God is All-Knowing.

Enough said...right? It only makes sense that our God of the Universe, the Creator of All Things, would be omniscient. It's ludicrous to think that He's unaware of the starving children around the world. I'm also quite certain that He sees what's going on in the Middle East...in Haiti...in Darfur. He is acutely aware of the depravity that wrecks this world. However, this isn't the

"all-knowing" that Chan's referring to as he describes the third characteristic of God. He writes:

"Each of us, to some degree, fools our friends and family about who we really are. But, it's impossible to do that with God. He knows each of us, deeply and specifically. He knows our thoughts before we think them, our actions before we commit them, whether we are lying down or sitting or walking around. He knows who we are and what we are about. We cannot escape Him, not even if we want to." p. 32

There's a lot we could chew on here, but I want to focus on the principle message. Despite the facade we sometimes construct for the people around us, God knows who we really are. THERE IS NO FOOLING HIM! Each of us falls somewhere on the spectrum, at any given time. We pretend to be someone we're not in order to make a good impression. Some project a pristine image in order to veil an imperfection, an insecurity, or in some cases, something more sinister. Have you ever changed your clothes more than once (or twice) because you were afraid of what someone else might think? Have you ever said something, or not said something, because you feared the response it would garner? Have you ever wanted the approval of someone so badly that you did something you never thought you would do? Have you ever compromised who you are, what you believe, for the acceptance of someone else...whether that someone's a parent, a spouse, a boss, a neighbor, a co-worker, a child. The list can be exhaustive...and so can the process of pretending. But what we forget is that no matter how "successful" we are at fooling other people, we can NEVER fool God.

Right now, I don't think it's important to try and conquer the "Why?" (Why do we pretend?) We'll save that battle for another day. For our purposes here, we just need to be conscious of our behavior and acknowledge the fact that God is all-knowing.

THE PUSH

In an effort to dig a little deeper...because that's what I like to do...I want us to think about something else. God's characteristic of being omniscient extends well beyond his ability to see through our false pretenses. He sees what we do behind closed doors. He hears the harsh words I say to my children out of anger and frustration. He hears the disrespectful tone I sometimes use with my husband. And worst yet, He knows the things that I won't dare say, but have no problem thinking.

For the next 48 hours, pretend that God is physically with you at all times. He's sitting with you in the car as you drive. He's standing next to you as you unload the dishwasher or prepare dinner. He's right next to you as you surf the web. If you pick up the phone for idle chat, think of it as a 3-way call with Him on the other line. When you've had all you can take because it's vacation week and your kids are getting the best of you, He's right there to witness how you handle the situation. (I'm totally projecting that one, can you tell?) Do you get where I'm going with this? I'm willing to bet that this change in perspective will lead to a change in behavior.

His Faithful Servant~

Deirdre