Attributes of God

I have been thinking this morning about some of the attributes of our glorious God.

I must confess that lately when I reflect about these attributes, it feels like a rather stale and tired subject. Is that heretical? Can I still be a pastor if I feel this way? How can the idea of an Omnipotent Creator be uninteresting, especially when it feels that this world is spinning out of control? Or how could the fact that God is Omniscient (all-knowing) be stale when there are so many experiences in our lives that don't make sense and it is comforting to really understand that God actually knows what is going on. How about that God is Just when everywhere you look injustice rears its ugly head?

I guess what I mean is that I have read countless books about God's attributes, have led inductive studies about them, have personally mined the riches of scripture to learn more about my King, and have even preached on some of these attributes. So I guess in my sinful nature I think that reflecting on the attributes is not profitable at this time. And yet I am drawn to our God, to know Him more clearly, and to join Him in the plan of Redemption through Jesus. I am drawn to His character and what makes Him who He is.

So I have come to realize that I need to explore the less taught, less understood, and lesser known attributes of our God.

Our God is a Redeemer. He takes that which is lost, helpless, hopeless, pathetic and brings it back to Himself making it found, restored, hopeful, and useful. People. Kingdoms. Nations. Churches. Creation.

Our God is a Sending God. When His people need Him, He sends a redeemer. Abraham. Moses. The Judges. Boaz. Jesus. He sent His son to save the world. As the Father has sent Jesus, now we are sent as ambassadors for Him.

Our God is a Creative God. Look around us. Since we are having winter in Seattle right now, who but God could have thought of and created clouds? Hail as opposed to snow as opposed to rain? I believe that not only does He create something from nothing, He is creative, that He actually takes great pleasure in creating. When He saw all that He had made He pronounced it good. After creating everything, "pronouncing it good" brings a smile to my face as I think of our Creator sitting back and delighting in His work.

Our God is Missional. He has a mission and a purpose for life, for His creation, His people. He welcomes us to join Him in this mission.

I think I need to reflect on these and put some of my thoughts out into the blogosphere for anyone and no one to see.

What are some other attributes that might not be as well known and understood?