Reflections

Hi friends,

Today I have had some time to relax, think, and pray and as I was reading this morning I came across a powerful section of scripture. In Revelation 2:1-7 Jesus confronts a local church for their heartless participation in ministry. In other words, they were doing a lot of stuff in the name of Jesus and for Jesus but their works/ministry were not being driven by their affections for the Savior. I'm not sure what was driving the ministry of this local church (popularity? self-righteousness? reputation?), all we know is that the One who sits among the burning lamp stands discerned their motives and called them to repentance. This morning I felt His burning pure eyes gazing into my soul to discern my motives. It was then that I realized afresh how often I am engaging in ministry for other reasons besides my deep affections for the Son of God. There is a wonderful simplistic aspect to ministry: we come to Jesus with all that we are in response to all that He is done. It is a life driven by worship and affection for a God who is so infinitely beautiful and kind and compassionate that He alone is worthy of every ounce of affection I can squeeze out of my existence.

Christianity is all about the heart. That's why Jesus addressed the issues of the heart over and over again. The heart is the seat of our affections, what we long for and care about and also what we hate and despise. Jesus gazed into my heart this morning and what did he find? God forgive me for engaging in ministry for any other reason but you.

Today I repent and I commit to recklessly pursuing a life completely driven by a deep and honest affection for Jesus Christ. God protect me from any sin or good gift that would keep me from seeing and savoring you with all that I am. My delight in Jesus will save me from the sin of the Ephesians.