Chapter 5: Fear God:
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| Old Rag Mountain | Sperryville, Virginia |
We should not
approach God's house half-heartedly. It should not be a careless happening
where we wander into His house. We should acknowledge what we are doing and
prepare to enter the house of the Lord. When I see "house of the Lord," I think of church, Bible study,
communion, prayer, and especially death. We are all living a life where we
must, at some point, learn how we are to die. God lays out a plan for our lives
and it is tied to our soul. He calls us to be His servants and rejoice in him,
however, it cannot be foolishly done. God knows all things before they are and He
knows our hearts condition when we approach Him through any of the
previously above-mentioned avenues. The more we talk, the less genuine we will
be. This is a part of the message. If you have ever noticed someone who loves
to talk and talk and talk (If you haven't noticed someone, YOU are probably the one
jabbering on-and-on on) endlessly, especially about themselves, they are more than
likely insecure and not a genuine individual. Silence is something they cannot
handle because introspection begins to creep into their thoughts and they
cannot lie dormant for fear of being found out as a fraud. [Good news: We are
all frauds and have fallen short of the glory of the Lord.] Empty promises and
statements, especially to the Lord, are pointless and will only bring us grief
in the end.
I have struggled with this immensely throughout my 27 years of
life, saying things just to say them, lying in order to be seen in a better
way, praising myself through lies in order to gain respect from others, lying
to protect myself from harm, misleading others and use my silver tongue to
persuade others to do things for me. All of it has been in vain and never
produced anything that was fulfilling or gratifying. It left me in a state of disliking
myself because everyone only knew a fake-me. Ironically, when I began to share
my lies and open up to those around me I discovered that they actually did love
me for who I truly am, it didn't matter what things I had done, etc. they loved
me for who I am. Regardless of the lies, deceit, etc. One of the hardest things
in life is to approach those you love with the truth that you have been lying
to them for years about a lot of random things. However, it is always worth the
pain. I have allowed my mouth to lead me into sin and it never satisfies me.
It
angers God when we bring Him lies and a dishonest heart, He is the giver of
grace, if we cannot come to Him in honesty, whom can we go to? I would analyze
your talks with God and see how open you are with Him. He knows all things, but
that doesn't mean we shouldn't open up our hearts to Him and confess. Vanity
comes when too much is said and there is little action. We must fear God, not
the opinions of man.
The Vanity of Wealth
and Honor:
We shouldn't be
shocked that people are oppressed or discriminated against because all are
sinners, even those who are wealthy and powerful. (It is harder for a wealthy or powerful person to see their own sin because they don't feel they need God's assistance, why would they? They are seemingly powerful without Him?) All humans experience common
grace; life, money, sex, nature, food, water, happy moments, etc. Those who
rule over others - especially those who don't call Christ their King - will
usually oppress those at the bottom of the barrel within their business.
Ironically, both will be unsatisfied with life, the CEO and the Entry Level
Worker, if they don't work in humility for God's glory, not their own. Why?
Because they cannot obtain enough money to bring joy, it is vanity. There is no
number in my checking account that is able to bring everlasting joy. Can it
bring temporary happiness? Absolutely! Can it make me feel better about myself?
For a little while. But, once I notice someone else who has more than me, it
will lose its satisfaction. If we are working hard for that which we have it
will be far sweeter than barely working and having everything we want. We should
go to bed tired from our days work, not bored from the daily activities.
Boredom at night leads to many terrible things.
If we are smart with
our money and are good stewards of the blessings God has given to us, we can
share this with those around us and show the love of Christ through giving. Why
should I obtain more and more prior to dying? It is pointless to waste these
gifts on death when they could be used in life. Just as we came into this
world, we shall leave it. We should be enjoying the struggle of life alongside
friends, family and share the love of Christ with those who do not know Him. Not because we have earned it,
but because Christ died for us to be free from sin and praise His name all of
our days. In my mind, sitting at a table and enjoying a meal with good
conversation is one of the holiest things we can do throughout the week. We are
breaking bread together and
sharing our lives with God's pinnacle creation and we can glorify Him through
this. We should find enjoyment in our hard work and share the bounty with
others in love for Him and His creation. God gives us everything we have ever
had, currently possess, and ever will have. He blesses us so that we might
enjoy Him more. I want to fill my life with things that stir my affections for
Christ and enjoy them thoroughly. If we lose sight of Him, we will be left
empty and hollow.
Dear Lord, I hope that I don't remember all the days of
my life because I am so filled with deep meaningful fulfillment of God occupying my heart. I pray that you will stir my affections for you with many different things and show me how to understand what draws me closer to you. Amen.
All images © 2015 - 2021 Jordan Tackett
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