If you did not get a chance to read my first post, on life's great deceptions, I would encourage you to do so. Because, I firmly believe that many of us live under the false notion that we will always have more time. That post in a way, sets up a lot of what I'm hoping to do with this series of posts.
As we dive in, let me be perfectly clear. Life is filled with many truths but also many deceptions. Most of the deceptions that we see in our society are very subtle deceptions, if lies were big, bold, and glaring the truth of the matter would be that no one in their right mind would believe them. So, that's what our journey is all about, we want to look at some big deceptions our society has led us to believe.
This is absolutely huge. Because our society is fueled with the message that you are the lead in the story. The story we are discussing here in this post is the story of your life and how it has unfolded and will continue to unfold in the future. Your life plays out like a story. There is a goal in your story. Your story has antagonists, difficulties, struggles, hardships, comforts, and of course it has joys as well. But, one thing is true for all of us reading this, you are not the main character or protagonist, God is.
I will fully admit I don't know everything, and there are many, many people in the world that are smarter than I am. But, I have seen in my brief time on this earth that people for the most part live their lives one of two ways, they either live life basing their goals, decisions, words, actions, and time on making themselves great and known or they either live life making someone or something else great and known.
So, my challenge to you in looking at this deception is to really and honestly ask yourself, "How do I want to live? Will life be all about me? Or will life be something more?" Because the reality is I've seen that living all for yourself and trying to make your name is an attractive way to live only in the short term, but in the long run it often leads us feeling empty and unsatisfied. Because, the danger about living all for you is that all your thoughts, goals, words, and actions are often geared to satisfying yourself and having yourself fulfilled. This is not me saying that you should avoid all things and areas of life that will leave you satisfied, what I'm saying is that they cannot be the most important thing in your life. There has to be something greater. Working in the church both now and in the past, growing up in the church, and being around a lot of people I've seen many people live all for themselves, and the sad reality is that they never got what they were looking for: lasting satisfaction. They wanted so badly to be the lead in their story, they did everything to make that happened, and for awhile they were, but at the end it left them empty and unsatisfied.
Probably the best Biblical example of someone so desperate to be the lead in their story comes in Matthew 19:16-22. This is the real life account of the rich, young man approaching Jesus and asking Him what must he do to inherit eternal life. All the physical tasks and commands the man had obeyed, but when Jesus asked the man to do something big, sell everything and give it all to the poor, the man went away sad and broken. Jesus essentially asked the man to resign/give-up being the lead in his story, and the man wasn't able to do so.
So, the question remains how to live? This is not necessarily an easy thing to communicate in a blog form, but we'll try. This won't be a 20 minute fix or anything like that, but I guarantee this will be one of the most worthwhile things you do. What we're saying here is that to live all for God, the first step is to change the way you think and what you view is most important in your life. For everyone how this process unfolds will be different, but there will be a few common threads throughout everyone's journey.
1) You won't be able to do it on your own. If you try just all by yourself to live a life that is focused on others, God, social justice, etc. you will fail every time. Because, the truth is you were never meant to live this life alone. Jesus promised in John 14 that a comforter was coming, the disciples were in awe at Pentecost, when they were able to speak every language, because the Holy Spirit is designed to guide, lead, and direct you. Without being connected to the Holy Spirit, your life transformation, shift in thinking, and your life in general will not work in the long run. You may be able to get by for awhile, and you may even make a difference. But, just as a cell phone, Kindle, or laptop you need to be plugged into to your power source to make it for the long haul or the marathon that is this life. Your relationship with God and the power God gives to you is your power source.
2) Difficulty will be present. Jesus promised us at the end of John 16 that in this world we will have trouble, but please don't stop there. Please don't base your entire theology, thinking, or life on the first part, because Jesus concludes the verse by saying that He has overcome the world. Know this that if trouble, heartache, betrayal, and even death didn't leave the Son of God alone, they will not leave you alone. So, what I would tell you is to prepare now for trouble. Prepare by being grateful every single day. Prepare by making sure your loved ones know how you feel about them. Prepare by being so in love with Jesus that no matter what happens your faith won't be shaken.
3) One of the driving forces in living a life that focuses on lifting God up above everything else, is investing in people. One of the common themes in the gospels is that Jesus lifts up people who are down, gives value to people who the world sees as valueless, and His ministry is not primarily focused on making people happy but a major portion of his ministry is focused on making broken people whole. Things can be replaced and often become obsolete. People forget award winners. Offices will one day be reassigned, and I'm not saying these things should be totally abandoned, but rather make sure that you fully know and understand that they cannot be the most important thing in your life. God is doing something incredible in this world, and being a supporting character in God's story is the most satisfying way to live. Invest in people, prepare for trouble, and never disconnect from your power source.
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