“What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ — the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.” (Philippians 3:8-9)
Before you discover your God-given purpose in life, you’ll often experience a series of adversities that cause you to relinquish what’s temporal and grasp what’s eternal. For Paul it meant the loss of every earthly possession. For others it can mean the heat of battle in a divorce court. When the person you thought was “everything” walks away, suddenly you’re stripped down to what you had before.
Look at Job; his home was a shambles, his marriage seemed a joke, and his children were dead. That’s when he discovered you can be stripped of the temporal, but not the eternal; stripped of your wealth, friends, and fame, but not of your character and your faith in God — those things survive the strippings of life. The Bible says, “Then Job … fell down upon the ground, and worshipped” (Job 1:20). True worship is born in the fire of sacrifice. When you can lay upon the altar something you thought you had to have because you realize it was God’s all along — that’s worship.
Look at Abraham’s altar. God didn’t want the slain body of Isaac; He wanted to know if there was anything Abraham loved more than Him. That’s it — reaching the place where you can pray: “Lord, here are my grudges and forgiveness, my need to impress, my time, talent and treasure, anything I’m wrapped up in that hinders me from being completely Yours. You’ll never have to take these things from me, for I gladly give You all it takes to be what You want me to be.” Can you pray that today? It’s not easy, but it’ll change your life.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, here are my grudges and forgiveness, my need to impress, my time, talent and treasure, anything I’m wrapped up in that hinders me from being completely Yours. You’ll never have to take these things from me, for I gladly give You all it takes to be what You want me to be. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Stay encouraged!
Pastor Mike
