Catching up The Purpose Driven Life

I hate that I have not blogged for a whole week! We had family visiting from out of town & it was wonderful. I was sad to see them leave today.

However, my sweetheart also left today and we have been reading Purpose together so I'm thinking I should take a bit of a hiatus until he returns (as we were only sharing the one copy)

So we may not finish our 40 days of reading at the end of Lent but we will get it done together.

We finished up with Chapter 16 so I have a couple days to summarize up

Purpose Day 14: When God Seems Distant

This chapter was particularly good for me, because I am often finding that God feels distant to me, even though I believe that He is always there, I just constantly am seeking more obvious evidence I suppose.

God is real, no matter how you feel.
The deepest level of worship is praising God in spite of pain, thanking God during a trial, trusting him when tempted, surrendering while suffering, and loving him when he seems distant.

Big fail on my part here. I think I close within myself first & foremost when suffering or facing trials. I do seek him out eventually, but I think my first reaction is usually anger & blame.

The most common mistake Christians make in worship today is seeking an experience, rather than seeking God.

Well, this really did hit home to me because as I seek God, I think I'm expecting him to do something, something obvious so that I will "just know" that its from Him.

How do you praise God when you don't understand what's happening in your life and God is silent?
- Tell God exactly how you feel.
- Focus on who God is, his unchanging nature
- Trust God to keep his promises
- Remember what God has already done for you.

Jesus gave up everything so you could have everything. Never again should you wonder what you have to be thankful for!

What an amazing reminder that is!!

Purpose Day 15: Formed For God's Family

God wants a family, and he created you to be a part of it.

The whole time I read this chapter I thought of the old camp song "Family of God"

"I'm so glad I'm a part of the family of God,
I've been washed in the fountain, cleansed by his blood.
Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod
I'm so glad I'm a part of the family of God."

This chapter was very straightforward about our inheritence into God's family and how we'll be with our spiritual family much longer than our physical families here on earth. It reminds us that our relationship with other believers should be very important.

Purpose Day 16: What Matters Most

Life is all about love.

This chapter really hit home to my husband and I. We often find ourselves struggling with friendship relationships, struggling with Christian relationships, struggling to love mankind in general.

Learning to love unselfishly is not an easy task. It runs counter to our self-centerd nature. That's why we're given a lifetime to learn it.

This is more about husband-wife relationships, friend-to-friend relationships, this is pure love, like what Jesus has for all of us. No wonder we all struggle with it, but it is to be the most important ambition of our lives here on earth.  It is lasting, it is eternal beyond death and it leaves a legacy afterwards.

The best expression of love: T-I-M-E

How true this is. If you love someon deeply, you will give them your time and desire theirs. God gives us all his time, oh how he craves for us to give him some in return.

The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best time to love is now.