Living Life for Christ Alone

"Oh God, do you even love me?" The question escaped my lips before I could even begin to think how "unchristian" it was. The darkness seemed to envelop my vision and I could not see the One I was speaking to... was He even there? How could He be when I felt so far from Him?  ...No, He couldn't be. Desperately, I looked around me, looking for solace, but the wind kept blowing, the waves kept beating against me, threatening to knock me down.  "What is He doing?" I asked myself. 

"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the One to whom we are accountable." -Hebrews 4:13 Think about it. You are always before His eyes. He searches and knows you. There are are many things you may be able to hide from others, but there is nothing you can hide from Him. He's seen you at your worst.

As I sit here, preparing to write a post that I know I must write after praying and talking with God, I find that there is no adequate way to begin this. Let me just get to the point... I have been reading in Jeremiah for the past couple of days and this morning was so struck by how hurt God must feel when His beloved people turn from Him to worship other "gods". Stick with me here... I imagine that most of you who call yourselves Christians probably read that sentence and said to yourself, "nope, that's not me. I haven't gone and worshiped another god." But let me keep writing about God's heart to you for a second and then I'll explain...

As I sit here, getting ready to share with you the biggest thing God has been doing in my life lately, I must start by being real. It is so easy to sit back on a morning when I feel no battles, no struggles and just live like I don't think I need God. Other days its so easy to worry about life and think about every detail of everything and wonder if it's going to be ok. Still other days, I find myself listening to Satan’s lies and believing him even though I know they aren’t true. Do you find yourself doing those things too? Why does Satan lie to us? Why is it that life seems"easy" one day, and then the next is the hardest ever? Let me help you out with this…

    The cage was old and rickety, but it still served its purpose. An odor of death seemed to penetrate every ounce of air that was in the vicinity. A thick darkness surrounded the cage. Within the cage lay a small, almost lifeless, girl. She was starved and dirty, and if one were to look into her eyes, a hint of despair and hopelessness could be seen there.     Outside the cage sat a cruel old man, guarding the doorway so none could get in or out. He held in his hands a weapon that none could distinguish in our modern world. His eyes lurched to and fro, looking for anyone who would assay to set the girl free.    Suddenly, out of the distance, the girl could hear a cry. At first it was faint, but soon it became louder and clear. The voice was crying for joy, “I’m free! My cage is broken! I don’t have to be trapped in there anymore!”

I walked all alone down the leaf-strewn sidewalk, my hands in my pockets. A dark figure came out of the shadows and walked towards me. I could not make out who it was, but I sensed an evil about him -an evil that threatened my beautiful surroundings. And then he spoke in a forceful tone. "You had better face it. You are alone, and it will always be that way. Nobody really loves you. You just think they do. Really, though, you are alone." I tried to fight back the tears as the reality of his words sank in. Was it really true? People seemed to like me, but really, did they? It seemed true enough. I was all alone in this world. Nobody really wanted to know what I had to say or think. It was just me, and that was it. Deep in thought, I failed to notice that the dark figure had left me to think about his lies alone.