“We see Him as a benevolent Being who is satisfied when people manage to fit Him into their lives in some small way. We forget that God never had an identity crisis. He knows that He’s great and deserves to be the center of our lives…. He never begs us to give Him some small part of ourselves. He commands everything from His followers.” – Francis Chan, Crazy Love

“Holy crap, I suck.” That’s what I said after reading this statement. So often, I’m thrilled with myself when I concede one of my little selfish habits to the Lord. I probably even pat myself on the back. But God shakes his head sadly.

This morning, we watched the final segment of The Truth Project in Sunday School. The highlight of the lesson was hearing the story of a tatoo artist named Flash.

His story was defined by a terrible childhood with a monster of a mom and an absent father. As a child, Flash went to church and recounts of one woman who really made a difference in his life. She was a Christian who really loved other people and would check up on Flash when he was younger. Flash says that religions are crap, but what that woman had was true Christianity.

I really wish I could post the video of that interview (darn copyright laws) for everyone to see. The video really reminded me of the power loving people around us, no matter what they are like. It made a huge impact on Flash. Everyone who experiences that kinda love couldn’t deny that our faith was something special.

I need to live more like that. Are you aware of the people around you who need to be loved?

In the past two days, I’ve spent several hours driving back and forth between Tigard and McMinnville. I think it was about 5 hours total. Some people hate driving, but there is something therapeutic (or maybe even spiritual) about long drives for me.

With the sun shining and music pumping, life seems like a moving picture show. And I enjoy ever moment of it. Today, it made me reflect on God. The beauty of the Oregon countryside had me in awe of the greatness of God.

Here is my question for you: What things sorts of things make you stop and reflect on God?

In high school, my friend Alec and I took James 4:13-17 to heart. Instead just of saying that we would do this or that, we would add a “God willing” to it. At first glance, this can seem like a trite little Christianism. And I think it could be for some. But not for us.

Our efforts were not to be or seem more like a “Christian.” We desired to really be more mindful of the Lord’s will. After reading the passage in James at some point, Alec and started to discuss how we often forgot to look to God in our daily lives and decisions. We would make plans to do things, but we’d forget to ask Jesus for direction. And we desperately wanted to be more mindful of the Lord and his direction.

So, what was the outcome? We became more mindful of the Lord’s will and his leading throughout our day.

Do you need to be more mindful of what the Lord desires for you? I know I do.

“If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off….”
–Jesus (read Mark 9:42-48 for full passage)

This is a pretty big command. If part of you cause yo to sin, get rid of it. I don’t know about you, but I’d have a pretty hard time cutting off my own hand. But it’s what Jesus told us to do. So, why don’t we see more people without eyes or hands?

The thing about it is this: Your hand doesn’t cause you to sin, it’s your heart. The sinful nature, or flesh, is what causes us to sin. The hand is just the accessory to the crime. And we tend to blame the crime on the accessory. “My hand just did it” or “My eyes just looked at that girl inappropriately.” We don’t take responsibility for our sin.

By talking about cutting off a hand or eye, one thing Jesus is telling us to get rid of the excuses. Jobs, friends, video games, and other things tend to be our excuses for sin in our lives. Get rid of the excuse! Ask God for help and the Holy Spirit will help you overcome your temptations and sin.

What excuses do you need to get rid of today?

“Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
–Jesus (Mark 8:33)

After Peter rebuked Jesus for predicting his death, Jesus called Peter to the carpet with these words. It wasn’t on account of Peter’s lack of love for Jesus—his love was quite apparent—but it was for Peter’s lack of understanding of God’s purposes. He was concerned with the purposes of men. “If Jesus dies, he can no longer lead us and into his kingdom. I need to protect him,” Peter thought. He was concerned with man’s purposes and understanding: death and suffering are bad.

So, Peter tried to correct Jesus. Think about that. Peter tried to give guidance and direction to the Lord God Almighty. God doesn’t need our advice, he can take care of himself.

In my observations, we tend to do that same thing. We try to defend God and protect him from the insults and stones that the world throws at him. But the reality is this: He doesn’t need us to protect him, he needs us to obey him. Jesus is more concerned that we would be mindful of his purposes rather than protect him from people.

Be aware that God’s purposes in somethings aren’t always clear or easy to understand. In our love for God, we may get it wrong sometimes. But, may we be like Peter, who, when rebuked by Jesus, listened and allowed God to fulfill his plan.

“You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.”
–Jesus (Mark 7:8)

I often find myself thinking about God and doing things a certain way because it’s the what I was taught. That’s how people learn and grow. We put into practice what we are taught. If we endlessly asked the question “why?” and not put into action anything until we completely understand, it would take forever. It’s not a practical way to live.

At the same time, if we just do what we are told and do it exactly how we are told without thinking about it, we often miss out on the purpose and the heart behind it. This is especially detrimental when it comes to our faith and relationship with Christ.

God has always been more concerned with the heart of things than the specific action or tradition. You see this even at the beginning with Cain and Abel. “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?” (Genesis 4:7). As Christians, it is important for us to seek out the heart of God. And God has revealed himself and his heart to us through the Bible. That’s why we need to be reading through it and praying and asking God to make his heart clear to us. And he will.

Have you been seeking the heart of God or just following the traditions you’ve been taught?