Friday the 5th

John 6: ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.

 

Jesus made it very clear from the time He got here He had one thing on His mind. Doing the will of His Father. We are not much different form Christ in that aspect. Whenever I talk to someone about what they are doing, or where they are heading in life, the Will of God typically comes up. However following God’s will can turn into a crutch for some. It becomes very easy to apply “I am following God’s will” to anything that is placed in our path…if we want to do it. SO what is it to follow God’s will? The easy answer is to live a life that mirrors Christ. However Christ did not have to make the choices we make today. He did not struggle with taking a promotion that might compromise your morals, He did not have to choose to pick up His family and move then halfway across the country, He did not have to choose between taking more money, or spending more time at home…..now while even those choices would be easy for Christ…..we simply are not Christ. So how do we deal? How do we make the big decisions in life when it all seems so confusing. I wish I could tell you there was an easy answer, or that the answer was hard, but I knew what it was….sorry I can’t, all I can offer is the question that I ask myself…….Does it glorify God? Will the choice I make serve me, someone I know, or God? In a perfect world all three would be satisfied, but the world is far from perfect, and the choices we have to make are often difficult. So, we are left with one important question, if we are striving to live like Christ, and we know that Christ lived to Glorify His Father, then the choices we make, and the paths we choose should do the same. What does that mean? Well, we have to be honest with ourselves, we have to look at who is being served. If the choices we make only serve to make ourselves feel better, without giving the opportunity to spread the Word of God, or extend His kingdom, then you might want to think a little more about that. If the choice we have to make only serves someone we know, yet leaves the kingdom of God the same, then who is really benefiting from that? I know, you might be thinking well what if it is a choice is “neutral” meaning that no one is really effected? I would say to that….there really is no neutral “big” decisions. It has taken me a long time to realize this, and it is something that I still struggle with….if one thing is important……then everything is important. The lives we touch, the choices we make, the interactions we have all affect someone, on some level. The ripple effect is huge. One action that you might think of as insignificant, or “neutral” might just be the action that feeds someone’s problem that they need help with, not enabling of. The move you make might seem like a chance to better your life, but it might be the thing that pushes someone away form God, not closer to Him. In the end, it all comes down to…. does it glorify God, or does it glorify the world. When the dust settles will you be viewed as someone who walks the path of the Lord, or someone that walks the path for themselves, and the world? Do not be fooled by those that would tell you that you cannot serve God, and still be successful, I know men, and women that have risen to high places, and still have their relationship with God intact, but then again, I know men and women that have stayed in the same place because God needed them where they were at. Does it glorify God? Will it advance His kingdom? Self service, and service to the world cannot be changed into something different because we hang a “God’s will” on it. The choice will either serve Him, or not….no matter what we call it.

 

 

God Bless,

Brian Thetford

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www.thenewcovenantchurch.com

 

www.theworkweekwithchrist.blogspot.com