The many windows of God

I like allegories, imagery, and word pictures. I will admit that sometimes they are cheesy, but for the most part, they are at least helpful to me.

One that I have come to think about frequently in the past year or so is the idea of God being a house with many windows. We don't really know for sure what it's like in the house until we are in heaven, but in this life we are given the opportunity to look inside a window or two.

For much of my life, I think I have only looked in one (or maybe two) of God's windows. I only had a few views into his house. And for a long time, that was all I needed. In fact, I didn't even realize there were other windows to look into.

I have now been torn away from that window and placed in front of another window. Another room in the house of God that I didn't know existed. One that many other people, I'm sure, don't know about, either (though to be sure, there are many who have looked inside this window). I want to share what I see in that window - that is, when I can see through the window. Many times the curtains have been closed, or when they are not, the glass is so dirty it's hard to see in. Those who do visit this window usually are in a hurry to move on, so very few take care to clean it for others who might come along after.

As for what I see, I will venture to say that though it often may not sound orthodox, it is just as valid as the view into any of the other windows of God. Perhaps in heaven I will learn that the window I have been looking through was a false window - but I don't think so.

I want to tell my friends and whoever may be reading this that I do not presume to say that the window I used to look into, or the one you are looking into, is no longer real or valid. I believe it is. But for it to be valid, my window must also be valid.

As for what I see through my window, it would take pages and pages to even begin to describe it. But I can probably share a few things. I see a God who did not live up to my expectations - who was not who I thought he was - who did not do the things I thought he would do, or say the things I thought he would say. Who, according to my human perception (which is all I have right now), abandoned me in my greatest time of need.

I see a God who refuses to fit into any mold I have ever tried to place him in; who is full of surprises and mystery; who is still real despite seeming as absent as ever; who somehow has not given up on me despite the years of drought and doubt; who has created beautiful people to sustain me when he is "not enough"; and who somehow has remembered me even when I feel forgotten.

This is just a tiny bit of what I see.