“Everything I rejected about God was not God.”

A thought by Mark Batterson, (2015-10-06) from his book, If: Trading Your If Only Regrets for God's What If Possibilities (Kindle Location 310). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. . (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

This is a quote by Eric Metaxas who was the keynote speaker for the 2012 National Day of Prayer Breakfast that Mark attended. And it had a great impact on Mark.

Mark said, “It was like tectonic plates shifted with that one seismic statement, and I still feel the aftershocks. Most people who reject God are really rejecting religion, without knowing it. They aren’t really rejecting God for who He is. They are actually rejecting God for who He isn’t.”

Mark goes on, “Eric pushed the envelope even further: ‘Everything I rejected about God was not God. It was religion. . . . It was people who go to church and do not show the love of [Jesus], people who don’t practice what they preach, people who are indifferent to the poor and suffering. . . . I had rejected that, but guess what? Jesus had also rejected that. . . . Jesus was and is the enemy of dead religion.’”

Mark then said, “The most insidious lie we can believe about God is that He is somehow against us. It’s the very same lie that planted seeds of doubt in Eve’s spirit in the Garden of Eden. We’ve doubted God’s goodness ever since, and it’s the root cause of a thousand other problems. If the enemy can get us to buy into that original lie, we posture ourselves against God because we think God is against us. Then we reject God for all the wrong reasons. No. No. A thousand times no! God is for you. God is for you in every way imaginable. God is for you for all eternity.” A little later he said, “If you don’t love God, it’s because you don’t know God.”

That is so true. Please seek to really know God.

Will you do that?

Comments

“God does big things with small deeds.”

A thought by Max Lucado (2011-05-02) from his book, Cure for the Common Life (p. 115). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) I don’t know how you feel about what you are doing and how it can make a difference. You may feel that it is so small and not even worth the effort. Max says, “Begin. Just begin! What seems small to you might be huge to someone else. Just ask Bohn Fawkes. During World War II, he piloted a B-17. On one mission he sustained flak from Nazi antiaircraft guns. Even though his gas tanks were hit, the plane did not explode, and Fawkes was able to land the plane. “On the morning following the raid, Fawkes asked his crew chief for the German shell. He wanted to keep a souvenir of his incredible good fortune. The crew chief explained that not just one but eleven shells had been found in the gas tanks, none of which had exploded. “Technicians opened the missiles and found them void of explosive cha...

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle? Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...

"Lie 2: The more you worry about it, the better your odds of avoiding it."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book, Winning the War on Worry (p. 5). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Here is another lie that the Enemy uses with us. And Louie says, "This is a tricky lie. Yes, we often have cause for concern and preparation. But the Enemy wants you to believe that if you worry or fret over a certain outcome long enough, you can keep something bad from happening." But this is so important to realize. He says, "The reality is worrying has never once prevented something negative from happening. Planning might. Prayer has. But worry never will." He continues, "The Enemy tells you that by worrying about a situation (or every situation) you can make your tomorrow better. Really, worry just robs you of today. Jesus implored us: 'I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body mor...

Just Continue That Thought...

Search This Blog