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Admiring and Applauding God
Meditations on the Excellencies of God’s Character
R. Bruce Stevens
Foreword by Darrell Bustin
Admiring and Applauding God
Meditations on the Excellencies of God’s Character
Copyright © 2015 by R. Bruce Stevens. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.
Resource Publications
An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers
199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3
Eugene, OR 97401
www.wipfandstock.com
ISBN 13: 978–1-4982–0144-5
EISBN 13: 978-1-4982-0145-2
Manufactured in the U.S.A.
Dedicated to
Edmund Reuel Hutchins,
our cherished little friend of God,
who now enjoys the rich protection
of his heavenly Father
Begin the Day with God
Every morning lean thine arms awhile
Upon the window-sill of heaven
And gaze upon the Lord,
Then, with the vision in thy heart,
Turn strong to meet the day.
—Thomas Blake
Foreword
“Look at that!”
Who can ever resist responding to those words? It seems no matter what else we are doing at the time, whenever we hear those words, we can’t help but turn our eyes toward the object of attention.
In his book, Admiring and Applauding God, Bruce is basically saying to us, “Look at that!” It is so easy to rush past verses without stopping to truly look at what they are saying—especially verses which are familiar to us. In the following pages, over and over again, Bruce says, “Look at that! Look at the amazing view of God that we find in this verse.” The descriptions will fire your imagination!
Some will sound impressive—Awesome, Refuge, Protector.
Some will sound well-known—Shepherd, Light of the World, Creator.
Some will sound puzzling—Fire-master, Panic-sender, Light-wrapper.
Some will sound politically correct—Orphan-defender, Counselor, Animal-lover.
Some will sound so downright curious that we will be tempted to jump ahead to read them—Moth, Lopper, Stooper.
(Be honest, have you ever thought of God as a Curdler?)
But these 300 pictures of the Person of God are not designed to entertain us. Each one is chosen to help us see the Lord just a little more clearly so that we will adore him more deeply. It’s that simple. The images are drawn straight from the Bible. The insights Bruce gives are straightforward and uncluttered.
I have known Bruce for many years. He was one of my early mentors during my time at seminary. I sincerely appreciated him then, and that appreciation has only grown deeper over the years. As I learned the ropes of ministry serving alongside him, several aspects of his character were consistently evident. He was approachable, thirsty for God, lovingly truthful, all with a life marked by integrity. Not surprisingly, those same words come to mind as I read these pages.
One of the things I love about this book is that it didn’t start as a tool for teaching others. Bruce began collecting these thoughts as a learner. It was born out of a personal desire to become better at adoring his Lord and Savior. It was only later that God planted the idea in his heart that there were others who had similar struggles in focusing on his character, who could benefit from these glimpses into God’s extraordinary nature. And thus this book was born.
If you are like me, you will be grateful for this book, in which Bruce taps us on the shoulder to get our attention and then points to a verse and says with wonder, “Look at that!”
Darrell Bustin
Introduction
I was taught early on that when it comes to prayer, there are four basic components: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication, known by the acronym ACTS. Eventually I found it more helpful to revise this handy framework into terms easier for me to identify with—PCAT, for Praise, Confession, Asking, and Thanksgiving.
I found that of these four parts of prayer, I could easily spend time in three. I was aware of both my own sinfulness and blessedness, so Confession and Thanksgiving were easy. And of course, who struggles with the Asking part of prayer? But Praise—now, that was a different matter. It was not for lack of desire that I struggled to praise God in prayer. I wanted to praise him as the Psalmist instructs, “Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name” (Ps 103:1), but I just could not think of a way to consistently do so when I prayed. I sense many Christians struggle in much the same way.
I also found that I struggled to keep clear in my mind the distinction between thanking God and praising him. What I found helpful was this: Thanksgiving in prayer focuses on what God has done for me or has given to me, while Praise focuses on the person of God himself—what kind of person he is. Perhaps an example would be helpful. God is a Planner. Praising God as a Planner would focus on his amazing ability to make and implement plans for the world, nations, families, and individual people. Whereas we struggle to make plans for one day, even for one person, much less to successfully carry them out, God effortlessly makes plans for billions of people and carries out these plans flawlessly. How amazing is he to do that! Thanksgiving would focus on thanking God for his plans—past, present and future, including the plan of salvation, the plan to bring all things under the Lordship of Christ, and the plans he has for us and our loved ones.
I believe that God, in response to my desire to learn how to better praise and adore him, gave me an immensely practical insight to help me when I pray. It is my hope that what has proven helpful for me will aid my readers as well.
For several years during my devotional time, I had been noting the Bible passages that gave insight into the person and working of God. When it first happened, it was as if a light bulb went off. I began to see praiseworthy aspects of God’s character and nature everywhere. These insights enabled me to focus on his greatness and goodness, leading me to naturally delight in him and
