God doesn't Need You

There she was quickly, eagerly and enthusiastically reaching up and sticking her hand in the pockets. All I could do was smile. How could I not? Her blonde hair, sparkling eyes, big smile and excitement from a pure heart melted my heart.

At 41 inches tall, it was no easy task as she strained to retrieve the pool balls from their temporary homes. On her tippy-toes, and with a look for fierce determination, allowed her to achieve her goal. Before long, thanks to my four-year-old Karson Faith, the balls were racked, they served their purpose until one-by-one they vanished into the pockets again.

As I watched her on her mission, God spoke to me and said that's you. Was He talking about me being four? Obviously not, but I quickly caught on. That's WHO HE WANTS US TO BE. God's plan will fold out . . . His purposes will be done here on Earth . . . and He will reign victorious whether we choose to participate or not. Just like the balls would've been racked and the game would've been played no matter who retrieved the balls to put in the triangle. Such is the case with us!

God DOESN'T NEED YOU-- He doesn't NEED me, but want to hear something beautiful? He WANTS us . . . He wants our love . . . He wants our time . . . He wants our gifts, our talents and our lives! He wants us to trust Him with ALL of it! But again, He doesn't NEED us. His Ultimate Plan will succeed whether we eagerly jump in, like launching ourselves into a pool on a hot day, or if we choose to sit out like a basketball game after we've played 10 games in a row.

The Truth is we have WAY higher view of ourselves than we should. We are cocky, arrogant, self-centered. We think we are being generous when we give God some of our time when, in reality, without God there is NO time . . . we have no breath in our lungs, no purpose, no meaning, no family, no friends, no careers, no success! God did not send Jesus to Earth because He 'needed' us; He sent Him here to die for our sins because He loves us more than we could ever imagine in two lifetimes much less one.

He longingly wants us. He wants to give us the BEST instead of settling on scraps. The best I am referring to is Himself-- Jesus! When God says in John 10:10 He came to give us Life . . . not just life but an abundant life, He was referring to what? No . . . who! He was talking about Himself. This life can afford many great things! Happy moments, funny moments, joyous moments. We can experience a special kind of love in our wives, our husbands, in our girlfriends and boyfriends. We can share in instances in time where we feel like this is living . . . moments we wish we could save in a bottle-- where it can't possibly get better than this!

I've heard it said, "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by every moment that takes our breath away!" No matter what happiness we may find or how much contentment we feel, not even our best moments, once-in-a-lifetime moments can compare to intimate moments shared with the Creator . . . with our God and with our Savior! Pursuing, living or chasing any thing not named Jesus are nothing more than vain attempts at trying to fill a bucket that has a hole in the bottom. It will NEVER happen! But that certainly doesn't stop us from pouring water in just as quickly as we breathe does it? It simply won't work. How do I know? Because I have tried and STILL do at times. Solomon calls it a, "Chasing after the wind."

Go Daddy

During the pool showdown between my brother-in-law David and me, Karson Faith did what any son or daughter would do-- she cheered for her Dad. "Go Daddy," she screamed. Isn't that how we should be with God? Whether you view yourself as being His son or daughter, you are. You may feel like you couldn't possibly be His after alllllllllllllll the things you've done, places you've done and hurt you've caused, but every single sin, each disappointment and the immense pain is covered completely in just one drop of blood out of Jesus's body as He hung up and died.

While some people don't feel 'witnessing' is part of their job description, or duties, as a believer, all witnessing is is saying, "Go Daddy" to the world. Sure there is tragedy in the world. Sure there are calamities. In short, there is a lot of evil, darkness and ugly in this world. . . But it doesn't take perfect (spiritual) eyesight to see God at work in our lives just ONE trip to the Optometrist. One encounter with the living God can transform our lives if we let it. There are moments every single day where we can see God if we just take the time to notice. The truth is we are just too busy and distracted. Sometimes we are blinded or 'asleep in the light' as Keith Green says.

One glance at the sky, beholding all its glorious splendor . . . the warm sun rays on our skin . . . the serenity of the ocean . . . the gorgeous sunset . . . the mountains touching the sky with their peaks . . . the lush green grass . . . the birds chirping . . . the flower in the middle of the sidewalk . . . the look in your child's eyes as they look at you . . . infectious laughter from the elderly woman at the store . . . the driver who lets you over on your commute to work . . . the closer parking spot . . . the unexpected raise, or bonus, at work . . . your coach telling you good job with a pat on the back . . . the thoughtful text from a friend when they know you're going through something . . . I could go on and on and on, but these are all occasions we should proudly proclaim, "Go Daddy" just like my precious niece did! And while these moments can just as easily be overlooked when we're just too unaware to notice or too caught up in ourselves.

Simple, unassuming moments-- like your niece being a good little helper-- can become powerful teaching moments. God doesn't need you to be a student. . . doesn't need you to be obedient . . . and doesn't need you to love Him. See, He was God before you, before me and will be God after we're gone. But OH HOW He wants us! Simply put, He loves us, so He invites us to be part of the Greatest Love Story ever written and most valiant victory of all-time. He doesn't want us to accept counterfeit love, settle for cheap substitutes, or imitations, not when we could have His Love!

One day EVERY knee shall bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. He doesn't need you for that to happen, but He's inviting you . . . softly whispering YOUR name. Will you answer?