“But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.” – Jesus, Matthew 12:28

Imagine a class of students hearing “the principal is coming”. Or how your family prepares when the pastor is coming for dinner. Or what if the mayor came to your workplace? Or you hear Taylor Swift is at your favourite coffee shop? Or Lebron James is coming to visit your high school basketball team?

All these create different expectations, based on who you understand these people to be.

What if God is here with us? The King has come! What would you expect him to do? Or say? Or expect from us? How would you prepare? What would you ask for? How would you behave?

This depends on who you understand God to be. Here are some names and attributes of God for you to mediate on. Imagine he’s actually here with you right now, in any or all of these ways.

1. El Shaddai – Genesis 17:1
   The Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless.”
2. Adonai – Psalm 110:1
   “The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’”
3. Jehovah Jireh – Genesis 22:14
   So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
4. Jehovah Rapha – Exodus 15:26
   I am the Lord, who heals you.
5. Jehovah Shalom – Judges 6:24
   So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord is Peace.
6. Ancient of Days – Daniel 7:9
   As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.
7. Father – Matthew 6:9
   This, then, is how you should pray: “Our Father in heaven”
8. Holy One of Israel – Isaiah 1:4
   Woe to the sinful nation, a people whose guilt is great, a brood of evildoers, children given to corruption! They have forsaken the Lord; they have spurned the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on him.
9. Shepherd – Psalm 23:1
   The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
10. Rock of Ages – Isaiah 26:4
    Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.
11. The Alpha and the Omega – Revelation 1:8
    “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
12. The Creator – Isaiah 40:28
    Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.
13. The Comforter – John 14:26
    But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
14. The Living God – Psalm 42:2
    “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?”
15. The Redeemer – Isaiah 59:20
    The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins, declares the Lord.
16. The Judge of All – Hebrews 12:23
    You have come to God, the Judge of all
17. The Consuming Fire – Deuteronomy 4:24
    For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
18. The Lamb of God – John 1:29
    The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
19. The Bread of Life – John 6:35
    Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
20. The Light of the World – John 8:12
    When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
21. The Resurrection and the Life – John 11:25
    Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.”
22. The Way, the Truth, and the Life – John 14:6
    Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
23. The Almighty – Revelation 1:8
    “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”