depend on God no matter what

read this on my friend's blog and was greatly blessed.


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While walking through the magazine aisle I noticed a magazine cover with a title, “The diet to end all diets” with a picture of a waif-like young woman whose mother and grandmother probably weigh 180 pounds combined. Then there are the muscle magazines with ads for power drinks that will make you as muscular as the grotesquely pictured man whose father was probably Lou Ferrigno (the Hulk).

Sometimes Christians can fall into the same deceptions. We can look at naturally gifted preacher or speaker and give 100% spiritual attribution for their talents. We can look at a sickeningly “good” Christian who never does ANYTHING wrong - always speaks so kindly and never gets mad while driving and wonder why their faith is so much better than ours.

The truth of the matter is that some preachers and teachers can run entirely on natural gifting coming across very impressively but masking a bankrupt and faulty spirituality. And you can have a Mr. Roger’s Christian who thinks he or she is doing just fine spiritually (or much much better than fine - better than everyone around them) who is simply operating from a natural wiring that lulls them into spiritual complacency and Pharisaism.

The wonderful truth and hope of Christianity is that we are not ultimately limited to our natural wiring - unlike the large boned woman who wants to be stick-skinny or the wiring small boned man who wants to be Arnold Schwartzeneggar big. God can both further empower and God-glorifyingly use natural gifting and also spiritually gift and grace areas of character and gifting that are largely absent or corrupted in natural gifting and wiring.

So, a piece of advice. Recognize your natural gifting and give thanks to the Lord for it. BUT don’t be lazy or don’t be deceived into thinking that the easy exercise of natural talents in the flesh is enough or even good. These areas will be particularly difficult for you to learn how to exercise with total dependence upon God and wholly for God’s glory. These are talents that you could perform in your sleep - or in spiritual terms - totally without prayer or reliance upon God. AND people will heap boat-loads of prayer on you - perhaps with a twist of spiritual language. Learning to exercise talents in naturally gifted areas with humility, full reliance upon God and with spiritual empowerment of those natural gifts is the difference between your getting the glory or God and the difference between a ministry that is good just on the outside or is really God’s.

Secondly for areas where you lack natural gifting - either in character/personality or skill - learn to recognize these as well. Recognize these as particularly challenging areas that will require (as much as the true spiritual exercise of your naturally gifted areas) faith and God’s empowerment. Don’t be discouraged or hopeless as you see the seemingly perfect exercise of such gifts and life in Christians around you. Know that if they exercise such talents with natural ease apart from a reliance and glorifying of God they should not be envied. Know also that if they exercise such talents by the grace of God in faith and for the glory of God they do so with the same power and grace of God that is available to you as well - if you would approach the Lord with humility, from secure identity in Christ, and for His and not your glory.

For you Mr. Rogers perfect Christians, don’t be deceived into thinking that your naturally wired goodness makes you better or less sinful than those around you. Don’t be deceived into thinking that you don’t have to work very hard and deliberately and humbly for your spiritual development. May your good works be from Biblical conviction and divine power and your righteousness Christ’s not your own.

For you bad-boy and bad-girl Christians, don’t envy nor despise your Mr. Rogers brothers and sisters. You have blessings of audacity and spunk that can bring the Lord much glory - if they will be exercised and harnessed and sanctified by the Spirit. Your goodness will never be in the exercise of sickly sweet, walk-all-over-me always doing the right thing. Your goodness is the credited righteousness and goodness of Jesus Christ alone. Allow God to sanctify areas of your gifting and fallenness for His glory.

God has as many plans for sanctification as there are Christians in this world. Each one unique and perfect for us. Lord have your way in each of our lives.