I’m gonna share a personal secret with you that nobody else knows – and I am ashamed – a little. 

You see, the car I drive has wheel covers that do not match.  There is a matched pair on the driver’s side, and an entirely different matched pair on the passenger side.  So those entering the car from the right, see properly coordinated wheel covers, and the same if you enter from the left. 

But nobody knows that the covers are mismatched side-to-side, because it’s impossible to see both sides of the car at once.  Hey I have tried. 

___________

It strikes me, that you and I may have more in common with my car than we might prefer to admit.  There is the side of us that blesses the folks at church, but our boss endures a different kind of person at work.  Or maybe our in-laws are impressed with us, but our kids detest us or at least the person they experience at home.

We put on a proper show when we need to and let it all hang loose the rest of the time.  Our character projections do not match!  But it’s OK because few can see every side of us at once.

But there is One who can!   King David wrote these words about the Lord in Psalm 139.  He said, “You squeeze me in from behind and in front; you place your hand on me.”  (139:5-6) NETBible®

In this one sentence David recognized that God was before him, behind him and over him.   God can be somewhere and be fully present everywhere all at the same time.  He is omnipresent. 

David continued, “If I were to ascend to heaven, you would be there.   If I were to sprawl out in Sheol, there you would be.  If I were to fly away on the wings of the dawn and settle down on the other side of the sea, even there your hand would guide me…” (139:8-10)

This of course means, that God is in the boardroom and in your bedroom.  He is there at the communion table and our dining room tables.  This also means that He stands on both sides of my car and is aware of the mismatch.

If it were possible to strip God of His omnipresence, it wouldn’t matter because God is also all knowing.  He is omniscient.  The apostle John wrote, “…God is greater than our conscience and knows all things.” – 1 John 3:20. NETBible®

He knows all things.  God knows the past, the present and the future simultaneously.  He even knows what might have been.  And sadly, He also knows about the inconsistencies in our lives of which others may be unaware.

But what if they were?  What if your small group at church knew that you were cut-throat at work?  What if your in-laws knew that you were verbally abusive with your kids? 

I am thinking that my work ethic might improve, if my boss was also an Elder at my church. 

We pick and choose the people that we want to please because the approval of some matters more to us than the approval of others – much like the Pharisees.  Jesus described them in this way, “For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”  John 12:43 – KJV

So maybe it’s time to elevate God’s approval in our thinking over that of men.  Why?  Because God sees every side of us, but He may not be pleased with every side of us.

His grace, however, can produce consistency in our character if we will let Him.

Guess what?  I have ordered a complete set of wheel covers for my car. 

Both sides will soon match and there will be consistency in what I drive.  I hope to see the same with how I live.  I wish it were as simple as ordering it from Amazon.

A PRAYER: Lord we need more than we got – to live the way that we need.  More grace please!

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you!