With God: Coming Back To What Matters Most To God.

In a world that often feels chaotic and unpredictable, it's natural to seek a way to find control. We all recognize the inherent dangers around us, and our instinctive response is fear. But how do we protect ourselves from this fear? How do we find peace in a turbulent world?

Many of us turn to religion as a means of gaining control. Because in human religion, we're offered systems and rituals, and we're often told that if we follow these rituals that the result will be more control amid life's uncertainties. But what if these very well intentioned attempts at control are actually keeping us from experiencing the fullness of what God truly desires for us? What if even our religious attempts to gain control is causing us to miss the thing that matters most to God?

Let's explore four common religious postures people adopt in their spiritual lives, each an attempt to gain control in a dangerous and unpredictable world:

1. Life Under God
This posture is perhaps the most prevalent across religions, including many forms of Christianity. It suggests that we can control God through rituals or moral behavior. If we say the right prayers, make the right sacrifices, or live ethically enough, God will respond favorably.

But this approach inevitably fails. Because either we succeed in following all the rules only to find that life is still challenging and we feel letdown by Christianity. Or we struggle to meet impossible standards and feel disqualified from faith altogether.

2. Life Over God
In our modern, scientific age, some have opted to remove God from the equation entirely. This posture suggests that human intellect and innovation can directly control the world, no divine intervention needed. Whereas "Life under God" sees God as a puppet master, "Life over God" decides to cut the strings and attempt life apart from God.

While the extreme example of this is atheism, there are spins of "Life over God" in Christianity. This can manifest as treating the Bible like a manual – a set of principles to follow rather than a living, breathing relationship with its Author. Jesus himself warned against this, saying, "You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life" (John 5:39-40).

3. Life From God
This popular stance views God primarily as a cosmic vending machine, existing to meet our needs and desires. While God does care about our needs, reducing Him to a "divine butler" or "cosmic therapist" misses the heart of who He is and what He is inviting us into.

The story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 illustrates this beautifully. The younger son wasn't interested in a relationship with his father; he only wanted what his father's stuff. And when we approach God with the "Life from God" posture, we tend to treat God similarly to how the son treated his Father in the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15.

4. Life For God
This posture puts mission and service at the center of faith. While activism and good works are valuable, they can become a misguided search for significance. We may believe our value is rooted in what we do for God, rather than in who God is.

Ironically, this approach, which is supposed to eliminate fear and insecurity often creates more fear and insecurity, as we constantly strive to prove our worth through our actions. Life for God believes that what you do for God matters most to God.

But Jesus came to invite us into something bigger and far more beautiful.

While each of these postures contains grains of truth, none of them capture the essence of what Jesus actually invited us into. The good news Jesus came to share goes beyond using God as a means to an end. It's not about controlling God, replacing God, getting things from God, or even doing things for God.

The heart of Jesus' message is this: Life With God.

This fundamental shift changes everything. God isn't just a way to life; He is the life. God isn't just a path to treasure; He is the treasure. The gospel isn't merely about getting to heaven; it's about getting to God Himself.

The apostle John captured this beautifully: "God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5). When we grasp this truth, we no longer pursue God to use Him; we pursue God to be with Him.

Consider this challenging question: Would you be happy in Heaven if Jesus wasn't there? If your answer is yes, you may not yet fully understand the message Jesus taught.

The path out of the cycle of danger, fear, and control.

This vision of a God who longs to be with us offers a way out of the cycle of danger, fear, and control. It invites us into a posture of surrender. When we truly see God's beauty and desire for relationship, we can begin to live from love rather than for love.

In this place of surrender, we find true safety. Yes, the world remains unpredictable, but we are eternally secure in the presence and love of our heavenly Father. As Jesus promised, nothing can snatch us from God's hand, and nothing can separate us from His love.

C.S. Lewis wisely observed:

Christianity seems at first to be about morality, rules, guilt and virtue, yet it leads you out of that, into something beyond.

The story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42 beautifully illustrates this truth. While Martha busied herself with preparations – good things done for Jesus – Mary chose to sit at His feet and listen. Jesus gently corrected Martha, saying, "There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her."

What Mary discovered was the joy of being with Jesus. She recognized that before we're called to do something or go somewhere, we're called to Someone.

Deep spiritual formation doesn't happen when we choose life under God, over God, from God, or for God. It happens when we choose to do life with God. This is the essence of the good news Jesus came to share.

As you reflect on your own spiritual journey, consider:

- Are you trying to control God through rituals or good behavior?
- Have you reduced faith to a set of principles, missing the Person behind them?
- Do you see God primarily as a means to get what you want?
- Is your worth tied up in what you do for God?
- Or are you learning to simply be with God, delighting in His presence?

May we all discover the transformative power of doing life with God, finding in Him the safety, significance, and love our hearts truly long for.

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1. Matthew 6:33 - "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
2. John 15:4–5 - "Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me."
3. Philippians 3:8 - "What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things."
4. Romans 8:38-39 - "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
5. Isaiah 41:10 - "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God."
6. Colossians 2:6–7 - "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness."
7. 1 Corinthians 3:16 - "Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?"
8. James 4:8 - "Come near to God and he will come near to you."
9. Micah 6:8 - "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."