He is Mine: Experiencing God’s Attributes

Our culture offers a variety of opinions as to who God is, presuming they even acknowledge the existence of God. So when you read the Bible, how do you apply the descriptions of God found on its pages? How do you personalize God’s attributes?

For example, which would you say are key words in the following verses:

“Blessed be the Lord, my rock…
My lovingkindness and my fortress,
My stronghold and my deliverer;
My shield and He in whom I take refuge.”
(Psalm 144:1-2 NASB)

The first time I read these verses, my attention was drawn to the various names and attributes of God listed there: Lord, lovingkindness, fortress, stronghold, deliverer, shield, refuge.

But the last time I studied the same verses, my attention was drawn to a word I had previously overlooked: my. Each name and attribute the author listed was preceded by personal possession. The writer didn’t just know about God, he had experienced these attributes in a personal way.

David’s experience

The author, David, was the second king of the unified nation of Israel, but he wasn’t born into a royal family. David was a shepherd. With that experience, God prepared him to shepherd a nation. Still, before he became a king, David was a fugitive, running for his life from the current king. For his own survival, he was forced to question the faithfulness of supposed friends—even as he strove for godly responses to those who declared themselves his enemies.

David’s relationship with the Lord was the one constant throughout all his experiences, from shepherd to fugitive to king. So when David wrote his psalms, he wrote out of personal experience. My rock. My lovingkindness. My fo tress. My stronghold. My deliverer. My shield.

David didn’t just take someone else’s word for it. This was personal. He understood who God is because he had experienced who God is.

Can the same be said of you and me?

Resource recommendation:
If you’re looking for a devotional to take you into 2024, consider Reflections on the Names of God: 180 Devotions to Know God More Fully.