Got Too Much Stuff In The Way

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Mark 8:35-37 [KJV]

When we try to hold onto the stuff that God has provided for us instead of God, He gets jealous. If we are seen trying to keep stuff instead of Him, He will remove the stuff that is in the way of our relationship. God is first in line, in our hearts, in our minds and in our spirits. He does not want to wait for us to finish something else. He wants our full attention. In the gospels, the above verses are repeated in Luke and Matthew. We are reminded that we can put our trust in the things that God provides or in God who provides the things.

In our society today, the focus is on the things. If you have cool stuff, you are deemed successful. However, God measures success in our relationship with Him, His Son and His Spirit. Are we driven by those or by our ability to gather? If we lost all our stuff, would we still love God. Can we pass the Job test? Let's ask this question, If Christ came to us and said, "Give up your job, car, hobby, wife/husband, children . . . (you fill in the blank) so that we can be closer, would you and could you? We are all in the same boat, we just have to think what stuff is in the way of our relationship with God. Let's work on the answer and get closer to God. Remember, as we "Draw nigh unto God, He will draw nigh unto you".

Be Encouraged,


Martin