Some of us might think that being God might just be good work, if we could get the job, or so it would seem. We could be in control of everything, have all power at our disposal, know everything, and thus make the world and everything in it exactly as we like, or think we would like.

But it doesn’t seem to work out that way for God, at least not for the God of the Bible. Being God doesn’t sound easy, as the Bible tells his story, in fact sometimes it is quite frustrating. Too often things don’t go as he planned: Adam, Eve, Cain, Abel, just for starters. He doesn’t always get his way, and sometimes no matter what he does, he winds up disappointed. Again, just one case in point: He must send his hope-of-the-world people into a brutal exile because no matter what he has done for and to them, they insist on "doing it their way” rather than God’s.

God doesn’t always know exactly what is going to happen–“If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land.” These people–like us–easily, lightly, and often abuse their God-given freedom of choice to frustrate the divine intention. God promises to hear and forgive and heal, but it is a maybe so promise: “If” they turn from and seek. But whether they will turn in time, or turn at all, he has to wait and see. God’s continuing problem is these humans he has created—in his own image, no less. It is not easy being God, certainly not an easy emotional life.

But back to the human, me and you. Our individual lives are bad enough, but when we begin to interact with each other we can form a well-dug-in line of defense against God, or mount a powerful offensive against God. To his own displeasure he has to deal with a creation that refuses to stay on the track created for their freedom and peace.

It has not been easy for me to say that being God is not easy. But, there is “the rest of the story.”

Being God is a good life. God is love, eternally God is love, and love is satisfying, thrilling exciting, and enjoyable. In fact, it so good being God that the God nature must be shared. This is why God created humans “in his own image”: looking enough like him, being enough like him that God can common-icate with them and share the thrill, let them in on the satisfaction, excitement and joy of a love that must be expressed and made open and available to his supreme, god-like creature.

So, all in all, it is easy to announce the good news: God is relative–re-lative, relational, akin, positively connected and interactive. Genuine relationship is the source of life’s greatest pain, the root from which springs all peace and joy.