Let's tackle the big questions today:
1) Who is God?
2) Who are you?
3) What does God want from you?
(yes, this may be redundant, but worth a reminder read either way)
1) Who is God? Well, my understanding is that God created everything (creator) and God is perfect. I think that's enough for now.
2) Who am I? Well, I'm mortal, moody, emotional, irrational (at times) and POWERFUL. I have the power to create (and to destroy), the power to build up (and tear down). I was built in the image of my creator (which could be a whole study in and of itself). And this POWER to create/destroy can be used EVERYWHERE such as work, home, grocery, etc. The POWER is more important (and also most powerful) in our close relationships (spouse, parent, child & close friends).
3) What does God want from you? I'd say first and foremost that we know God and we know who we are (see questions 1 & 2). We could stop here since it all comes from here, but we'll go on just a bit...
From 1 & 2, I think God wants us to forget the mistakes of our past and move on into the future (not making mistakes again) and live life to the fullest (full of purpose & intention). Jesus' ministry on earth as a man was only 3 years and I think God wants us to continue that ministry. I think God wants us to give 100% of ourselves, our lives, our jobs, our time, our money to God's values and priorities which are to love God & neighbor (Matt 22:37-39) and to look after widows & orphans (Jam 1:27). God summarizes what is required in Micah 6:8 "do justly, love mercy & walk humbly with God".
I'll end with an excerpt from C. S. Lewis. This is good stuff!
(from his book "Mere Christianity" Book IV Chapter 8)
The Cost of Discipleship
The ordinary idea which we all have before we become Christians is this. We take as a starting point our ordinary self with its various desires and interests. We then admit that something else--call it "morality" or "decent behaviour" or "the good of society"--has claims on this self; claims which interfere with its own desires. What we mean by "being good" is giving in to those claims. Some of the things the ordinary self wanted to do turn out to be what we call "wrong": well, we must give them up. Other things which the self did not want to do, turn out to be what we call "right": well, we shall have to do them. Be we are hoping all the time that when all the demands have been met, the poor natural self will still have some chance, and some time, to get on with its own life and do what it likes. In fact, we are very like an honest man paying his taxes. He pays them all right, but he does hope that there will be enough left over for him to live on. Because we are still taking our natural self as the staring point.
As long as we are thinking that way, one of the other of two results is likely to follow. Either we give up trying to be good, or else we become very unhappy indeed, for, make no mistake: if you are really going to try to meet all the demands made on the natural self, it will not have enough left over to live on. The more you obey your conscious, the more your conscience will demand of you. And your natural self, which is thus being starved and hampered and worried at every turn, will get angrier and angrier. In the end you will either give up trying to be good or else become one of those people who, as they say, "live for others" but in a discontented, grumbling way--always wondering why the others do not notice it more, and always making a martyr of yourself. And once you have become that you will be a far greater pest to anyone who has to live with you than you would have been if you had remained frankly selfish.
The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says, "Give me All. I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work; I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don't want to cut off a branch here and a branch there. I want to have the whole tree down. I don't want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out. Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked--the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself; my own will shall become yours."
Think about it.
Thanks for reading.
