He who makes little of God makes much of himself, They who forget adoration fall into adulation. The eyes must see something, and if they admire not God, they will flatter self.Charles Spurgeon wrote these words in his book, Treasury of David, I know they are true because they come straight from Scripture (Psalm 36:1-2) and because they often play themselves out in my life. As soon as I take my eyes off God, I put them on me. Whether I am bemoaning circumstances, relationships, or whatever, it becomes all about me - my way, my hurts, my comfort, my pleasure, my, my, my! Me, me, me!! What a pathetic god I make!
Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you save, O LORD. How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light. Psalm 36:5-9
Heavenly Father, continue doing your refining work in my life. Even though it's often painful, who I am without it is unbearable! Both to myself and to those who know me!
Selfishness is in our inherent nature but so is kindness, love, and altruism. All of these things that are within us are there for a reason. We are social beings (which means we depend on other people to survive) but like all things in nature we need a balance in our lives: too much giving and we have nothing for ourselves, too much selfishness and we have no friends and no support. A God (or Gods) did not give us these traits. They need no super-natural explanation. If we focus our attention on an absent deity, we will always be chasing shadows and wondering what this moving target wants of us. We are not our own gods either. There are things within our control and things outside our control, some of which is our own nature. Life takes finesse and nuance to navigate successfully. It takes knowing one’s self, so it’s best to get on with it.
ReplyDeleteDear John the Rationalist,
DeleteGod is not a moving target! He is unchanging Truth, the same yesterday, today and forever. What He asks of us is to love Him with all our heart and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. To know Him is life eternal, so it's best to get on with it!
I pray for you often.
Mimi