It's all God

"Dear friends,

you always followed my instructions when I was with you.

And now that I am away,

it is even more important.

Word hard to show the results of your salvation,

obeying God with deep reverence and fear.

For God is working in you,

giving you the desire

and the power

to do what pleases him."

Philippians 2:12-13 NLT

The sound of birds singing praises to their Maker woke me early that Spring morning.  I arose, stepping foot into the awakening garden, feeling the softness of new blades of grass beneath my feet,  observing the buds opening here, the bright, cheery blossoms there.  As I examined the ground, it seemed to be coming to life with new growth: Blooms of the crocus trumpeted the end of Winter, Azaleas bursting forth with the hope of soon-to-come blankets of color, and even the weeds rising up from the seemingly dead earth show forth the hand of God.  There is no greater time than Spring to see that everything can be attributed to God.

When I look beyond nature and into my heart, I discover that even my desire to please God comes from Him.  I have it not in me to want to do the right thing, no matter what I think.  My sinful nature pushes me away from Him, but His loving Spirit constantly draws me.  As I notice how He works within me, it is evident that He gets all the glory for the great things He has done in my heart, life and in the world at large.

Moves my Heart

Much was needed for the sacred garments of the Levites, the performance of required rituals, and for the building of the Tabernacle itself.  The nation of Israel had received the law from God through their leader Moses.  Now they knew what was expected of them from a holy God, and they also realized the task that lay before them in undertaking this large project.  The first step after hearing the plan from God was to collect the necessary materials.  Moses must have thought of the enormity of this venture and wondered how it would all come together.

Then God did His work on the hearts of the people.  Exodus 35:20-24 describes how He stirred the hearts and moved the spirits of the people, prompting them to bring not only offerings to the Lord, but also all the materials needed for the Tabernacle.  It said, "Both men and women came, all whose hearts were willing" came to offer everything from richly colored thread to acacia wood. (Exodus 35:22a NLT)  There was no need for Moses to worry; God moved the hearts of the people to do that which pleased Him.

In the same way, God moves my heart to value Him above all things.  Instead of doing things that I think I should do, He gives me the desire to know Him more.  Oswald Chambers wrote about how easy it is to work toward the wrong goal.  He said when I focus on Christian work instead of on Christ, I'm evading my true purpose in maintaining my friendship and loyalty to Him.   "Instead of being friends of the Bridegroom, we may become amateur providences, and may work against Him whilst we use His weapons."

God moves my heart to desire a relationship with Jesus above everything else.

Changes my Will

She used to only care about herself and her needs; especially the emotional ones.  Consequently, she jumped from one man to another, seeking what could not be found in any mortal.  All that was left of her life was a skeleton of what she had once dreamed it could be.  How did she end up here, ostracized and the town's laughing stock, forced to visit the well in the heat of the day for fear of humiliation at the hand of the backbiting women who gathered there in the cool of the morning? (John 4:1-42)  The Samaritan woman had hit bottom.

Then she met Jesus.  As she heard and accepted the message of the Living Water that would forever quench that deep-seated need inside of her, the transformation began.  Instead of thinking about herself, she thought of all the townspeople who needed to know this Messiah as much as she did.  God had changed her will from wanting only to look out for herself to desiring to make Him famous.

In the same way, He changes my will so that I desire Him to be able to get His way.  Instead of seeing people who are living messed up lives, I perceive an opportunity to introduce those who are lost in darkness to the One who will make all things right.

God changes my will from only being concerned with my own happiness to desiring to make Jesus known to those around me.

Driven to Love

His heart was black with hate.  If it is the last thing I do, I will wipe these wretched people off the face of the earth.  He thought it the highest calling to beat, arrest and even kill the followers of Christ. (Acts 9:1-19)  Saul saw himself as a true follower of God and the Christians as his enemy.  

Soon, however, Jesus set Him straight by confronting Saul on the road to Damascus as he was on his way to arrest many believers.  Saul, who then became Paul, saw the truth of his actions and became one of those he used to persecute.  Instead of being obsessed with going after believers, he became driven to love all people in the name of Jesus.

The God of love who snatched me from the jaws of death as surely as He did Paul, has given me a deep well of compassion that springs up inside of me.  Suddenly, things I used to never think of doing, like reaching out to a drunk, showing kindness to a stripper or giving up something valuable for one who is in need becomes second nature.

God makes me driven to love those around me who live in a world devoid of compassion.

Everything comes from God and there is nothing for which I can take credit.  He moves my heart to align more with His, changes my will to desire what He desires and drives me to love like He does.  Everything good in my life is from Him and I can take no credit for any of it.  Because of this, I can point to all the good in my life and say with conviction, "It's all God!"

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can remember to keep God front and center.

How do I naturally shy away from those who look different from me and fail to let God love through me?

When do I most notice the way He has transformed me?

The Influence of Changed People

"I was personally unknown to the churches

of Judea that are in Christ.

They only heard the report: 

'The man who formerly persecuted us

is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.'

And they praised God because of me."

Galatians 1:22-24

The change was remarkable.  Physically, the once large, lumbering teenager became a tall, thin young man as 60 pounds of extra weight melted away.  Emotionally, the former trouble maker who had been kicked out of school multiple times and spent several months in juvenile detention for fighting and confronting the school resource officers now became a mentor for other young men, leading them toward the Light.  Spiritually, the once self-proclaimed atheist who couldn't care less about the things of God, transformed into a young man who invited Jesus into his life and who wanted to go to church and learn more about the One who made him for a purpose. 

There is nothing as powerfully influential as a changed life.  No other message for repentance is as strong as the significance found in observing the transformed life.

Enemy to Friend

The diminutive man was hated by all.  His very presence drew looks of scorn and words of ridicule.  As a tax-collector for the Roman invaders, he used his position for his own benefit, inviting even more contempt from his own people.  

When he heard Jesus was in town, however, his heart was drawn toward the Healer and Teacher.  Whatever it was that this man had, Zacchaeus wanted some of it.  His life was empty of meaning and he was tired of living for himself, ignoring all the hurt his actions were causing. (Luke 19:1-10)

The life of Zacchaeus changed the day he encountered Jesus.  He went from a man considered to be the enemy of the Jewish people to one who went out of his way to make restitution.  

In a similar way, I went from being dead in my sins and an object of God's wrath to one who was made alive in Christ.  (Ephesians 2:1-5)  

Faith in Jesus Christ made me, an enemy of God, into His friend. (Colossians 1:21,John 15:15)

Destroyer to Harvester

"ummm. . . Lord. . . are you sure you want me to go see that man?  I have heard of all the terrible things he has done against your people: killings, beatings, imprisonments.  This is the man you want me to lay my hands upon so you can restore his sight?"

Ananias, a believer from Damascus, was worried for good reason.  Saul was the worst enemy of the first church.  He did all he could to destroy their mission, persecuting them without mercy.  And Ananias was supposed to believe that he was the one chosen to take God's message to the the world? (Acts 9:1-19)

Only God could turn one who was the biggest destroyer of the Gospel message to the most influential harvester of it's fruit.

Glory to God

There was no other explanation:  She was a virgin, pledged to be married, yes, but still pure.  Suddenly, she showed up around town with child.  People were talking, spreading rumors that she had secretly slept with another man, but no one knew who it could be.  How else could she be pregnant unless she had been with a man?  The answer, however, lay hidden within a message delivered by the angel Gabriel to the young woman. (Luke 1:35)

The Holy Spirit came upon Mary and implanted the Christ child within her womb.  No matter what people assumed, the only explanation for her unwed pregnancy was that it was the work of the hand of God: only He could accomplish such a feat as this.

In the same way, only God can get the glory for the transformation of a changed life.  No amount of willpower, motivation or inspiration can bring about the radical change that Jesus creates. 

When others witness the amazing alterations in a person's life, God then gets all the glory for the great things He has done.

God uses changed people to change people.  Seeing how He can turn an enemy into a friend and a destroyer into a harvester makes people sit up and take notice, resulting in God receiving all the credit for what He has accomplished.  What influence upon the world is God having through my changed life?  (2 Corinthians 6:16-17)