"Wouldn't It Be Nice"

"The works of the LORD are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein." (Psalms 111:2)

 It is not matter of when we worship God or where we worship Him, but if we worship Him. This might be a touchy subject for some, but it is not very uncommon for idols to come between God and His people. The definition of an idol is an image or representation of a god used as an object of worship; or, a person or thing that is greatly admired, loved, or revered. For those of us that are His children, the most critical meaning is that idols are forms or things of appearance that are visible but without substance. To put this in a way that can be easily understood, our natural minds will always want to be satisfied by signs and wonders. The religious leaders always came to Jesus saying, "Show us a sign, and we will believe in you." As if that would really matter! If they could not see Him with their hearts, they surely would not see Him with their eyes. Here is the thing about what we see with our eyes, that we always need to see more; our eyes are never satisfied in what they see, because there is always a inner desire to see more. Why do you think John's final words in his first letter were, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." It is really not that hard to get caught up in something that will be placed between us and the True and Living God. There are so many different areas of our lives that require attention; there are so many different things that can pull us aside and cause us to focus on something else, other than God. Yesterday Pastor Bryan mentioned something that I had never really heard before or realized, that the man born blind in John 9 did not ask for Jesus to heal him of his blindness, and yet Jesus said, "Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him." I hardly remember the powerful cleansing I felt the day I first accepted Jesus into my heart. I remember that I felt free. I remember that God's word was made manifested in my heart. But the cleansing that came over me, that powerful washing that took place in my my heart, oddly enough is hard to look back on and see. You know what was really interesting, was the number of times I went forward at alter calls in those first couple of years. It was like I was somehow wanting to experience that washing again and again; but there was nothing that came close to the first time. Imagine what it was like for that man being born blind to see for the very first time; it is a lot like that...

"I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope that he has given to those he called -his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms." (Ephesians 1:16-20) NLT