Day 5 Seeing Life From God's View

How you define life determines your destiny.

I'm just jumping right in today. The author covers several different ways that people describe their life. Some people said circus, roller coaster, card game, etc. He didn't say "life's a dance" I wonder if there are royalty issues there. And he goes on to ask what my life metaphor is. Two images came to mind, one of course is "a Dance" but that could be because we listen to country music all night at work. The other image that came to mind was a chess game. I used to play chess, and I could play it for hours because we didn't have timed moves. The thing about chess that most resonates with me is that the move you make now is going to affect what moves you can make next. You may move a piece now so that 27 moves later, that piece is exactly where you need it to be.

The author gives Biblical descriptions of the metaphors God uses for our lives. But, I guess if God is using them they aren't exactly metaphors. They are what life really is.

Life on Earth is a test.
And I haven't been studying. Jeff Foxworthy has a joke about talking to his wife is like taking a test he didn't study for. "ask me true/false" he's pleading at the end. "I'm good at true/false." Every day, every thing I do has eternal implications. Another thing it reminds me of was a short independent film I once saw. All the "angels" were accountants and they kept a balance sheet of everything we did. And each thing had a point value, open a door for someone +1 point, recycle +1, use foul language -1 point. And at the end of the main actor's life, he's something like one point short to get into Heaven. He gets a second chance and is crossing the street flipping a coin. "WHAM" he gets hit by a bus! and we know he's going hell. But then as he's standing before his "accountant" the coin rolls to a homeless guy who picks it up. Give to the poor +1 point.

What a way to think about it. What if everything was worth points? Then you'd be able to figure out what points you needed, what we had to do and could get away with not doing. Life would become a big check sheet. Life is a test, but God grades it on a curve. More than just what we do is important, weight is given to how we do it. God helps us become who we are, and shows us who we are by these everyday tests.

A very important test is how you act when you can't feel God's presence in your life. How am I doing there? Not as good as I'd like to be.

Life on Earth is a Trust
I figured out about 11 years ago, that I owned nothing. Eleven years ago, everything "I" owned became stuff "we" owned, and when you own something with someone, you take better care of it. Well God takes it further. Everything we think we own, is actually on loan to us from God. Since everything is borrowed from God, we can't brag about the nice things we have or get jealous of nice things other people have. They were given to us by God to use for His plan, not ours. At the end of your life on Earth you will be evaluated and rewarded on how well you handled what God entrusted to you.

The last thing that really hit home with me is that Money is a test and a trust. . . there is a direct relationship between how I use my money and my spiritual life. Really? (wince) I guess I need to start working more on that too. I don't feel bad about my spending, I don't buy lavish things, I don't have 5 different credit cards maxed out, but I am not at the 10-20-70 stage yet either. That's the Biblical formula for financial well being. Give the first 10% to God (your church and other charities), save 20%, and live on 70%.

See, God doesn't want all my money, we just talked about it's ALL HIS anyway. He wants me to care for it and everything as if they aren't mine. He wants me to follow this formula so that I can be successful, and be right where He needs me to be 27 moves from now. Think if you had 20% of your salary from last year in the bank how you would be able to move as God called you.

The Bible verse is from the Gospel of Luke.

“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.
Luke 16:10 (NLT)

The question:
What has happened to me recently that I now realize was a test from God. What are the greatest matters God has entrusted to me?

I'm developing a love/hate relationship with the daily questions. I love/hate how they make me do self examination. The most recent thing I can think of that was a test from God was my time spent in Maryland. There, I knew very few people, I could have chose to behave in any manner I wanted. I think I did a good job remaining faithful to who I am as a husband, father, and Child of Christ. The greatest matter entrusted to me by God, has to be the spiritual leadership of my family. I have to lead by word AND ACTION.

Remember: Life is a test and a trust.