There’s No Call Waiting on the Divine Phone.

Suppose you have a personal crisis, where do you go for help? To someone powerful but distant like our Canadian Prime Minister, or to someone close at hand? Your mom or dad, your sibling or best friend? The answer seems obvious unless you are estranged from your loving family and friends. Well, if we are converted, God is our Father and Jesus is our friend. God invites us to take our problems to him for he is closer than our skin.

In this series of blogs on the attributes of God, we’ve been looking at God’s omnipresence. He is immense; he fills the whole universe. Although present, he is transcendent, that is—completely separate or distinct from all created things. But that’s not all the truth about God. He is also IMMANENT; closer than our heartbeat. This is what astounded David in Psalm 139. “Where shall I go from your Spirit?…Where shall I flee from your presence?…up to the heavens You are there…in the depths, you are there” (vs 7,8). How much of God is there? Just a tiny fragment of his immensity? No, all of God.

Have you ever wondered how God could be with Bashir in Pakistan and Betty in Belleville—at the same time? No wonder the Psalmist cried out in vs. 6, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.” This is beyond all experience and understanding.

We’re used to trying to get through to a government department only to be shunted through a series of numbers and finally be told that the mailbox of messages is full. “Try again later.” Or we’re told that the number is no longer in service. Even in our homes we’re used to being distracted by Johnny climbing on the table while Sarah cries from her room.

God is never distracted by a million people wanting his attention. He never postpones hearing our cries until he is free to listen. He never makes us wait. He gives to each of us his full attention. Impossible? Yes, impossible to anyone who is not immanent in his relationship to us as our Father and friend.

When David wrote in Psalm 23 that the LORD is our shepherd who leads us, it means he gives us the full attention of his love, mercy and wisdom. When David exclaimed in Psalm 139 verses 17 and 18 that God’s thoughts toward us are precious and vast beyond counting, he is expressing incredulity at the way the infinite God focuses his concern, not generally on all mankind, but individually on each of us. It is Incredible!

What a God we serve; immense, transcendent and immanent in his omnipresence! Let these thoughts reverberate in our minds and move us to worship. And let’s remember them the next time we cry out for help. God is closer than our heartbeat.

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