Self Reflections

Reflections on one’s self.  Ugh!

I heard a question today that caused me to turn the radio off and just think for a few minuets on how I would answer. 

Here was the question:  How do I respond when God asks me to do something I don’t like, or want to do? 

So then I expanded the question to include others, like these…

How do I respond when God asks me to say something I don't want to say?

How do I respond when I hear Him say something I don’t want to hear?  Or when He asks me to go somewhere I do not want to go?  Or to see something I don’t want to see?

Are these all different questions, or are they all the same question?  They all seem pretty similar because of one common thread.  In other words, how do I respond to God when He asks me to do something that I DON’T LIKE?

There are many responses I would imagine people might give to such questions. I’m sure there are more responses you could come up with.  But theses are the ones that came to my mind, some of which I personally recognize.

I don't have time.

Why ask me? So-n-so could do it much better than I could.

I’m not ready.

It just makes me mad. I feel like I'm being used.

Don't push me!

I don't want to give it up yet.

I'm not worthy.

I'm just too afraid.

No one will understand.

It won't make a difference anyway.

What do I get out of this?

These are responses, reactions, or excuses that help us justify our desire to ignore what God asks of us.  But Jesus asks us to do things out of our comfort zone for our own good, doesn’t He?  That’s what I’m supposed to believe.  But whether or not we believe it, is where the element of trust comes in. Do we really TRUST Him?

I need to remember that sometimes He asks us to face something we don’t like in order to get us to where we want to be.

So what would you say? How would you answer?

4/22/2016

God's Desire

What would you say God desires most?  What is the one thing He seeks above all else?

In the beginning (Genesis 1:26-28) God created man. Why do you think Jesus decided to create man? Was He bored?  Did He need something to do? Did He do it just for the fun of it? Maybe this was some kind of grand experiment. 

Human perspective often puts God at a distance, making Him a disconnected entity looking down on us as we fumble our way through life. In reality, however, the creation of man was the greatest commitment God has ever made! He committed Himself to us, knowing full well where the road would lead. This is no game with Jesus, but serious business.

At the same time, He did create us for His pleasure (Revelation 4:11 KJV).  Believe it or not, Jesus takes great pleasure in being with us. Since man’s fall in Eden, our Father no longer has the pleasure of being with us face-to-face every day. John tells us (John 14:1-3) that Jesus has gone on ahead of us to design, build, and decorate a mansion for each of His children in an extravagant golden city that we will, and can today, call home. It is the ultimate in prosperity, peace, and pleasure —the kind with no strings attached. That’s right, the one thing Jesus desires most is to be with you, and with me.

The whole plan of salvation is based on that one, overwhelming life-giving desire of His heart, for us to be together walking through the garden again. Jesus even goes to unthinkable limits to show the universe how much being together again means to Him. He actually brings His home to us.

Revelation 21:2,3

"And I John saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adored for her husband.  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.”

He actually rearranges the galaxies of the universe to make our location the capital of all of His creation! Think about it.  I would call that a pretty incredible commitment, wouldn’t you?

I guess it’s no longer a question of whether Jesus wants to be with us. It's much more a question of whether we want to be with Him.

4/10/2016