Embracing The Mystery of God

There's a lot that's wrong in the world around us.  It doesn't take keen powers of observation to know this.  

Today, I'm reflecting sadly on the violence that is such a part of our culture--a culture that has become so filled with rage and division that it feels like we're heading for something even more terrible. 

I am also wondering where God is in all of this.  As a pastor, it can be challenging to continue defending a God who seems distant at times, maybe even most of the time.  

I wish that God would make it all okay in some mighty, miraculous way, and that there would be peace in our world. I also wish that our hearts would be softened toward one another, and that we would know without a doubt that God's hands are on the wheel of history.  

But I do know that my questions and my longings are not mine alone.  Many of us share them, and we often struggle with our faith amid the uncertainty and volatility of the world around us.  

I wrote a poem once entitled "The Question" that wrestles with this very idea:

What is that You really
think of us, from wherever
it is that You ponder
such things, as if You pondered,
which is to say, sat and
thought, or bent Your mind
toward us, as if You had one,
in a body, which You don't
possess, even though we humans
like to think of You that way
so that we can comprehend the
infinite, which, though beyond
our abilities, we try to do at
every turn to make some kind of
sense of the world, and of You,
and also to see if there is something
we're missing or getting wrong,
or getting You wrong, because
it's hard to know if You are there
at times, or are mindful of us,
as we do our best to see You,
hear You, and know You--You,
who are unknowable, unseen as if
You are hiding on purpose,
wanting us to try to find You?

I wanted this poem to capture both the longing and the limitation of human imagination when it comes to God. We reach for metaphors—hands, mind, body—so we can make sense of the One who is beyond sense. We do our best to fit the infinite into our finite categories, only to realize that God always spills over.

The apostle Paul acknowledged this when he wrote: “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12). Our vision of God, even at its clearest, is partial and blurred. 

Similarly, Job, after wrestling with God’s presence and absence, confessed, “Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know” (Job 42:3).

The truth is, God is not hiding from us but inviting us into the mystery. Mystery is not the absence of God’s presence but the fullness of it, overwhelming our small categories. And on the other side of that mystery is not chaos, but love and grace—Jesus himself, who reveals the heart of the unknowable God in a form we can touch, see, and trust.

So perhaps the work of faith is not to explain God but to embrace God. Not to solve the divine, but to rest in the promise that the One who surpasses our imagination holds us securely.

Prayer:
Holy and Infinite God, remind us that Your mystery is not something to fear but to welcome. Free us from the need to explain You, and lead us instead to trust You. May we find peace in knowing that beyond our understanding lies Your unending love. Amen.

Reflection Questions:

1. In what ways have you tried to “explain” God, and how has that limited your experience of God?

2. Where in your life do you sense God inviting you to embrace mystery rather than certainty?

3. How might trusting the mystery of God open you more fully to God’s love and grace?