"And He died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf." (2 Corinthians 5:15)
When I was in seminary, Dr. Lawson Stone preached a message in chapel that contained a simple phrase that has never left my heart and mind. In fact, it has become the defining phrase of my understanding about what life and ministry is all about: "It's not about you…it's all about HIM."
Oh, it sounds familiar to us all. We sing it in songs, old and new: "All for Jesus, all for Jesus, every day and every hour"…."Take my life and let it be, consecrated, Lord to Thee"…."It's all about You, Jesus, and all this is for You"… "Lord, I give You my heart, I give You my soul, I live for You alone."
But, as A.W. Tozer wrote, "Christians never tell lies…but quite often they go to church and sing them." The evidence of life so often reveals that our lives have actually become sanctified versions of the old life. [It's as if] the prodigal son comes home, gets cleaned up, and comes back to the father's house. But then he continues to make weekend trips to the faraway land, the land that symbolizes the journey away from God to the land of ME and what I want...
How easily we are deceived into living cleaned-up, religious versions of the self-centered lives that Jesus died to save us from in the first place!! Seek the Lord and ask Him to reveal this to you: Who is it really about? Is it you…or HIM?
-- Dave Carroll, Missionary to Uganda
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