what do people say about your God?
October 29, 2011
The king said to Daniel, "Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery." (Daniel 2:47)
Then Nebuchadnezzar said,"Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own. (Daniel 3:28)
Then king Darius wrote to all the nations and peoples of every language in all the earth: ... "I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel." (Daniel 6:26)
I love the book of Daniel, and Daniel is one of my favorite Bible characters because of how godly and holy he remained in a very idolistic and secular nation (very much like our own). I read through the book of Daniel for QTs lately, and the above verses all stood out. They all have one thing in common - God was praised, glorified because of Daniel and his friends. It got me thinking - what do people say about my God? What do people say about your God? Do people praise God because of me? Is God glorified by my life? Do people want to know more about this amazing Savior and Lover of mine because of my actions and my words? Am I so wholly submitted to God and filled with His Spirit that the people in my life cannot help but see how amazing God is? I don't know the answers to these questions but this is what I strive for - that everyone I come in contact with, all my friends and acquaintances, that I'd be not just an ambassador of Christ but a vessel for which His Spirit can work through into these people's lives, a vessel that does nothing but glorify God.
Honestly, thinking about those above three verses just awes and shocks me. That these kings - these kings who in their lifetime were one of the most powerful people - would be able to see the amazingness and awesomeness of God through these Jews who really were (despite their official positions in the nation) but mere captives of the nation. It saddens me at how low our current expectations and life goals are in the face of such godliness. We strive for so little - career, money, friends, family; and we tack God on like a decoration - a pretty bow to go on top of all our 'pretty' accomplishments. We'd rather glorify ourselves, our fun, our pleasure, our friends, our comfort than give up these earthly things for the glory of God. We'd rather be in the company of those who drink too much, curse too much, talk about irrelevant and shallow things too much, than sit in the company of Christ-lovers. I love the Daniel 3:28 verse - They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than to serve or worship any god except their own. Most people can read these verses and think "YEAH! How awesome! I'd do that!" and yet we fail to look at our own lives and see how little (if any) we strive for that. If we won't give up our earthly treasures for God, how could we give up our lives? So often the vice verse of the verse is true - that we'd rather play in the world and defy God's commands than give up our worldly lives and serve our great God.
When it comes down to it, I wonder if we even know what it means to obey God's commands? It's not just the 10 commandments, it's not just praying and reading the Bible - it's the daily in and outs of life. It's the weighing of every action, of every word, of every activity by God's word and asking ourselves if we should partake/do/speak those things if our motive is to glorify God in all. We party too much, shop too much, gossip too much, complain too much, and talk about theology and our 'Christian/spiritual goals' too much. We walk the Christian walk too little. It's easy to say "I want to grow", it's hard to do "turn off the TV show for some extra time in prayer", "saying no to a party where it is of no glory to God", "consciously not griping or complaining and giving thanks for the difficult people/situation instead", "sleeping a bit less so that church and worship with the body of Christ can be a priority."
Our mouths say "God I want to love you", our actions say "God, just not right now". We say too many 'yes's' to worldly pleasures, and too many 'no's' to the opportunities God gives us to grow. Daniel and his friends were different - their actions matched their words. They did not count their lives too precious. Eating the meat and drinking the wine the Babylonians served - no big deal right? But Daniel and his friends wouldn't compromise - not even a little bit. Bowing once to a statue/idol so I won't die - no big deal right? But Daniel's friends would not bend the knee - not even a little bit, not even in the imminent danger of being burned alive. Not outwardly praying for just a month (because the decree was only for a month) so that I won't die - no big deal right? But Daniel didn't take heed of it, not even a little bit - he continued to pray outwardly and openly as was his custom. Daniel and his friends realized what was at the heart of their relationship with God - that every action, every opportunity, every choice we make is an opportunity - an opportunity to glorify God amongst people and to grow in our relationship with God, or an opportunity to put self over God. We always pray "God I want to grow! Grow me! Transform me!" But we fail to realize that the answer to our prayers requires that we see all opportunities as from God that allow us the choice of growing. God does not want lip service, he wants genuine hearts, he wants lives. We can pray all we want to grow, and God can give us all the difficult circumstances, people, and opportunities to make that happen, but at the heart of it, we can squander it all if all we ever were serious about was our own comfort, our own pleasure in this world, and our own fun.
What would people say about our God in light of our actions and lives? Is he the God we'd give up career, money, clothes, TV shows, friends, and lives for? When our classmates, coworkers, friends, and family see our lives, our actions, our words, our hangouts, do they praise God in awe? Do they see a God worth handing entire lives, goals, and dreams over for? Or do they not even give a second thought because our lives so closely resemble theirs but with an additional nice ribbon on top labeled - "church & God", but that's all God really is to us - decoration, an add on to our lives, and not our lives?
The king said to Daniel, "Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery." (Daniel 2:47)
Then Nebuchadnezzar said,"Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own. (Daniel 3:28)
Then king Darius wrote to all the nations and peoples of every language in all the earth: ... "I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel." (Daniel 6:26)
I love the book of Daniel, and Daniel is one of my favorite Bible characters because of how godly and holy he remained in a very idolistic and secular nation (very much like our own). I read through the book of Daniel for QTs lately, and the above verses all stood out. They all have one thing in common - God was praised, glorified because of Daniel and his friends. It got me thinking - what do people say about my God? What do people say about your God? Do people praise God because of me? Is God glorified by my life? Do people want to know more about this amazing Savior and Lover of mine because of my actions and my words? Am I so wholly submitted to God and filled with His Spirit that the people in my life cannot help but see how amazing God is? I don't know the answers to these questions but this is what I strive for - that everyone I come in contact with, all my friends and acquaintances, that I'd be not just an ambassador of Christ but a vessel for which His Spirit can work through into these people's lives, a vessel that does nothing but glorify God.
Honestly, thinking about those above three verses just awes and shocks me. That these kings - these kings who in their lifetime were one of the most powerful people - would be able to see the amazingness and awesomeness of God through these Jews who really were (despite their official positions in the nation) but mere captives of the nation. It saddens me at how low our current expectations and life goals are in the face of such godliness. We strive for so little - career, money, friends, family; and we tack God on like a decoration - a pretty bow to go on top of all our 'pretty' accomplishments. We'd rather glorify ourselves, our fun, our pleasure, our friends, our comfort than give up these earthly things for the glory of God. We'd rather be in the company of those who drink too much, curse too much, talk about irrelevant and shallow things too much, than sit in the company of Christ-lovers. I love the Daniel 3:28 verse - They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than to serve or worship any god except their own. Most people can read these verses and think "YEAH! How awesome! I'd do that!" and yet we fail to look at our own lives and see how little (if any) we strive for that. If we won't give up our earthly treasures for God, how could we give up our lives? So often the vice verse of the verse is true - that we'd rather play in the world and defy God's commands than give up our worldly lives and serve our great God.
When it comes down to it, I wonder if we even know what it means to obey God's commands? It's not just the 10 commandments, it's not just praying and reading the Bible - it's the daily in and outs of life. It's the weighing of every action, of every word, of every activity by God's word and asking ourselves if we should partake/do/speak those things if our motive is to glorify God in all. We party too much, shop too much, gossip too much, complain too much, and talk about theology and our 'Christian/spiritual goals' too much. We walk the Christian walk too little. It's easy to say "I want to grow", it's hard to do "turn off the TV show for some extra time in prayer", "saying no to a party where it is of no glory to God", "consciously not griping or complaining and giving thanks for the difficult people/situation instead", "sleeping a bit less so that church and worship with the body of Christ can be a priority."
Our mouths say "God I want to love you", our actions say "God, just not right now". We say too many 'yes's' to worldly pleasures, and too many 'no's' to the opportunities God gives us to grow. Daniel and his friends were different - their actions matched their words. They did not count their lives too precious. Eating the meat and drinking the wine the Babylonians served - no big deal right? But Daniel and his friends wouldn't compromise - not even a little bit. Bowing once to a statue/idol so I won't die - no big deal right? But Daniel's friends would not bend the knee - not even a little bit, not even in the imminent danger of being burned alive. Not outwardly praying for just a month (because the decree was only for a month) so that I won't die - no big deal right? But Daniel didn't take heed of it, not even a little bit - he continued to pray outwardly and openly as was his custom. Daniel and his friends realized what was at the heart of their relationship with God - that every action, every opportunity, every choice we make is an opportunity - an opportunity to glorify God amongst people and to grow in our relationship with God, or an opportunity to put self over God. We always pray "God I want to grow! Grow me! Transform me!" But we fail to realize that the answer to our prayers requires that we see all opportunities as from God that allow us the choice of growing. God does not want lip service, he wants genuine hearts, he wants lives. We can pray all we want to grow, and God can give us all the difficult circumstances, people, and opportunities to make that happen, but at the heart of it, we can squander it all if all we ever were serious about was our own comfort, our own pleasure in this world, and our own fun.
What would people say about our God in light of our actions and lives? Is he the God we'd give up career, money, clothes, TV shows, friends, and lives for? When our classmates, coworkers, friends, and family see our lives, our actions, our words, our hangouts, do they praise God in awe? Do they see a God worth handing entire lives, goals, and dreams over for? Or do they not even give a second thought because our lives so closely resemble theirs but with an additional nice ribbon on top labeled - "church & God", but that's all God really is to us - decoration, an add on to our lives, and not our lives?
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