Knowing God

Do you want to know God? Do you hunger and thirst for His righteousness? But do you feel that there is a road block between what you want and what you are getting?

Let me not focus on others, but make this about me. In life I see that we all have choices, is the choices that we make about pleasing God or about pleasing ourselves. God has given us a book to follow that will lead us to the truth, but are we just reading it because we feel that we have to or are we reading it to see what God has for us today? Those are questions that I have to ask myself. Am I being legalistic by what I am writing in this blog? No I don't think so, because God wants us to desire a deeper relationship with Him, but that means putting self to death. It can't be about what I want, not just in my reading the Bible, but in my every day life, it has to be God centered. 

Take for example I am driving down the road, a driver focused just on what he wants cuts me off, what is my reaction? I can either flip him the bird, lay on my horn or I can pray for him. The last response is now focusing on God and asking God to bless that driver. My reaction could have been about the wrong that driver caused me. 

Or my son gives me attitude, what is my response? Do I give it right back to him or do I call him on the attitude, but show him correction through love. 

All of these are choices that we make every single day. Are my choices showing these people that I am a Christian or are they showing them, that I am just like them? If you start to look at all the choices we make in a day, it is truly amazing. 

God calls me to act in a pleasing way to Him, by my reactions am I doing that? The list of choices we make are countless in a day, they are not part of us, the devil wants us to believe that lie, that we can't change, that how we react is just how we are, but God wants to show us that how we react is our choice. It is clearly written in the Bible and if we start with a thankful heart and allow God to help direct our choices, we no longer make it about what I want, but about what God wants in me. 

Today, is a day to give thanks to God for where He has you, to give thanks for all that you may be going through, because He is in control and the more I realize that He is here directing me, the more I stop making life about what I want and start making it about Him. He is the reason I am here.

Intentionality

Intentionality: Doing things no matter how I may feel, but doing it because the choice that I made is the direction I want to go in no matter what.

I find it is good to make a choice to do things, because life is just that a choice. I have a choice whether to be thankful or to be full of the negative. Jesus said to us, give thanks in all circumstances, He knew that we had a choice to look at the negative of everything and He knew that we needed to look at the positive that He has given us. I have that choice daily, moment by moment, it is to look at all that is happening in my life, I can see all the negative or I can see all that God is doing. It comes down to how I want to look at things.

The world says look at all the negative, it focuses on bad things, it is there to remind me of my past, or how I can be, but Jesus said give thanks, have a thankful heart. Why do you think He tells us that? Because He knew that it is easy to focus on all the bad, to see what I have done, to see where I once walked, instead of seeing that He is a choice and I can grow and walk deeper with Him, but I have to put aside my human thinking and put on His way of thinking. It is a moment by moment choice, not easy to do, not easy to walk each day looking at the positive. It takes work, but He also said all things are possible for those that love Him.

What does loving Him look like? He said that we are to love Him with all we are, love Him with are hearts, minds and soul. Wow what does that look like? It means putting Him first in all the choices, it means putting to death the ways of the world and excepting His ways. I can't say I am loving Him that way, but still do my own thing, still walk in sin, because guess what if I love Him with all I am, then I no longer want to follow the flesh, but I want to follow Him. I can't just be a Sunday Christian, I have to be a Christ follower moment by moment listening, praying seeing God and in all things being thankful for it, because that is the will in Christ Jesus.

When I say I love Jesus, I have made a choice to follow Him no matter what, to put His ways above my own ways, to make a choice to do even the hard things, because that is what Love is. Love is a choice, in my walk with Jesus Christ, in my marriage, with my relationships, it is a choice that no matter how I may feel that I will do it intentionally no matter what. I believe that is what Jesus teaches us in the Bible, that it comes down to our choice, where will we walk and how deep do we want to go with Jesus is a choice.