- Joined
- Apr 25, 2006
- Messages
- 17,518
7 August 2007
Part of a special week of studies focusing on serving God and following his call.
Genesis 12:2
God said to Abram, "'I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you. I will make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. . . . And all the people on earth will be blessed through you."
I had a deep respect for my headmaster because of his ability to cause extreme pain simply by grabbing my sideburns and pulling hard! To some degree I viewed God as a cosmic, all-seeing, all-punishing headmaster, and my attempts to please him were born out of fear not love.
Most parents quickly realise there are two means of gaining co-operation from their children - scare them into good behaviour (and that's the easy way!) or love them so outrageously and consistently that they will want to please you! Thankfully, God the Father specialises in the outrageous love approach.
Abram had been set a tough challenge by God - follow me, and I won't even tell you where you'll end up - but the compensation package was more than impressive. It is as if God said to Abram "think of the ten most amazing things I could ever do for you - and what you'll receive will be a million times better."
There's no denying that following God - seriously, not just when it is convenient - is a risky and costly way to live. But what he offers in return - blessings for yourself, and even more, the opportunity to see other people blessed for all eternity because of you - there is no other lifestyle to compare.
God, I don't want to serve you out of fear - because I know you love me and have forgiven me - so help me to live a life of following you in the menial details and the enormous decisions of my life. Amen.
Written by Phil Clark, Programme Leader for Xplore - Church Army's new Global Gap Year programme.
Part of a special week of studies focusing on serving God and following his call.
Genesis 12:2
God said to Abram, "'I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you. I will make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. . . . And all the people on earth will be blessed through you."
I had a deep respect for my headmaster because of his ability to cause extreme pain simply by grabbing my sideburns and pulling hard! To some degree I viewed God as a cosmic, all-seeing, all-punishing headmaster, and my attempts to please him were born out of fear not love.
Most parents quickly realise there are two means of gaining co-operation from their children - scare them into good behaviour (and that's the easy way!) or love them so outrageously and consistently that they will want to please you! Thankfully, God the Father specialises in the outrageous love approach.
Abram had been set a tough challenge by God - follow me, and I won't even tell you where you'll end up - but the compensation package was more than impressive. It is as if God said to Abram "think of the ten most amazing things I could ever do for you - and what you'll receive will be a million times better."
There's no denying that following God - seriously, not just when it is convenient - is a risky and costly way to live. But what he offers in return - blessings for yourself, and even more, the opportunity to see other people blessed for all eternity because of you - there is no other lifestyle to compare.
God, I don't want to serve you out of fear - because I know you love me and have forgiven me - so help me to live a life of following you in the menial details and the enormous decisions of my life. Amen.
Written by Phil Clark, Programme Leader for Xplore - Church Army's new Global Gap Year programme.
