Listening, not just hearing.

It's come to my attention lately that over the past few weeks, with the business of finishing school and exams, I've slipped a bit in my walk with God. I've still been reading the bible and praying, but it had become more of a chore than a joy.

Part of the problem, I've realised was that I was hearing and reading God's word but not really listening to it. Because I've been considering it more of a chore and because I've been more stressed about study and the other complexities of life, when I've been reading the word my mind has been elsewhere. As a result I've been reading it, but not truly listening to it. I haven't been taking notice of what God is teaching me, I haven't been applying it to my life, I haven't been rejoicing in the lessons God has for me and the depths of his mercy and grace.

As I started to realise that I had been slipping I began trying to fix it myself. Again not listening to God or just turning to him in prayer. We try so hard to fix things ourselves, but we are sinful and we cannot. Only God can bring us back to him. Only God can reveal to us where we have stuffed up and bring us back to a right standing before him through Christ. In pride it's so often easy to lose sight of that again.

I thought it would be worth posting this because perhaps you're facing the same problem. I didn't really recognise it until the last few days. I thought I was doing a good job when in reality I was legalistically doing chores that I thought would impress God. The truth is nothing we can ever do can impress God. That's why we need Jesus. That's why God is so gracious and merciful in saving us. We deserve none of it.

If this is you, then pray. Ask God for help. Be honest with him and yourself (Your not going to scare him with your honesty - he knows it all anyway). Read his word and take note of it - don't just do it as a chore, apply it to your life and rejoice in it (regardless of if it makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside or not).

A Prideful Blogger

Isaiah 2:11

The eyes of the arrogant man will be humbled and the pride of men brought low; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.

I've been coming to realise more and more over time that I get quite proud about my blog. I start shifting the glory away from God and start quietly complimenting myself for it. In fact, I don't just do it over this blog, I do it over almost every aspect of my life. I slowly replace God as the centre of my attention and place myself there - and I hardly even realise it.

I am drawn towards pride quite easily, and Satan sucks me into it without me even realising. In my sinfulness I love being proud, but I also hate it because it dishonours God. God alone deserves the glory, and he alone with have it in the end. I am simply a wretched human who cannot stand against sin even though I have been freed from it. And yet I'm still proud.

What about you? If you're a Christian then how are you doing with pride? How are you doing with other areas in your life that you so often fall down in? If you aren't a Christian then pride is probably one of the reasons: your refusing to put God first in your life and follow his ways. Take a few minutes to be honest with yourself and God.

So how do we deal with pride?

John Piper gives 10 ways we can fight it in our lives. Click here to take a look

God Bless,
Nat.

It's Not About You.

Image source

Romans 11:17-21

If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.

 There are heaps of things that can be pulled from these verses, but the one I want to focus on today is that it's not about you. It's not about me. It's not even about us. It's about God, the root.

We are naturally very proud. When something goes right for us, we like to take the glory ourselves. For example, even though I know it is not true, I sometimes find myself thinking that I'm better than other people and that's why God saved me. No, in reality I am far worse than a whole heap of people. The only difference is that I'm saved by grace. There's nothing in us that makes us worth saving. God does it to show forth his glory.

The passage in Romans is directed at the Gentiles, warning them against pride. The Jews had rejected Jesus, and therefore they had been "cut off", and the Gentiles had been "grafted in". Paul is warning them against the mentality of pride, which says - "The Jews were cut off so we could be put in". No, in reality the Jews (as a nation) were cut off because they did not believe and they rejected God's salvation. It has nothing to do with us.

We like to think that everything is about us, and I think that's because everything in our culture (at least here in Australia) is telling me that it's all about Me. Because I'm worth it. No, in reality I'm not worth it - you're not worth it. We're vile sinners.

Something needs to change: We need to stop thinking that it's all about ourselves and we need to start putting our focus on God. It's a hard battle, because we constantly shift back to ourselves. We constantly, subtly get proud again and we don't even notice until we've fallen into the trap again. That's what I find at least.

Here are a few verses to consider in the light of all this:

1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honour God with your bodies.

1 Corinthians 10:31

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

All glory to God! (Easy to say, much harder to actually give it all to him)
Nat.

How much we need God.

Image source

Psalm 70:5

But as for me, I am poor and needy;
come quickly to me, O God.
You are my help and my deliverer;
Lord, do not delay.

Do we really know our state before God? Do we truly understand that we are sinful and need his help, that without Jesus we could not be saved?

I don't think any of us truly understands how much we need God. He created us, he sustains us, he saved us. Without him we wouldn't exist. Without him we wouldn't be able to exist, and without Jesus we would all be destined only for his wrath.

We are truly poor and needy. We need God entirely.

Therefore there is no room for pride. We cannot help ourselves, we need God. There is no room for thinking ourselves better then others or worthy enough for his grace.

Our prayer should be that we will realise this more and more so that we may praise him more and more for it and so that we will not be proud, but rather be humble and serve him faithfully.

He is our help and deliverer - have you accepted him?

Psalm 62

Psalm 61:3, 5-8

How long will you assault me?
Would all of you throw me down—
this leaning wall, this tottering fence? 

Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him.
 Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
 My salvation and my honour depend on God;
he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
 Trust in him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge.

 The lesson I want to draw out from these verses is simple: We are weak and have nothing to boast in, but God is all powerful and we can trust in him.

David was the king of Israel, the most powerful man in in a powerful nation. Instead of boasting about this, he instead sees his true condition before God - he is a "tottering fence", a "leaning wall" that is about to fall over.

No matter who we are, we are weak. We sin, we stuff up and we don't really have that much power or influence on the events around us. We deserve God's wrath and we cannot change that ourselves. We are surrounded by things that could go wrong, and we can't really save ourselves out of them or control them. We can try, but we won't succeed anything except maybe false assurance.

Yet there is hope - If we are Christians then our sins are forgiven. We can find rest in God. He forgives us and he protects us. He is our fortress, our salvation. He is the rock that we can set our feet on and trust in because he does not change and he is all powerful. Trust in God at all times!

Don't set your eyes on yourself. Don't be proud or self-righteous. Instead look to God who is all powerful and who offers true salvation. We can be confident in him, but any confidence we have in ourselves is not well grounded. God is all powerful, we are weak. God saves, we sin and cannot save ourselves or even change our actions to serve him without his help. It is truly foolish to ignore God and to continue to trust in yourself. It is foolish to choose to be protected by your own tottering fence then God's mighty fortress that never fails.

We have nothing to be proud about. Praise God and put your trust in him!

Psalm 62:1-2

Truly my soul finds rest in God;
my salvation comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.