How you view God

Today we’re talking about how you view God. Because how you see Him shapes how you trust Him.

Some people see God as distant — like a judge waiting to catch every mistake. Others see Him as unpredictable — good one day, silent the next. But the Bible paints a much different picture.

Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!”

That’s personal. That’s close. That’s an invitation.

God doesn’t want to be a faraway figure in your life. He wants to be your Father — someone you walk with, talk with, and depend on.

The truth is, the way we view God often comes from our past — maybe how we were raised, or how people treated us. But the beautiful thing about God is that He invites us to know Him for ourselves — to taste and see His goodness firsthand.

So, my question is this: Do you see God as He really is, or just as you’ve experienced people to be?

Since our scripture is Psalm 34:8, let’s talk about David. He is the one who wrote most of the Psalms. He wrote them in every stage of his life.

Happy, sad, fearful, in the midst of pain and sorrow — you name it, he went through it. Some things were because of his choices, and some weren’t.

As you read through the Psalms, you can feel every emotion he was having. In a lot of the Psalms, he was lamenting and letting God know he just didn’t know if He was there, but he always ended the Psalms with praise. This was regardless of his feelings and whether he even knew God was there. The thing is, he actually knew that God was there the whole time.

His faith in God was strong and did not waver, no matter his circumstances.

He knew God, and God knew him.

When I was little, I viewed God through my parents. I didn’t fully understand who God was, and I was at the age when we learn everything from our parents.

So of course, along with that, we learn how to do life and how we see God because we have watched them in their walks.

At some point I had to learn who God was in my life, and as I did that — you know life continues on — marriage happens, children come along, and I wanted my kids, who are now watching me in my walk, to see God in a way where they would know who He is sooner than I did. I wanted them to understand that they can watch me, but it is important for them to know who God is to them. I’m not sure if I did that well, but I am doing my best.

It is all about discipleship so that those around us know who God is through us and not just through their feelings. Knowing God personally is so different than just watching others in their walks. Learn who He is to you.

God makes us, but the world shapes us — if we let it.

Often it is what we go through that makes us view things in different ways — like how we might view God to be.

We may see Him as angry, and when we read the Bible, our focus is on that. We may see Him as just and fair, and when we read the Bible, we focus on that.

When we read the Bible to try and understand things, we may be only looking through the lens of our circumstances in order to search out answers for that specific thing. There is no problem with that, as we are to come to God with all things and let Him guide us, but we have to be careful because, depending on where our hearts and minds are when reading, we can misinterpret the Word and mold it to what best fits us.

God will give you answers, so when you come to Him, don’t come with your eyes focused on the problem but more focused on what He has for you in the season you are in.

Let’s be real — it’s easy to let life shape how we view God.

When things go well, we say, “God is good.” But when life hurts, we start to wonder, “God, where are You?”

Our circumstances can change the way we feel about God, but they don’t change who He is.

He’s still faithful.

He’s still loving.

He’s still near to the brokenhearted.

Sometimes, when we walk through pain, it’s not that God’s love has changed — it’s that our view of Him has gotten clouded by disappointment or fear.

That’s why David says, “Taste and see.” You can’t know how good God is from a distance. You have to come close. You have to let Him meet you where you are — in the middle of your questions, in the middle of your waiting, in the middle of your mess.

Psalm 34:8 (NLT): “Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!”

When you do, you discover a God who isn’t angry or absent — He’s gentle, patient, and full of grace.

I remember being so free-spirited when I was younger — always laughing and just having a good time — and then at some point that just seemed to go away. I became anxious and fearful.

I grew up in church, so I knew that God was good, and I knew that He was with me and that He was protecting me.

I knew it in my thinking… I didn’t really know it or understand it in my heart.

There is mind knowledge, and there is heart knowledge.

When we know it through our mind, we can use it, but that doesn’t mean that we always understand it.

It is like learning how to do a math problem just enough to pass a test, but not enough to use it again after that.

To understand that our God is faithful, loving, and always working for our good, we have to know who God is in our hearts. We have to experience Him in a way that changes who we are because of our newfound faith in Him.

All that fear and anxiety that I experience aren’t gone, but they are lighter. I do find myself in that free-spirited form every now and then, and I can only attribute that to our faithful and loving God.

The heart knowledge of who God is changes everything.

Our emotions and our circumstances change our view on life, on people, and on God.

The struggle is real — to know if God is really there, if God is really handling everything, if God really works everything for my good.

I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression over the course of my life, and I attribute most of that to letting my emotions control me. With that comes all the questioning and trying to understand, but never letting my emotions go.

We see life skewed when our emotions are in charge. I can testify to that 100%.

The enemy wants that from us, because when we see even God through our emotions, we will never know Him and understand what He can do for us — and if the enemy can use that to keep us from a true relationship with the Lord, then he will.

I can’t tell you that my journey in this is over, because we are emotional people, and God gave us emotions — and they are good — but we have to always be working to remind ourselves that God gave them to us not to control us, but to help us understand things better.

Don’t let your emotions skew your view of God.

Psalm 34:8 (NLT): “Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!”

Here’s something to think about: what if your view of God is smaller than who He really is?

If you see Him as strict, you’ll spend your life trying to earn His approval.

If you see Him as distant, you’ll stop expecting Him to move in your life.

But when you see Him as your loving Father, it changes everything.

You begin to rest instead of striving.

You start to pray with confidence instead of fear.

You walk through challenges knowing you’re not alone.

When you know who God really is — not just from sermons or songs, but from personal experience — you start to see His fingerprints in every part of your story.

Even the hard parts begin to make sense in His timing, because you trust the heart behind it.

We can put God in a box. We can literally think that He can only handle this or that because we want our way more than His.

We can put Him in a box with our prayers, we can limit Him to the church building, and we can just go about life never thinking about Him.

How you view God determines if you have put Him in a box.

When you think about the things God has brought you through, do you find it to be confined in any way to one particular thing?

Think on what God has done for you and all the stages in life where He has stepped in, and I think you’ll find that you can’t put Him in a box. He has His hand on everything, and He is not a God that is only this or only that — He is a God who knows all and is not limited.

Do you view God as someone whom you can only call on when something is wrong? Do you view God as someone who is limited? Do you view God as someone who doesn’t understand you or anything because He’s not here?

How do you view Him?

Think on this question. Go and learn who He is for yourself. Understand His love, His character, and how He truly sees you.

When you do these things, your view of Him will change. When you do this, your view on life will change.

Expand your view and knowledge of who God is.

So today, I want to leave you with this thought:

How you view God determines how you live.

If you believe He’s good, you’ll run to Him — not away from Him.

If you believe He loves you, you’ll talk to Him honestly, even when life doesn’t make sense.

And if you believe He’s for you, you’ll start to see His hand in the details — even in the delays.

Psalm 34:8 says, “Taste and see that the Lord is good.”

So take a moment today to do just that — to pause, to pray, and to remember His goodness.

He’s not far away. He’s right here, with open arms, ready to show you who He really is.