When things become unbearable, we often end up defining God in our own human ways. I did just that, but let me tell you, these definitions are often wrong. It was only when I started getting to know God better that I was able to overcome the darkness. Knowing God’s real character will help you get out of that dark place too. In this episode, we take a step further in getting to know Him.
As a person who did all the “good girl” things growing up, I never imagined facing a serious faith crisis. With my finances hitting rock bottom while dealing with overwhelming grief over a brother who passed away, I was overwhelmed. But I got through it when I finally understood who God truly is. It doesn’t matter if your perception of God is different than mine. Whether your God to you is the universe, energy, love, or angels – this episode is all about recollecting and redefining our thoughts about God’s real character.
The Struggles Began And Never Seemed To Stop
Ever came to a time in your life when everything was a big old mess? I did. Right at a scary time of a financial crisis in my family, my brother Tyler died at the age of thirty. I was severely stunned by the level of grief I was experiencing.
It was hard enough already, but we also had to pay for his funeral, and we all know how expensive it is to die in America. We literally had only forty-eight cents in our savings account and everything was financially and emotionally draining.
To make matters even worse, our oven caught fire ten days after his death. Nobody got hurt and the fire was not big enough to gobble the house up. But when all these things come together in a very short period of time, you can really lose the ground beneath your feet.
I Asked and It Was Not Given
The more I asked for God’s presence, the emptier I felt. I prayed for a heavenly hug. I needed to feel something that would calm and reassure me that everything was going to be alright. But on the very night, I prayed for comfort from God, I had the most confusing dream instead.
I dreamt that my father died and I was all alone. The feeling was so real and it was the entire opposite of what I asked God for. It was a classic kick-in-the-butt response and it hurt me to the core.
At that moment, I just snapped. It turned into the typical “I’ve had enough” scenario for me. My optimistic attitude dissipated and I wasn’t interested in seeking comfort from God ever again.
Financial Crisis Turned Into Faith Crisis
You wouldn’t imagine me rebelling, would you? Well, I never smoked or drank or did anything abusive to my body. It was not that kind of rebellion. But something else was damaged or even gone.
I stopped praying and I stopped hoping. The good thing was that I still brought my family to church. But deep inside, I was empty and cold.
So I started to revert my attention towards other things, like studying universal laws and learning about energy. Slowly my faith was beginning to come around again. And it wasn’t long before I realized that God never really left me!
I Got God All Wrong
It came to the point when I looked back and saw that I was defining God in my own terms and understanding. I was struck by the thought of assuming that God had left me when I was the one who left. And even after all my tantrums, He led me to a brighter place by sending me people and things that made me feel whole again.
I felt like I needed to study who God really is and came across a book called “Lectures on Faith” by Joseph Smith. The beautiful things I learned made me realize that I could not understand God enough because I didn’t know him enough.
These Are the Six Attributes of God That We All Should All Know
#1 God is God before the world was created and the same God after.
God was always there and has never changed. It is comforting to know that.
#2 God is merciful and gracious.
Because humans are weak, this characteristic of God is essential. It is so reassuring to know that God is a God who forgives all the time.
#3 God doesn’t change or vary.
God is not bound to change His rules or His plans because He does not change. Wow, can anything be better news than that?
#4 God cannot lie.
It’s not that God will not lie, but He CANNOT lie. That’s because God is not like us. He is not human. And so I think it’s exciting that every promise and every word He gives us is nothing but the truth. It is all bound to happen!
#5 God is no respecter of persons.
Imagine if God had favorites according to our race, our status in life, or gender. It’s truly remarkable to know that He takes everyone the same. It’s a reassurance for us that we are all entitled to be part of His plans.
#6 God is love.
Everything God does is fueled by love. Everything God does is all because of love. We are expected to act and have a mindset that is tethered to love, too.
I hope this has been as helpful to you as it has been for me. I’m inviting you to check out what’s in store next week because we’re going to talk about how to get God to answer your prayers and why we feel like God doesn’t answer our prayers sometimes!
Additional resources
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