Questions To Be Answered

Rules for Self Discovery:
1. What we want most;
2. What we think about most;
3. How we use our money;
4. What we do with our leisure time;
5. The company we enjoy;
6. Who and what we admire;
7. What we laugh at.

A. W. Tozer, a pastor, writer, speaker, and editor compiled this list.
The list caught my eye.
I pondered the list for quite a while, after I first read it.

It couldn’t be truer.

The seemingly insignificant things in our life reveal so much about us.
They are the things that we do or say when we are caught off guard.
They are the things that come out easily, without thinking.
That tends to be who we really are.

What we want the most is what drives us.
It is what we pursue, what we work towards, and what we seek.
As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, O God. (Psalm 42:1)

What we think about most is an honest assessment.
No one can peek inside our mind to see our hidden thoughts.
If they could, would we be pleased or embarrassed?
The Lord knows the thoughts of the man; He knows that they are futile. (Psalm 94:11)

How we use our money says a lot about our priorities.
Look at where your money goes and see what is most important to you.
You cannot serve both God and money. (Luke 16:13)

What we do with our leisure time is revealing.
Do we like to do things with our family or without them?
Are we doing things for ourselves or for others?
There is a time for everything. (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

The company we enjoy is a good indicator of the kind of person we are.
Bad company corrupts good character. (1 Corinthians 15:33)

Who and what we admire shows us the things we emulate.
Follow my example as I follow the example of Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1)

What we laugh at often catches us with our guard down.
Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh…Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. (Luke 6:21,25)

Character.
Who we are when no one is looking.

You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time. (Abraham Lincoln)

You can never fool God.

Knowing that you can never fool God is either a comfort or a source of concern.
The face we put on for the world to see may not be the face that God sees.
El Roi, the God who sees.
El Shama, the God who hears.

If we know that God sees and God hears, why do we try to hide?
Sin.

When Adam and Eve first sinned, they immediately hid themselves from God.
God asked Adam, Where are you? (Genesis 3:9)
God didn’t ask because He didn’t know where Adam was; He is God after all.
God asked that question as an invitation to relationship.

God desires to be with His people.
That is why He “tabernacled” with them as Moses led them in the desert.
That is why He sent His Son, Immanuel, who is God with us.
That is why, at the end of all things, God will speak in a loud voice from His throne.

Now, the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. (Revelation 21:3,4)

Everything is laid bare and exposed before the One to whom we must give account.
Knowing that, Tozer’s list means even more.
Knowing that, we see how we fall short.
We see how desperately we need a Savior.

On our own, we will do what we want and be with whom we want.
On our own, we will laugh at inappropriate things and use our money foolishly.
On our own, we will admire the wrong people and think about things we shouldn’t.
On our own we will run far away from God in our leisure time and every other time.

We need to be redeemed.
We need to take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5)
We need Jesus.

On our own, the answers to the items on Tozer’s list are self-centered.
In Christ, the answers to the items on Tozer’s list are God-centered.
We cannot live this life apart from Christ, though many try.

…Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. (Philippians 4:8)

Come to Christ and see how quickly your answers change.

 

2 responses to “Questions To Be Answered”

1. Good advice…. read, ponder, read again, ponder, heed and live as such.

   Reply

   • Al,
     God’s people need each other, to encourage each other as we press on. We must live our life in community, with accountability, as we serve Him.
     Gina

     Reply