Crazy Love
I started reading the book "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan this week (it's incredible - I'm only one chapter in and I'm going to go ahead and highly recommend it - this is one of those books you do not want to miss).
Anyway, among the many convicting things he wrote in the first chapter, Chan pointed out that we were created for God and not the other way around. It seems obvious. It's something we could all agree to, but it's almost never how we live and how we approach God. Instead, we have this mentality that says God was created to meet our needs, give us life, heal our family members, bless us, listen to us, etc., etc.
Chan reminds us of Psalm 115:3 where it says, "Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him." And then he says, "Yet we keep on questioning Him: 'Why did You make me with this body, instead of that one?' 'Why are so many people dying of starvation?' 'Why are there so many planets with nothing living on them?' 'Why is my family so messed up?' Why don't You make Yourself more obvious to the people who need You?' The answer to each of these questions is simply this: because He's God. He has more of a right to ask us why so many people are starving. As much as we want God to explain himself to us, His creation, we are in no place to demand that He give an account to us."
How true this is? It hit me hard. I spend a lot more time asking God to bend himself to my needs and circumstances than I do inclining myself toward God. I want God to give an account for human suffering instead of doing my part to alleviate it.
God is God. Period. End of story. We belong to God. We live and move and have our being for the glory of God. It's arrogant to think we matter more than God, and yet God goes out of his way to move time and space on our behalf.
I used to think it was strange for God to ask us to worship Him. It seemed arrogant and presumptuous to be the one in charge and then ask everyone else to bow down. But the reverse is actually true. It's arrogant to think we matter more than God, and yet God goes out of His way to move time and space on our behalf.
God is worthy of all the worship we can give. He's worthy of our loyalty, our admiration, our adoration, our thanks, our time, our money, our attention - you name it, God deserves it.
Come join us for worship at Ashley Ridge High School this Sunday at 10am. And, if you can't make it to ARC, worship wherever you happen to be. Nothing else you have going on is more important than worshiping God.
Anyway, among the many convicting things he wrote in the first chapter, Chan pointed out that we were created for God and not the other way around. It seems obvious. It's something we could all agree to, but it's almost never how we live and how we approach God. Instead, we have this mentality that says God was created to meet our needs, give us life, heal our family members, bless us, listen to us, etc., etc.
Chan reminds us of Psalm 115:3 where it says, "Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him." And then he says, "Yet we keep on questioning Him: 'Why did You make me with this body, instead of that one?' 'Why are so many people dying of starvation?' 'Why are there so many planets with nothing living on them?' 'Why is my family so messed up?' Why don't You make Yourself more obvious to the people who need You?' The answer to each of these questions is simply this: because He's God. He has more of a right to ask us why so many people are starving. As much as we want God to explain himself to us, His creation, we are in no place to demand that He give an account to us."
How true this is? It hit me hard. I spend a lot more time asking God to bend himself to my needs and circumstances than I do inclining myself toward God. I want God to give an account for human suffering instead of doing my part to alleviate it.
God is God. Period. End of story. We belong to God. We live and move and have our being for the glory of God. It's arrogant to think we matter more than God, and yet God goes out of his way to move time and space on our behalf.
I used to think it was strange for God to ask us to worship Him. It seemed arrogant and presumptuous to be the one in charge and then ask everyone else to bow down. But the reverse is actually true. It's arrogant to think we matter more than God, and yet God goes out of His way to move time and space on our behalf.
God is worthy of all the worship we can give. He's worthy of our loyalty, our admiration, our adoration, our thanks, our time, our money, our attention - you name it, God deserves it.
Come join us for worship at Ashley Ridge High School this Sunday at 10am. And, if you can't make it to ARC, worship wherever you happen to be. Nothing else you have going on is more important than worshiping God.
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