Chapter 1--Stop Praying
Solomon warned us not to rush into God's presence with words.
We rely on technology over community. Slow to listen, quick to speak, and quick to anger.
"Spiritual Amnesia"--we forget how awesome God and His creations are.
God is Holy. We don't get to decide who God is.
God is Eternal. It is ridiculous to believe we have the right to limit God to something we are capable of comprehending.
God is All-Knowing. We can fool humans, but we cannot fool God.
God is All-Powerful. Everything was created for God, not us. God is not here to bless us, He put us here to bless Him.
God is Fair and Just. He never excuses sin. He can hate and punish it severely as His justice demands.
Chapter 2--You Might Not Finish This Chapter
We could die before finishing the chapter. At any moment.
It's easy to think of today as "just another day"--full of "to do"s, appointments, family, desires, and needs. We get caught up in ourselves.
Justified Stress
When I am consumed by my problems, stressed about my things, I actually believe I am more important that God.
Worry=implies we don't trust God.
Stress=says that things are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace toward others, our tight grip of control. We are we so quick to forget God??
We need to get over ourselves.
Eg. Seeing the back of our head in a crowd for 2/5 of a second and thinking the movie is about us.
Thank God We are Weak
Stop taking risks and turn inward? If life were stable, we'd never need God's help.
Chapter 3--Crazy Love
We have a difficult time understanding God's love for us.
Jesus didn't command us to have a set time with Him every day. Once we love Him, we study out of love, not guilt. Not because we think we SHOULD.
"My belief in God was still theoretical, not a reality I lived out or experienced." (before a 4 day sabbatical in the woods)
**If God's mercy didn't exist, there would be no hope.**
The irony is that while God doesn't need us but still wants us, we desperately need God but don't really want Him most of the time. **He treasures us and anticipates our departure from this earth to be with Him and we wonder, indifferently, how much we have to do for Him to get by.**
Chapter 4--The Profile of the Lukewarm
"Do not assume you are good soil."
Most of us have too much in our lives. A lot of things are good by themselves, but all of it together keeps us from living healthy, fruitful lives of God.
LUKEWARM PEOPLE:
1--attend church fairly regularly. It's expected, so they do it.
2--give money to charity and to the church as long as it doesn't impinge on their standard of living.
3--tend to choose what is popular over what is right when they are in conflict. They are more about what people think of their action then what God thinks of their hearts and lives.
4--don't really want to be saved from their sin; they only want to be saved from the penalty of their sin.
5--are moved by stories about people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act.
6--rarely share their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, or friends. They do not want to be rejected or uncomfortable.
7--gauge their morality by comparing themselves to the secular world.
8--say they love Jesus, and He is, indeed, a part of their lives. But only a part. He is not allowed to control their lives.
9--Love God, but they do not love Him with all their heart, soul, and strength.
10--Love others, but do not seek to love others as much as they love themselves. They love others who love them back, but they have little time for those who don't love them back or who intentionally slight them, or have uncomfortable conversations with them.
11--will serve God and others, but there are limits to how far they will go or how much time, money, and energy they are willing to give.
12--think about life on earth much more often then eternity in heaven.
13--are thankful for their luxuries and comforts, and rarely consider trying to give as much as possible to the poor.
14--do whatever is necessary to keep themselves from feeling too guilty.
15--are continually concerned with playing it safe; they are slaves to the "god of control".
16--feel secure because they attend church, made a profession of faith at age 12, were baptized, come from a Christian family, vote Republican, or live in America.
17--do not live by faith, their lives are structured so they never have to. They don't have to trust God--they have their savings account, etc.
18--typically drink and swear less than average, but other than that, they really aren't different than your typical unbeliever.
**"Jesus asks for everything, but we give Him less."**
Chapter 5--Serving Leftovers to a Holy God
Too many people are just concerned about their salvation, not the relationship.
Can I still go to heaven if I divorce my wife?
Do I have to be baptized to be saved?
If I'm ashamed to talk about Christ, is He really going to deny knowing me?
**Which is more messed up--that we have so much compared to everyone else, or that we don't think we're rich?**
**God wants our best, deserves our best, and demands our best.**
**"Leftovers are not merely inadequate; from God's point of view lest we forget, they're evil. Let's stop calling it "a busy schedule", "bills", or "forgetfulness", it's evil."**
"Obviously it's not what you advertise that counts, it's what you are really made of." (aka Character)
The word "love" is overused and worn out. Even 1Cor. 13 4-8;13 seems "tired".
Substitute your name for "love" I 1Cor--for every phrase. Kind of feel like a liar by the end, eh?
Luke 9:25 "What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet lose or forfeit his very self?"
Many of us believe we have as much of God as we want right now, a reasonable portion of God among all the other things in our lives. Most thoughts are centered on earthly matters.
Do you know that nothing you do in this life will ever matter, unless it is about loving God and loving the people He had made?
Chapter 6--When You're in Love
When loving Him becomes obligation, one of many things we have to do, we end up focusing even more on ourselves.
*The fact is, I need God to help me love God. And if I need His help to love a perfect being, then I need His help to love other fault-filled humans. The Holy Spirit has to move in our lives in order for this to happen.*
Our prayers for more love result in love, which naturally causes us to pray more, which results in more love.....and so on.
You have to stop loving and pursuing Christ in order to sin. When you are following, you have no time to wonder if you are not doing enough or doing things right, etc.
*When we stop actively loving Him, we find ourselves finding fulfillment elsewhere.*
Chapter 7--Your Best Life...Later
"Something is wrong when our life makes sense to unbelievers."
*How would my life change if I thought of each person I came in contact with as Christ?* Slow checker at grocery, slow driver, own member of family that annoys you?
"God just didn't give a little for us, He gave His best. True love requires sacrifice. And our love is shown by how we live our lives."
When we fail to give freely and joyfully, we are loaded with too many good things, while others are desperate for a small loaf.
*When it's hard and you are doubtful, give more.*
Chapter 8--Profile of the Obsessed
People who are OBSESSED with Jesus are not consumed with their personal safety and comfort above all else.
What about this travel prayer? "God, bring me closer to you during this trip, whatever it takes..."
Crazy Ones
Sometimes I feel like when I make a decision that is remotely biblical, people who call themselves Christians are the first to criticize and say I'm crazy, that I'm taking the Bible too literally, or that I'm not thinking about my family's well-being.
OBSESSED people are more concerned with obeying God then doing what is expected or fulfilling the status quo.
A person who is OBSESSED things about heaven frequently. Obsessed people orient their lives around eternity; they are not fixed only on what is here in front of them.
People who are OBSESSED with God are raw with Him; they do not attempt to mask the ugliness of their sins or failures. Obsessed people don't put it on for God; He is their safe lace, where they can be at peace.
Joy is something that we have to choose and then work for. It doesn't come automatically. It needs cultivation.
Chapter 9--Who Really Lives That Way?
Extraordinary stories of those living and sacrificing to live out God's will. "Wow" is the only way to describe those.
No comments:
Post a Comment