Pentecostal Devotions

An Encounter with God

by Jacqui Grey

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty” (Isaiah 6:5)

Isaiah 6 is a passage about encountering God. Isaiah sees God in the Temple, envisioned as a great king over all of creation who reigns unchangeably on the throne even when the earthly king has died. The death of the king was a strategic time as it usually represented a period of instability, upheaval and uncertainty. The shift in leadership was an opportunity for foreign nations to invade and take advantage of the instability of the kingdom. But in the midst of this upheaval, Isaiah encounters God. However this is not God as a shepherd, or God as a parent, or God as mother eagle – Isaiah saw God as a king.

It is interesting that in the midst of seeing the grandeur of God in this chapter, Isaiah’s vision is of an embodied figure. The king in the Ancient world was the ultimate ruler who held all power, control and authority. Isaiah needed to know that despite earthly events, God was in control of the world. He needed to know God was king - and this is exactly what God reveals to Isaiah. God is personified, like a human, like a person sitting on a throne wearing robes. Part of this is the inability of human language and cognition to conceptualise God – words cannot describe God, or perhaps even humanity understand God other than in human terms - but it also is part of the revelation of Isaiah: the transcendent God is also a personable God. The God who extends his will and person to touch an individual – to meet that person where they are at. This reminds us that God meets us where we’re at. God cares for each of us so much that, as John 3:16 reminds us, he sent his son to meet us exactly in our moment of need – our uncleanness. But beyond this, God wants to meet us personally and relationally. God wants to meet with you. Are you ready for an encounter?

Welcome to the SCC devotional blog!

Here at Southern Cross College, we value the way the Spirit can breathe upon all of our lives - so that all of us (not just staff or lecturers or students who have been studying at a certain level for a certain amount of time) can hear from God - and not just in compartmentalised devotional moments; rather, our devotional life flows into and out of the other aspects of our lives (such as 'practical ministry', relationships at work and family....and even study!). We also appreciate that our spirituality is not formed in a vacuum; rather, we can all come to a greater knowledge and love of God as we share our understanding and experience of God with one another (this sharing extends beyond our immediate community down through the history of the church and the communities that wrote and canonised the Scriptures).

With this in mind, we have begun a devotional project: several of the subjects offered this semester include a 10% assessment requirement of writing 2 x 1 page devotional reflections relating to that subject. Then we compile the reflections into groups of seven and send them as a weekly email to the SCC community, enabling us to share our perspectives on God and continue to integrate our study with our spirituality.

So feel free to join us on our devotional journey; if you would like to be added to the list of people to receive the weekly email, send an email to [email protected] with 'devotional subscribe' in the subject line. Or if you prefer to read a day at a time, feel free to read here on our blog, or subscribe to the daily feed offered here by feedblitz.