To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? Isaiah 40:18.

We should never put limits on God, or put words into his mouth, or define him in terms of our pathetic images. These false images may range from the golden calf on Sinai, to one who encouraged witch-burning until a century or two ago. Or our God is a permissive deity 'whose job it is to forgive', or an angry parent, who condemns when he or she corrects. God is very much more than 'what humans by nature cannot be.'

William Temple wrote somewhere: 'If your conception of God is radically false, then the more devout you are the worse it will be for you... You had better be an atheist.' A legalistic religion is a heavy burden to carry. Jesus' religion carries us...

The bumper sticker 'Let God be God' states the most important imperative of life. Every day of our lives the God who made us does battle with the gods we have made... Only the Creator can fully satisfy and genuinely fulfil a creature.

Holy One, I come to you with utter openness and flexibility and humility. I prepare myself for your coming with silence, emptiness, and receptivity... Amen.