"On Being a Zealot and the G** Word"

zealot:  n., one who is zealous, full of zeal for his own specific beliefs or objectives, usually in the negative sense of being too passionate, a fanatic

There are several words in our language which most aren’t comfortable either saying or hearing.  And so a shortcut version of the word is repeated, stating the first letter followed by “word.”  When written, asterisks fill in the blanks, and we hear the derogatory language in our minds upon reading. 

Words of profanity, those blatantly racist and demeaning in nature, they are truly offensive and are commonly held as being so.

There is another, however, which is deemed an insult by many, the G** word.

I have begun thinking of myself in terms of a zealot, a description I have, until recently, avoided like the plague, probably because of the negative connotations of being viewed as being fanatical. 

When I began writing, I was careful to not use the G** word, so that readers would not be offended or alienated.  And so I used terms such as “Creator, Heavenly Father, the One who made us,” alluding to and referencing Him, but not actually spelling out the G** word. 

Why is there such a reticence amongst those of faith to speak openly?  In the privacy of the church sanctuary, hymns are sung, praise is given, but outside those doors a great reserve takes place as His name is not even spoken.  “The Lord, Jesus, Christ,” but the G** word—not so much.

The public at large is comfortable speaking of Christianity, Christ, and “What would Jesus do?” while lumping a large group of people together.  It is easier dealing with an ideology than dealing with the person of G**.  There are others whose intent is to wipe the name of G** from all things public, whether it is money or the American pledge, as though they can eliminate Him by doing so.  How ludicrous is that?

G** has been given many names by those who want to keep Him at a distance, a general concept, nothing up-close-and-personal.  He is called “Mother Nature, karma, luck--good or bad, the guy in the sky”—the list goes on.  Just don’t say the G** word. 

Isn’t it ironic that such an effort is made to ignore and deny the very One who made all things, including each one of us, as though in doing so He will disappear, go away?  In fact, He is the One who holds all things together. 

And so, zealot that I am, I declare and announce that G** IS.  He will not be ignored; His existence will not be denied; He will be reckoned with. Oh, yes, and He shall be called God.