If God Isn't In it

I used to have a popular saying tacked up to my bulletin board … “If God isn’t in it, it won’t get done.”

I smile when I think back to how many times I looked at that saying and prayed that God would be involved in whatever project I might be working on.

Needless to say, it usually didn’t work.

The truth is, if God isn’t in our life, then much of what we try to do won’t get done … at least not the way God intends it and probably not the way we hoped for.

We struggle, sacrifice, and work hard towards a goal we’ve set for ourselves. Many times, it’s something we believe God wants. Unfortunately, the fallacy is that it is something we want and God’s involvement comes after we’ve made a commitment, started a project, accepted a new job, or begun a mission.

We must first seek God’s will, not our own.

We love to quote various scriptures from the New Testament claiming the promises Jesus spoke about. There are at least fourteen instances where He spoke about asking and receiving. We like to end our prayers by saying, “… in Jesus’ name,” and think that covers our requests. After all, we have scripture that tells us so. “If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.” John 14:14,
New American Standard

Of course, the verse is taken out of context. John 14 is part of the intimate time Jesus spent with his disciples during the Last Supper. Jesus spoke lovingly and tenderly to those who were closest to him. And he had a lot to say. If we base our actions on this one verse, we’re going to be disappointed … over and over again.

If we want to claim a scripture as a promise of Jesus working in our life, maybe we should quote a different verse that is both a beautiful and concise promise Jesus left for all of us:


“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” John 15:7, New American Standard

In the next few days, I’d like to look at how we can have God in our life and be confident of the things we ask.

Blessings, Francine

SPECIAL NOTE: I pray that each commentary I write here will bless you, but please understand that some are built on previous entries. I’ve tried to build a Biblical basis from which my thoughts are developed. It’s important that you understand my words aren’t the end of the story, so to speak. I would encourage you to check out previous entries if you have questions concerning what I’ve written. Also, I’ve included links to several web sites that can provide much more detailed guidance than I’m able to do here. Check out Running Empty or Power to Change (see list of links to the right). For more in-depth study, you can visit Now Try God at http://www.nowtrygod.com or New Christian Life at http://newchristian.com as additional resources. The bottom line – don’t accept what I say as gospel. That’s what the Bible is for. An excellent on-line tool is BibleGateway.com at http://www.biblegateway.com

As always, I welcome your comments or you can contact me at
tenderheartaz@yahoo.com

3 comments:

    Fortunately, if it is God's will, it usually gets done, even if we kick and scream before acknowledging His will. Remember Gamaliel's advice to the Jews about the early church (Acts 5:38-39)- "And now I say to you, keep away from these men, keep away from these men and leave them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it- lest you even be found to fight against God."

     
    On 9:40 PM David Meigs said...

    John 15 is my favorite all time scripture. We can't give live, only Jesus can. If we are not in fellowship with Him, then we are empty.

    Great job.

     

    Thanks for the comments -- they add more meaning to my post. How lucky am I? God continues to bless me with visitors like each of you and to use each of us, doesn't he?

     
 
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