What if we stared at God every moment of our day? The Bible tells us we should fix our eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2), but how often do we make a conscious effort to do that? More importantly, what does that look like in real life? I’ve recently been trying to work this out for myself. The key is to first get a proper mental image of God. Check out Revelation 4:8-11, where it describes angels who do nothing but praise God, all day. They are so consumed with His beauty that they can do nothing else. God is the perfection of all that is good. He is perfect and unconditional love, and is constantly in pursuit of you, reaching out to you. Look at Isaiah 6:3-5, where the prophet feels ruined just from looking at the beauty of God. Keep that picture of God at the forefront of your mind.
Isaiah
Are You Comfortable In This World?
I continue to be inspired by A.W. Tozer. Recently as I was studying some of his material, I read where wrote, “If you are a Christian and you are comfortably ‘at home’ in Chicago or Toronto, in Iowa or Alberta or any other address on planet earth, the signs are evident that you are in spiritual trouble. The spiritual equation reads like this: The greater your contentment with your daily circumstances in this world, the greater your defection from the ranks of God’s pilgrims en route to a city whose architect and builder is God Himself!” These are words that should cut us to the core. We have taken our eyes off of our Creator and have focused instead on material possessions and comfort. Do we think this course will end well?
Working for the Lord
Early in my days in the corporate world, the first time I was given a position with my own office, I hung a sign over my desk that quoted Colossians 3:23. It said, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” It often comforted me when those I was working for were severely frustrating me and trying my patience! That passage helped re-center me and remind me of what was truly important. While that sign and office are long gone, the daily reminder that verse afforded me has stuck with me throughout my life. Recently as I was exercising, a similar thought, no doubt inspired by my recollection of that verse, occurred to me. That thought was to test all of my activity by whether or not it glorifies God. This is how we can do all things as working for the Lord. Everything we do must be for Him.
Humble Priorities
Every now and then, a Bible verse I’ve read a thousand times reaches out and grabs my heart in a fresh way. It’s amazing that after thousands of years, God still speaks through His written Word to those who seek and give their lives to Him. The verses that recently grabbed hold of me were Philippians 2:3-4, which read, “Do nothing out of rivalry or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. Everyone should look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” As we examine our own lives, how close are we living to this instruction? Are we putting the needs of others before our own or diligently striving to become as comfortable, wealthy, and successful as we can be?
Why Are We Here?
So many Christians wander through life waiting to discover God’s will for their lives. I can’t help but believe one of the major reasons they can’t figure this out is because they are ignorant of the mission of Christ. How can you understand the call of God for your life if you don’t fully grasp the call of God on the life of Christ? If you are frustrated or confused as to what you think you should be doing, I humbly suggest you get back to the roots of your faith and dive a little deeper into the reasons the Son of God became one of us.