by Pastor Rich Carlson

Examining Paul’s “benediction” to the believers in Corinth we find that it contains three pieces:
• The grace of Jesus
• The love of God
• The fellowship of the Holy Spirit

That’s what the Godhead is all about. The entirety of the Godhead is summed up in three words—grace, love, and fellowship. However I try to describe God, the best way seems to be the Trinity. Three-in-one and one-in-three.

The closest I come to comprehending Him is realizing that all that God is has been invested in me. If I can’t understand the Persons of the Godhead, I can at least start to understand the words used to describe Them. In understanding the descriptors, I can understand the most important things about God. I can also understand the most important things in this life which, when pursued, make me more like God.

Jesus is all about grace—giving me something I don’t deserve. I want to treat others like that. God the Father is all about love—other centeredness. I want that to be the motivator in how I respond to others. The Holy Spirit is all about fellowship—wanting to be with me. To me it’s something more than friendship, but purposeful interaction with the people God brings into my life.

When I see that God has invested His all in me, I want to do the same for Him and others. I want to treat people better than I think they might deserve, out of a heart of love and other centeredness.

Rich Carlson is campus chaplain at Union College in Lincoln, Nebraska. “God Is Faithful” is adapted from the email devotionals he writes regularly for the Union College family. Rich enjoys filling his life with God, his family, and especially his five grandchildren.