Let me be clear; you don’t get to have any God you want. You don’t get to make God in your own image. But if the God you imagine is not the true God, then the god in your mind might need to be completely dismantled. You might need an entirely new God.

Imagine someone who has never been in an airplane. You might have heard stories and seen pictures, but that doesn’t compare to the first time you experience the world from 30,000 feet up. And that’s on such a small scale compared to your perception of the God who created you, came to rescue you, and loves you.

All the “right” words you hear about God may be “true.” We need correct “information” about God. That matters. But just like flying, information itself does not satisfy, heal, or transform the human soul.

If your internal perception of God makes you long to be close to Him, carry on! But for so many, the “god” in their soul is anything but appealing. Two clients I’m working with right now cannot read the gospels without hearing Jesus’ statements as condemning and totally exhausting. Another has considered giving up on God because she feels He’s ready to send her to hell the moment she messes up. And another hates God for making him with sexual needs and giving him “no legitimate outlet for them.”

Friends, that is not the picture of the true God, the God I have come to know, love, worship, and follow.

Do You Need a “New God”?

God had a problem. The world had become terribly messed up. Human beings, His children, were largely believing whatever His arch-enemy was telling them about Him. And all His ways of trying to get through to them had largely not worked.

So God came Himself, in the person of Jesus. Jesus said, “If you’ve seen Me, you’ve seen the Father” (John 14:9). For some, even that statement may not be helpful. But think of it like this. What was the effect Jesus had on people? How did the people who were around Jesus experience Him?

We can say at least this much. Every single person who encountered Jesus was drawn to Him. That was especially true of those who were the worst “sinners,” who had messed up the most. And at the same time, they were also called up to a higher level of being. Jesus’ very presence made goodness, righteousness, seem possible.

So how do you know if you might need a “new God?” These might be some clues that you do:

• You imagine God as harsh, demanding, and ready to “get you” if you mess up
• God-talk has been mixed up with abuse in your story – emotional, sexual, physical, or religious abuse
• The God you imagine in your mind is Someone you want to run away from rather than come closer to

The good news is that you can get a “new God!”

My Personal Mission

I grew up with a lot of what a friend of mine today calls “God distortions.” When I came to know Jesus personally He had to walk me through a lot of disentangling of God-talk. It was both hard and wonderful.

Then about a year later while in a beautiful worship experience I was suddenly in another realm. I could “see” the bright light of God’s presence “up there,” while I was crouched on the floor in the back of an enormous “room.” Jesus came and put His arm around me, held me close, and ministered to me for a time. And then He said, “Now go tell them what I’m like.”

I don’t talk about that experience very often because it can sound strange. Like Paul, I can’t say whether I was “in the body or out of the body” (2 Corinthians 12:2-4). I have not had anything like that happen to me since. But Jesus’ message to me was clear, and it has become the defining purpose of my life.

“Go tell them what I’m like.”

And the more I learn about human nature, the more strongly I believe that doesn’t happen primarily through sharing facts. It comes through people having an embodied experience. It’s like actually getting in a plane, going up to 30,000 feet, looking out the window, and seeing it for yourself.

If You Need a “New God”

There is no formula here. But let me offer a few suggestions that may be helpful in building a new paradigm in your brain of “God” – the true God, who made you, loves you, delights to be with you, and wants you to be with Him forever.

• Stop deepening old ruts. There are times you need to STOP engaging in the things that deepen your distorted picture of God. If the Bible reading practices, the church you’re attending, or the Christians you’re hanging out with are making you want to run away from God, you might need to just STOP!
• Seek out healthier Christians. That might mean a different church, a Christian 12-step program, a Christian counselor/therapist, or just a follower of Jesus who is safe and caring enough to listen. Your brain needs a moment of that 30,000-feet-up experience of what something different might be, and safe godly people help you get there.
• Tell Jesus. Prayer might feel difficult when you’re struggling with “God distortions.” Know that God is patient. Some find the Jesus prayer helpful: “Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me.” Then as you can, express your heart, emotions, fears to Jesus. Let Him be with you.

Your brain pathways around God can be healed. I’ve experienced it myself, and I’ve seen it in others. That’s part of what I help individuals work through in individual coaching, and it’s one of the topics we process in our small-group Intensives.

My prayer is that your very being – body, mind, and soul – will feel drawn to come closer to Jesus.

Your Turn: What “God distortions” have become built into your mind and heart? Do you need a “New God?”  Leave a comment below.

Want more? On this week’s podcast I talk about your internal picture of God and offer more thoughts about healing that perception. Listen or watch.

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• If the God you imagine is Someone you want to run away from, you might need a whole “new God.” That’s the very reason Jesus came. Here are some ways to find healing for your internal picture of God. Tweet that.

Getting to the Matters of the Heart

If the God-talk especially around intimacy, sexuality, and relationships that you’ve experienced has left you struggling, ashamed, or tired, you may need a “new God.”

Join us at an upcoming intensive – a beautiful 3-4 day premium experience that can change so much. Bring the hard places of your story into the light, and experience Jesus coming right into the middle of your story with healing, freedom, and transformation.