WHY IS GOD HOLY?
When I was a little girl we lived with my grandmother, Nani, off and on… sometimes more on than off! Because my Daddy was in the Air Force we were always moving from one place to another and many times we would end up at Nani’s in between assignments. Three times we lived at Nani’s for an extended period of time when my Dad went “remote”. And that was perfectly fine with me. I loved my grandmother’s house.
I loved the way it looked and smelled and the way it was cool and dark in the hot humid summers. I loved sitting on her front porch rocking away in one of her sturdy green rocking chairs during thunderstorms and feeling so safe! My grandmother’s house was really nothing special… not fancy or palatial. Really very ordinary!!!
But to me, it was a treasure trove of beautiful things… unusual and old things. I spent many hours in her attic trying on her flapper wedding gown and looking through old photos and yellowed newspaper clippings. Each piled-to-the-ceiling box held mysterious things from ages past just waiting to be discovered…
Nani had the most wonderful collection of flamingo figurines I have ever seen. Big flamingos and teeny tiny flamingos… all pink and posed! And to a little girl they were breathtaking!She collected them on her once-a-year trips to Florida. And for some odd reason they were her prized possessions.
They were set apart from all the other chachkas in her house… they were special to my grandmother and we all knew it…
In a funny way, my grandmother’s flamingos remind me of the word holy!
The Hebrew word for holy is QODESH (kaw-doshe’).
It is the the idea of something being “set apart”. It also means “other than”.
God is HOLY…
Because the Scripture says, “You must be holy because I am holy”.
1 Peter 1:16
God is holy… set apart. But set apart or other than what? God is “set apart” from all creation, both seen and unseen. He is totally “other than” anything else… anything!
He can not be related to in the way we relate to the world around us because he is outside of it… all of it! He is holy!
God is perfect and pure. He is unstained by the sin of the world. He is holy because holiness is part of His character. Holiness is who and what He is!
In my grandmother’s house, her flamingos were set apart… they were special. So special that they were separate and put up high in a china cabinet just for them. They were the only things off limit in her home. They were unlike anything else she owned.
God and my grandmother’s flamingos! Such an unlikely analogy!!!!
Now here where the comparison ends… and this is so interesting…
God is holy and He wants us to be holy too!
He wants us to be “set apart” from this world too! We cannot be like God and be “other than” the world in a physical sense… but we can be “set apart” and “other than” in a spiritual one!
God calls us to be SANCTIFIED… a Christian word for the process of becoming holy. Being holy is a lifelong process. It is the process of looking and acting less and less like the base things of this world and acting and looking more and more like Jesus.
God wants us to live for Him and do His will and act like Him in all situations. It is a commitment! A big and wonderful commitment!
He asks us to be holy… to give up our selfish and sinful ways and live like Jesus did when he was on earth.
If we have bowed our knee to Jesus… giving our lives to the Savior of our souls… we have already stared the process of holiness!
Is it a process of denying self… you bet! Not only denying selfish ways but putting those ways to death. Letting them no longer have power or purpose in our lives. Sanctification, becoming holy, is the process of looking like our Lord.
That is what holy means.We are to be holy and look like our Father, God… because He is holy!
When my grandmother went to heaven her precious flamingo collection was split up and many members of her family got a prized flamingo! Because it was so special to her, my flamingo has become so special to me too!
Someday, when I have grandbabies, this funny little figurine will be a wonderful object lesson in God’s holiness.
Thank you for sharing this very personal story about your life and loving grandmother who made you feel safe and secure as a child. May you be blessed, as I am, with grandbabies. What a gift to read this fine Sunday morning.
It was always a special trip to visit my grandparents in Sioux City, . I have always cherished these visits. Thank you for sharing your memories.
Thank you for sharing your sweet memories of your childhood and for reminding us of God’s holiness !
Thank you so much for sharing. Your devotions are always spot on. Thank you for sharing your faith and teaching from God’s Holy Word.
Absolutely beautiful!!! Each day I strive to live my life as Jesus would want me to live ……. Full of love and mercy !!!! As I head to church to practice with our praise band ….. Your blog post touched me !!!! Blessings….. And hope to meet you and see your place someday !!
I love your Sunday for me morning devotions. I’ll bet you’ve taught a few Sunday school lessons in your life. Loved your garden and all things home too. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for opening a window of your life and the wonderful memories of your grandmother. You’re a great teacher!
Amen, thank you for sharing. Family stories and traditions, I beleive, should be shared and passed down through the family. Unfortunely today, those things do not happen in a lot of families. Old pictures, all the way down to grandmother’s china, should be left in the family.
Thank you for sharing. What a precious analogy.
Thanks for this! I will never look at flamingos the same way and will always be reminded of God’s holiness whenever I see one.
~Yvonne~
Amen, I pray to walk in the ways of our Lord.
Grandmothers are a blessing, wonderful memories are a gift themselves.
Have a beautiful day
Paula
IN
Thank you for the story. God is Holy!
I love your web site. Simple things or so special and so big in my heart.
Thank you again for sharing.
Gods Blessings.
~ My friend, Yvonne! ~
Your Sunday “devotionals” are so precious. Has God ever placed it upon your heart to publish a daily or weekly devotional for your “friends” to purchase? I’d love to be able to purchase one, even one filled with your past Sunday devotional blogs. Anxiously awaiting to hear . . .
Nan
Mansfield, PA
Yvonne, as a first timer to your site I spent a lot of time languishing and taking it all in….Beautiful! Love your pictures, tutorials and love, love love your devotional. It made me think of the time spent in my Grandma’s upstairs playing in her fur stoles and “pocketbooks”! Thanks for the fond memories and for sharing God’s word today. I know some bloggers hesitate to mix religion into their sharing of their world. I love it! It will keep me coming back!
Hi Julie,
Welcome to the StoneGable family!
Oh Yvonne, what a precious blessing this post is! I found your site when looking for patterns for aprons and immediately felt a kinship to you. My husband and I pastored for many years and I so enjoy your Sunday musings and lessons. This is truly an inspired post ! May God richly bless you for boldly sharing.
What a beautiful analogy of holiness! Thank you!
What a great lesson and thank you for taking me back to our attic when I was a little girl. That great rainy day playground with treasures that were waiting to be found! I can still remember pulling the string to turn on the light and I can even remember the texture of the wallboard. Isn’t it amazing that we now have buildings where we rent space to store stuff!
Sometimes I think that my faith was stored in an attic for years and I am so glad that you are one of the people who helped me find my greatest treasure! He waits for us!
Happy Sunday!
Thank you for your wonderful witness and ministry to your blogging friends. You are needed.
Thank you for sharing your faith I’m a sinner saved by grace and bound for heaven praise the Lord! For He is HOLY!!
So am I K!~
What a sweet, sweet story. God is love and Holy, there is no doubt!
Love your Sunday devotions. I try to think and live my life for GOD also. This world is only temporary. I pray that thru this Sunday blog you will touch hearts to live for GOD. The HOLY ONE…..
Thank you for sharing!
It’s truly amazing how God works and puts people in our path. I googled white bathroom decor and one of the pics was the glass container with the starfish and shells. Of course I checked out your blog and signed up for your newsletter, but this morning I read your devotion to your readers and I do feel that finding your site was not by accident. Thank you for sharing your memories of your grandmother but most of all for sharing God’s word. It is an inspiration and blessing to me. God is using you. Have a blessed day!
Thank you for sharing. I so look forward to your “lessons” and you are always right on! I LOVE the picture of the flamingos. They are really such graceful creatures. I haven’t read your blog for about a week and feel like I’ve missed a friend!! Your blog is so inspiring and I have pinned so many ideas. Thank you and God Bless Friend!