably be much more keenly aware of once or if I have children some day. Parents are constantly clapping and whooping and praising children with "Good girl!" and the like. Parents seem to take deep joy in the little accomplishments, the little victories, the new skills as they form. What if God views us this way? What if the parental love that exists towards children is only a shadow of the Original Parent? What if God is cheering for us when we grit our teeth and resist the urge to tailgate the person who just cut us off? Or when Facebook is offering one of those "Meet Hot Sexy Christian Singles" ads with a very immodestly clad Christian woman, but you refuse the temptation to click on it? Or when we sit down to pray, late at night when the day has sucked most of our energy away, or in the morning before our brains are even working, does His heart thrill that we are choosing to spend time with Him? What if God's over-arching sentiment towards us is excitement and joy and pleasure, rather than scorn, disappointment, frustration?
I think we, particularly as Christians, do a lousy job of encouraging and affirming the good qualities in each other and of drawing attention to the heart of God towards His children when it comes to good things. We're pretty quick to worry about quenching and grieving the Holy Spirit, but how much thought do we put towards making the Holy Spirit proud of us, like a father who beams at his son's home run or the way his daughter shares with a sibling when she doesn't realize she's being watched? We're extremely worried about not being prideful, we live under a false humility that refuses to acknowledge the good that God has created in us as His children or the positive reactions that God could be having the times when we aren't sinning.
I'm not talking about boasting in our own strength or thinking that we get brownie points with God for doing good things. Not at all. That's not the point and I think we know it. The point is to learn to trust God's heart towards us, and respond like children. To stop living as if God is only ever watching us with a raised whip, ready to crack us when we step out of line.
Hopefully, you don't see God this way. I'm learning not to, but I definitely picked up this mindset over the years and no one ever explicitly taught that God was like that. So, I imagine there are others of you out there that have had similar experiences and, when given the space to be honest, sometimes have a hard time really believing God likes you and doesn't think you're a big disappointment to Him.
And maybe He's smiling as we start to see the light of how He really sees us.
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