A.W. Tozer once said that “The proud man cannot worship God any more than the proud devil can worship God.” Pride is a relationship killer. When we love someone, we make everything about them. Pride makes everything about us. The only relationship that thrives in the midst of pride is the narcissistic one we have with ourselves. If we would follow Christ with all of our hearts then we must love as He did (John 15:12). We must be humble as He was. There is no room for pride in our relationship with God. We’ve got to let go of every feeling of self-sufficiency and rely fully on His character and promise of provision (Matthew 6:25-34).
Matthew
Your Greatest Achievement
What is the greatest achievement you can think of in life? If you could achieve your dreams, what would they be? How do you define success? Think of the biggest goal you can imagine. Dare to dream your biggest dream. Now think what it will feel like if we live our life in such a way that when we meet Jesus He says to us, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master” (Matthew 25:23). Wouldn’t your wildest dreams, all of your greatest achievements combined, pale in comparison to that one conversation?
Praying as Jesus Prayed
When Jesus taught His disciples what we know as “The Lord’s Prayer”, He gave us much more than a simple model prayer. Within these few short verses are the keys to God’s will for each of our lives. If you’ve ever wondered how you should pray, it’s in there. If you’ve ever wondered what God’s will is for your life, it’s in there as well.
Want to know how you should treat others? Jesus articulated it in His prayer. Are you curious about how to have a right relationship with your money? You guessed it, it’s right there in the Lord’s Prayer. It’s a brief passage, so let’s break it down piece by piece.
The Pursuit
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve talked to people who tell me, “Well, all religions are basically the same.” When I hear that, I know that the individual has either never explored becoming a follower of Jesus or they have been subjected to some very misleading teaching. I would grant, that at their core, most religions are the same. They all involve a deity who set some standard or demands certain rules to be obeyed and then humans are left to pursue living up to that standard or following those rules. But Christianity is different. It is the only religion that has a God that pursues humans instead of the other way around.
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?