Following God at All Costs

Yesterday's "Our Daily Bread" talked about God testing us to produce a God-devotion; a righteous loyalty.

There are times when God requires something really important to get His work done. He’ll ask us to give up our natural instincts to seek revenge so that we can communicate His forgiving love by forgiving our enemies. He may call us to sacrifice portions of our time or money or comforts to advance His cause. Or He may require us to allow our sons and daughters to go to a far-off land to tell others about His saving love. The way we respond to what He requires says volumes about how we really feel about Him.

But there is another kind of cost. One that very often Oswald Chambers talks about. We have to be prepared for the effects of following God. Obedience and submission means yielding and dying to self. And it means that we must follow God above all. And do what He asks. Even if it means a sacrifice of something you may hold dear. Do you love it more than God? Then it's an idol.

The question you must ask yourself is, "is God ever wrong?". "Is God ever mean?". The answer is always no. Good will come of obedience and submission. You may not see it, but it is always true.

I suppose the bottom line is that you have to look at the character of God. For how I respond to God tells exactly what I think about Him. But realizing what He has done for me reminds me exactly what He thinks about me. But I must look past my little idols to focus on exactly who God is.

All for now,
Lisa