“Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’” –Isaiah 41:10
Therefore, when we put our trust in things, in people and in ourselves; we are destined for disappointment and suffering at some point. We’re all familiar with the story of Job. If not, you really should take the time this week to read through that book in the Bible. It’s right after Esther and right before the Psalms. Job was a wealthy man by the standards of that day. His house was filled with love, laughter, and joy. His pastures were covered with livestock and his barns were full. It was all taken away in a matter of days and he was stricken near death with sickness. Everything he had been blessed with was lost and all he had left was his God, and that was enough.
Is God enough for you? If your family were lost tomorrow in a tragic accident. If your house burned to the ground, including your computers, TVs, cell phones and tablets. Your insurance doesn’t cover it and your bank accounts are frozen to cover the loss. You lose your job the very next day and as you leave the parking lot you run out of gas. You have no money in your wallet, nowhere to go and no way to get there. What will you do? You are now homeless, penny-less, out of work and then you find yourself breaking out in a skin rash that covers your body with sores.
I realize it seems extreme, but there is nothing in this world that cannot be taken from you. We have become so dependent on the world around us and trusting in our own capabilities to solve problems in life that we have become vulnerable to the evil in this world. We have turned from trusting in our Creator for our daily bread and our livelihood and taken the responsibility upon ourselves. We must examine those dependencies in life and ask ourselves what happens when it’s gone? Are you dependent upon your spouse, your children, your parents, your siblings? Are you dependent upon a job, a mortgage, a creditor, a vehicle? Are you dependent upon an ATM machine, a grocery store, a cell phone, an internet provider or social media giant? How did we get here from where we were when Christ died on that cross?
Over 2 thousand years have passed and in that time frame the gospel has been watered down to something that we use for convenience rather than something we depend on. God is viewed as the “Big Guy in the Sky” looking down like a puppet master, rather than our Father and Lord. The message of Christ has been changed along the way to a To-Do list item rather than a lifestyle. The fall of mankind started with a single bite of an apple, but has transcended into a life where evil is accepted and tolerated rather than challenged because of our weakness and unwillingness to stand up for righteousness. So, again I ask you; “Is God enough for you?” Could you give it all up today if He asked? Recall in Matthew when the young rich man said to Him, “All these things [commandments] I have kept; what am I still lacking?” Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” I propose to you than many of us are silently addicted to the ways of this world, just as this man was.
In looking at your goals and resolutions created in the last few weeks, did you honestly address what’s keeping you from pursuing those things? Would they change if you created those lists assuming you had nothing to your name? No car, no money, no home, no job, no cell phone, no internet, no family. What would you do for God today? Put aside your self-righteousness, pride and arrogance. It’s just you and God taking on the world. What will you do? Write it down as we discussed the other day. It makes it much more concrete and actionable when it’s written. Think big, for our God is the Creator of the Universe and cannot be limited by our materialistic thinking.
© Sondove Enterprises, 2019
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com
If you would like to be added to the email distribution please click here: Daily Thoughts
No comments:
Post a Comment