More Than A Genie

How amazing is it that God actually gives us Himself? The infinite, glorious, spectacular, and altogether lovely God of the universe is all ours. --Jefferson Bethke

A relationship with God isn’t a relationship at all if we’re only after what God can give us.

We turn to God and expect Him to answer our every need. We call Him faithful and good when He does those very things, and rightly we should. But a relationship with God isn’t about what He can give us, but about loving Him for who He is—our God, our Savior, our Father. When we stop treating God like He’s a genie in a bottle and start embracing a relationship with Him, we discover a joy that will remain even when everything is taken from us. We learn to still love God and we grow in our relationship with Him because we know that the things of this world, and the trials we face, do not define or shift the character of God. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He will not leave us or forsake us. His love for us will never end.


What kind of loving relationship exists when two people only care about what they can get from their significant other? It’s shallow. There’s no love for the other person, no care or desire to grow deeper in their relationship. 

So it is with God. Yes, He is our Provider, but that’s just an added bonus to getting to know Him through a deep, daily walk. When we truly get to know Him for who He is, rather than what we can get, we discover a prize that is beyond anything we could ever ask for.