In his books, The Papa Prayer and Soul Talk, Larry Crabb makes a statement that originally comes from Augustine, I think. The statement goes something like this (God Speaking): "Child, I want you to make a list of everything that you want. I mean everything-all the blessings that you want from me- healthy children, nice house, good job, great relationships, great fruit in ministry, loose weight etc. I will give you all of those things But you will never see my face."
The feeling that I have when I think of having everything on my list (which is way too long to list here) but not seeing God's face is evidence of who I really am in my new heart that He has given me. I can't imagine not ever seeing God's face-Not Really! But I often treat God in such a way that all our relationship is about is what He can give me-weight loss, freedom from emotional pain, a child who doesn't struggle, a husband who doesn't have a chronic illness.............The list could go on and on.
Dr. Crabb talks about the first thing vs. second things. The second things being the blessings of God and the first thing being our relationship with God. I often find myself seeking the second thing blessings of God without much thought about my relationship with Him. What would it look like for me to be a first thing Christian? Would I not want to loose weight anymore? Would I become lax in doing the things that God has entrusted to me? I don't think so. I think my perspective would change. I think I might trust Him more to workout things in my life because I know He loves me, because He always has my best interest at heart.
How will I know that the above things are true about God? Time. Just hanging out with Him, developing my relationship with Him. The people I like and trust the most are the people I spend time with, the ones I have history with. What if I treated God like the person He is? What if I made a coffee or a lunch date with Him? What if I sought time with Him like I do with my other friends? He's always seeking me! Imagine it......Beth Moore gave a good illustration of God waiting excitedly by our beds everyday for us to wake up just so He talk to us!!!
Am I listening? Do I want to know Him more than I want............? I think I'll finish my second cup of coffee with Him. He's waiting for me!!!
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