Who is God to you today?

"The Lord is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?"  Psalm 27:1
"God is our refuge and our strength, a very present help in time of trouble." Psalm 46:1
"The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; The God of my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; my Savior, you save me from violence.  I will call upon  the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies." 2 Samuel 22:2-4


The way that we see God reflects very strongly on the way we live our Christian lives.  The adjectives used by David and Samuel in the above verses portray a God without limitations.  God is described as light, salvation, strength, a refuge, a hero, a rock, a fortress, a deliverer, trustworthy, a stronghold, the Savior, and worthy to be praised.  Usually when you give someone a compliment it is after that person has done something to instigate it.  For example, a person you know gives you an encouragement card and you then thank them for being a good friend.  They are considered a friend because of their actions towards you.  When David exclaimed that the Lord is "a present help in time of trouble," it meant that, in some way, God had been there for him when he really needed him.  Each of those praises and compliments that David and Samuel exclaimed were earned by a loving God that they each knew and experienced personally.  Sometimes God may allow you to go through certain experiences that may seem incredibly hard at the time, but through them He is hoping to reveal more of Himself to you.  By experiencing Him in these situations, you become better equiped and ready to call on Him when the next difficult situation rolls around.  You will begin to lean on Him instead of trying to get through it in your own strength.  God desires for us to rely on Him and get our strength, encouragement and motivation from the love that He pours into our lives.  It is important to take time to ponder who God is to you.  In what ways have you seen Him work in your life, and in what ways has he provided for you?  Through each tough circumstance you go through, consider how your view of God changes.  A few years back my mom's sister passed away and I saw my mom's view of God change.  Over those months when my aunt was in chemotherapy, the Lord became a stronghold to my mom.  He brought peace to her heart in a way no one else could do.  God gave my mom the strength to be selfless and encouraging when she was with my aunt in the hospital, and then He comforted her when she wept and mourned in His arms for the loss of her beloved sister.  Does my mom wish she didn't have to go through that hard time? Of course, but she is incredibly thankful for the Lord's support and she now has a new perspective on who God is because of what he did for her.  God reveals himself to us through how he cares for us in the midst of our crazy lives.  Today he may be God..the comforter and tomorrow he may be God the ...challenger.  Who is God to you today??