Are You God-Centered or Self-Centered?

"Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God" 

-Psalm 20:7

"Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain."

-Psalm 119: 36

"For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every evil practice."

-James 3:16

In continuing my journey through the workbook Experiencing God (Blackaby), I came across a very revealing list. Do any of these apply to you?

-Do you look out for #1?

-Are you proud of yourself and your accomplishments?

-Are you self-confident?

-Do you rely on your abilities?

-Do you affirm yourself? 

-Do you analyze circumstances based on your or others' experiences?

-Do you try to obtain a comfortable life for yourself?

My initial reaction in reading this list was... well, yeah! Some of those don't sound so bad. It's good to be self-confident... to "believe in yourself". Of course, I'm proud of my accomplishments! Isn't everyone? I've worked hard for my achievements! Why shouldn't I be proud?

Well, reality came tumbling down on top of me like a sack of bricks when I read the heading to the above list: "A Self-Centered Life." The verse that came to mind as I read this was  1 Corinthians 3:18-19 "Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight." The "self-centered life" sounds so normal and acceptable because it is--by the world's standards. We are taught from a very young age to be proud of ourselves and to believe in ourselves---to look out for "numero uno." The fact of the matter is, that is utter "foolishness" to the God of the Universe who sees us for what we truly are--weak, feeble, foolish creatures who act like stubborn, selfish little children. We pride ourselves in our worldly accomplishments, when really, what value do any of our accomplishments have when measured against God's Holy and Eternal Standard?

If we want to know and follow God's will, we are required to deny ourselves and put Him at the center of our lives, so that we can answer "yes" to these questions instead:

-Do you place all your confidence in God?

-Do you depend on God to provide?

-Are you completely focused on God and what He is doing?

-Are you humble before God?

-Do you deny yourself?

-Do you seek God's will and righteousness FIRST?

-Do you seek God's perspective in EVERY circumstance?

-Do you live a holy and Godly life?

-Do you do everything for God's glory rather than your own?

At first glance, most Christians will nod their heads and give a cursory "Christianly" response, "But of course!" However, we when we look closely at that list and honestly reflect on what it's asking, it becomes very clear that most of us aren't living up to God's standards. Do we really live our lives day-by-day, minute-by-minute in the pursuit of bringing God glory? Or do we instead live our lives in pursuit of our own success, accomplishments, and comfort? 

I have to admit, when my eyes are opened to the truth as to what doing God's will truly involves, I get more than a little scared. God asked Noah to build a big boat in a desert and trust that it would come in handy. He asked his disciples to stop what they were doing and simply follow without any further explanation. He asked Moses to lead millions of Israelites out of Egypt. He asked Abram to simply pack up everything he owned and go to a land that God would reveal later...

...Our God is not a God of detailed explanation. He expects his followers to do just that--follow. He requires faithfulness. He gives just enough information to guide us in the right direction, but he expects us to do the subsequent footwork. God could ask me to do anything, and I can pretty much guarantee that He's not going to give a lot of details when He does ask. I just hope and pray that I have the faith to take the steps required of me... the courage to look "foolish" to those around me in order to make the Wise choice by God's standard.

God,

I truly do want to have you at the center of my life. I want you to be the motivation for my every thought, word, and action. But as you said, "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Help me to have the faith and courage to take the steps you set out for me. I am both excited and afraid of what you might ask, but I know that ultimately anything You ask is Good. 

Thank you,

Me

"Don't Just Do Something. Stand There!"

1 Kings 18:15-39

(Day Three in "Experiencing God", Blackaby)

The idea that I took away from the above passage is: God lit the fire. The passage is about Elijah facing off against the "prophets" of Baal to prove once and for all whose God was the True God. Well, 850 of Baal's prophets didn't stand a chance against ONE of Yahweh's. Elijah followed God's lead and impossible things happened--Elijah's water-logged altar was set ablaze by heavenly fire.

As I said yesterday, I am working through a workbook titled Experiencing God (by Blackaby and King), and this passage came up on "Day Three." So far I have been blown away by this book. It has allowed me to really stop and think about Who God is and how He really works. I'm beginning to realize that I've been approaching my relationship with God completely wrong. I've been asking Him what His will is for my life, when I should just be asking "Lord, what is your will?". MY life is irrelevant. God's will should be my focus. 

I find that I am too quick to act on my own. I ask God what His will is for my life and then I get antsy to do something when I don't hear an answer. The problem isn't that God doesn't want to answer--it's that I've been asking the wrong question. God wants me to know His will. He wants to act through me. The problem is, I'm so wrapped up in doing something else that I don't let Him do His will through me. 

The profound insight that I took away from my lesson today is "What are you doing in your life that cannot be accomplished unless God intervenes?". My answer? Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. I am such a control freak that I've taken the reins in my life and I've attempted to bend God's will to my actions, rather than the other way around. Sure, I might not be demanding to do anything sinful, per se, but I'm certainly not fulfilling God's will by taking control. 

I want to do great things for God, but the fact of the matter is I can't do anything for God. However, if I yield, God may choose to do great things through me. Elijah didn't prove that God was the true God. God did that. Elijah didn't build an altar, pile it high with wood, douse it with water and light it himself. God lit the fire. God used Elijah as a messenger, but ultimately it was God who acted. 

I am finally beginning to realize that God wants me to stop worrying about doing stuff for Him and start letting him do stuff through me. In order to do that I need to stand still, yield to Him, and listen. I need to stop trying to force things along by doing what I think I "should" and start following God's lead. I've realized that I've been selfish and caught up in trying to be a "good Christian", when it's really not about me. It's about God's will being done... with or without me. 

God,

Help me to understand your will so that I can meet you in doing it. I'm going to try to hold still long enough to let you use me as an instrument of your will. Shape me to your purpose. I'm ready to stop trying to shape your will to fit me.

In Your Name,

Amen