Hello, friends. Today, I’d like to offer up another contribution to my Praise and Prose series, which looks at the way we use language when discussing matters of faith and spirituality, and how that language could change in order to be more true to reality.
I was listening to a song I love called “I Need You” (by a Christian artist named Eclipse Nkasi) and was struck by some of the lyrics in the song, which are as follows:
“I’ve been on my own for way too long”, and subsequently, “I need You, Lord”.
To listen to the song, click here.
The above quoted lyrics would make sense if it were ever possible for a person to be on their own, and without God. But in reality, I believe that due to God’s omnipresence, the idea of being estranged from God doesn’t actually make sense.
Allow me to elaborate a little.
I have always felt uncomfortable when Christians talk about the idea of ‘backsliding’ from their faith, because there seems to be an implication that God is only in our lives when we are actively pursuing Jesus, rather than being in control of every aspect of our lives in their entirety, which I believe is the way things really are.
The worldview encapsulated in the song lyrics suggests that God is separate from His creation, which is something a lot of Christians believe. But in my books I argue in favour of God’s literal omnipresence, which means there is nothing outside of the being of God, and this perspective encapsulates the related idea of God’s sovereignty over all events, including all human activity.
These things considered, I believe the lyrics I quoted do not make sense, if they are taken literally. Well, you might say they should be taken metaphorically. But if someone were to argue that, I would suggest they are using metaphor in order to be dishonest about the true nature of things, and the fact that in reality it is impossible to be separate from God’s guiding hand.
It is true that our awareness of God sometimes goes away, so we can have the experience of being isolated. But this is just a mode of mind under God’s control. God often makes us feel as though we are acting independently, by removing our awareness of Him from our consciousness. But this doesn’t mean that in reality He goes away (check out my video entitled Modes of Mind for a deeper exploration of this). God is always intimately involved in our every activity throughout our lives, from our hearts beating, to our bodies growing and changing, to our circulation and digestion, to our actions, and even our thinking.
There is no separateness from God; there never has been, and there never can be.
I believe that what the singer of the song I quoted is really trying to say is that he wants an experience of peace, knowing God loves him and isn’t angry with him, and that he is safe. I could relate to that entirely, but this view encapsulates a manner of understanding which is quite different to that expressed in the lyrics of the song.
I believe the alleged separation between God and creation is a flaw which is present in the thinking of many Christians, and I hope that if readers consider their relationship with God carefully, and in terms of their present moment awareness (and the way they pray, for instance), they will be able to see the logic in the arguments I am making here, and may think twice about using phrases that imply they are ever acting independently of the will of God.
If you would like to share any thoughts or feedback in relation to this article, you are welcome to email me via the Contact page. For previous posts in this series, check out the Praise and Prose category. Feel free to subscribe to this blog to receive an email whenever I publish a new post. Thank you for reading, and have a blessed day.
(Image by Wokandapix from Pixabay)
Perfect Chaos 