What Drives Your Life?

Everyone's life is driven by something.

The dictionary defines the word drive as "to guide, to control, or to direct." Whether you are driving a car, a nail, or a golf ball, you are guiding, controlling, and directing it at that moment.

So my question for you today is...

What is the driving force in your life?

Right now you may be driven by a problem, a pressure, or a deadline. You may be driven by a painful memory, a haunting fear, or an unconscious belief. There are hundreds of circumstances, values, and emotions that can drive your life. The Book of Ecclesiastes can help you greatly in your search of the truth to the answers you may be looking for, finding real unchanging values, (to profit) in this life.

Let's look at some of the things that may be driving your life today.

Many people are driven by guilt. They spend their entire lives running from regrets and hiding their shame. Guilt-driven people are manipulated by memories. They allow their past to control their future. They often unconsciously punish themselves by sabotaging their own success. When Cain sinned, his guilt disconnected him from God's presence, and God said, "You will be restless and wander the earth." (Genesis 4:12) That describes most people today - wandering through life without a purpose.

We are all products of our past, but we don't have to be prisoners of it. He turned a murderer named Moses into a leader, and a coward named Gideon into a courageous hero. He can do amazing things with the rest of your life also. God specializes in giving people a fresh start. The Bible says, "What happiness for those whose guilt has been forgiven! ... What relief for those who have confessed their sins and God has cleared their record." (Psalm 32:1)

Many people are driven by resentment and anger. They hold on to hurts and never get over them. Instead of releasing their pain through forgiveness, they rehearse it over and over in their minds. Some resentment-driven people "clam up" and internalize their anger, while others "blow up" and explode it onto others. Both responses are unhealthy and unhelpful.

Resentment always hurts you more than it does the person you resent. While your offender has probably forgotten the offense and gone on with life, you continue to stew in your pain, perpetuating the past.

Those who have hurt you in the past cannot continue to hurt you now unless you hold on to the pain through resentment. Your past is past. Nothing will change it. You are hurting yourself with your bitterness. For your own sake, I challenge you to learn from it, and then let it go. The Bible says, "To worry yourself to death with resentment would be a foolish, and senseless thing to do." (Job 5:2)

Many people are driven by fear. Their fears may be a result of a traumatic experience, unrealistic expectations, growing up in a high-control home, or even genetic predisposition. Regardless of the cause, fear-driven people often miss great opportunities because they are afraid to venture out. Nothing ventured is nothing gained. Instead they play it safe, avoiding risks and trying to maintain the status quo.

Fear, False Evidence Appearing Real, is a self-imposed prison that will keep you from becoming what God intends for you to be. You must move against it with the weapons of faith and love. The Bible says, "Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life - fear of death, fear of judgment, - is one not yet fully formed in love. (1John 4:18)

Many people are driven by materialism. Their desire to acquire becomes the whole goal of their lives. This drive to always want more is based on the misconceptions that having more will make one happier, more important, and more secure, but all three ideas are untrue. Possessions only provide temporary happiness. Because things do not change, we eventually become bored with them and then want newer, bigger, and better versions.

It is also a myth that if you get more, you will become more important. Self-worth and net worth are not the same. Your value is not determined by your valuables, and God says the most valuable things in life are not things. They are just tools for fulfilling your calling and destiny.

The most common myth about money is that having more will make you more secure. It won't. Wealth can be lost instantly through a variety of uncontrollable factors. Real security can only be found in that which can never be taken from you - your relationship with God.

Many people are driven by the need for approval. They allow the expectations of parents, spouses, children, teachers, or friends to control their lives. Many adults are still trying to earn the approval of unpleasable parents. Others are driven by peer pressure, always worried by what others might think. Unfortunately, those who follow the crowd usually get lost in it.

I do not know all the keys to success, but one key to failure is in trying to please everyone. Being controlled by the opinions of others is a guaranteed way to miss God's purposes for your life. Jesus said, "No one can serve two masters." (Mathew 6:24)

There are many other forces that can drive your life, but all lead to the same dead end: unused potential, unnecessary stress, and an unfulfilled life. The answer clearly lies in God's Word, and the Finished Work of the Cross. We must really take a look back, back about 2000 years ago, at what really happened to us. This will give us the insight to our future. A life guided, controlled, and directed by God's purposes. Without doing this, life is motion without meaning, activity without direction, and events without reason.
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Basic Insights On Knowing God's Will!

God's Will Involves People

God so loved a world full of people that he gave His Son...
It's all too easy for us to become more concerned about things than people today.
If this happens we will always miss the real joy of knowing God's will.

Knowing Basic Needs Removes Fear Of People

Many people have a fear of talking to others.
There is a way of overcoming this fear.
If we were walking down a neighborhood street and happened to see a gathering of people sitting the porch in front of their house, many of us would probably experience a certain fear about the idea of saying hello, concerned with intruding upon their gathering.

However, if we were to see that the roof of their home was on fire, we would overcome our fear instantly. We would be sure that the message we had to give them was one of great importance and one which they needed to hear. We would be quite confident that they would immediately recognize the importance of our message.

So what is our problem with sharing our Christianity with them and others?

1John 4: 17-18 says, "Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness...
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear."

God Has A Special Concern For Christians

It is quite easy for us to become spiritually discouraged with the spiritual immaturity of some Christians today, and decide that we will not bother with them, but instead will concentrate on only reaching those who are not saved or heard the Gospel.

It is important for us to proclaim the Gospel to those who have never heard. But when there are already Christians in the area, it is also important to bring them up to their full maturity in Christ. If we don't do this, their immaturity will cause others to stumble, and we will know how to solve similar immaturity in those we lead to Christ.

This is the main reason we are able to "Do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household faith."
Galatians 6: 10

In determining God's will for our lives, one of the most important questions we must ask ourselves is: "How can I help the Christians around me to mature and by doing so, beautify the Body of Christ?"

We Are To Assume Responsibility For The Reputation Of Our Lord Jesus Christ

When one member of the Body of Christ sins, (Missing the mark), or displays spiritual immaturity, the reputation of Christ is damaged and the whole Body of Christ suffers. When David sinned with Bathsheba, in 2Samuel 12: 14, Nathan the Prophet stated, "... by this deed thou has given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme..."

Because of this, Hebrews 3: 13 says, we are to "exhort one another daily... lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." Just as the corpuscles in our blood surround a wound in the skin, laying down their own life and dieing, in order to stop the infection from spreading, we too are to "lay down our own lives for the brethren." 1John 3: 16

Three Types Of Christians Exist In Most Church Groups

When I had the privilege of working directly with a few churches and youth groups, I could always expect to find three types of Christians: Those that were cold, those that were spiritually hot, and those that were in between.

I soon learned why the in between or "lukewarm" Christians were and are nauseating to God.

Revelation 3: 15-17 says, "I know thy works, that thou are neither cold nor hot: I would rather see that you were cold or hot. So then because thou are lukewarm, and neither cold or hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have no need of nothing , and knowest not that thou are wretched and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.

Cold Christians needs are fulfilled from the world and all it has to offer. They view lukewarm Christians as having no difference between them. The reason is "No Conviction." Their thoughts are, "He is closer to God than I am, but He does the same things I do!"

While cold Christians see the difference between them and the hot Christians. They can see that their needs are focused and centered around Christ. They can see the "Conviction" by which they live. Their thoughts are, "His life is so different from mine. I want to know what he is doing differently than me, maybe I had better start doing something about it."

2Chronicles 7: 14 says, "If my people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

"For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God." 1Peter 4: 17

God's Will Involves Leading Those For Whom We Are Responsible To Spiritual Maturity

When we determine which individuals are under our spiritual care and purpose to give ourselves to the high calling of leading them to spiritual maturity, we have established the basis for a fulfilling ministry in our lives. Then, as God allows us to experience death to our natural inclinations, we will discover His way of responding to life's situations. We are then... "able to comfort others who are in trouble, by the comfort where with we ourselves are comforted by God." 2Corinthians 1: 4

We Are Responsible To Deepen Our Message.
God Is Responsible To Broaden Our Ministry.

We are prone to be concerned with how many people we are reaching with the Gospel. But God is only concerned that we bring those we reach to spiritual maturity. Colossians 1: 28 says, "Those who become mature are then able to reproduce the life and character of Christ in others as well."

God's Will Involves The Message We Develop More Than The Job We Are Doing

As each one of us dies to the natural inclinations of our old ways, which were contrary to the Word of God, and as we experience the life of Christ by applying the principles of His Word to our daily lives, we build a "Life Message."

God desires that each one of us becomes a "Living Epistle." 2Corinthians 3: 2
As we do, we will experience more and more joy. Proverbs 15: 23

God has chosen us and ordained us that we should go and bring forth fruit, and that our fruit should remain. John 15: 16

2Peter 1: 4 says, "God has given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these we might be partakers of His divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in this world."

May this help you on your journey today!
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Growing In Grace!

.....Jesus Christ paid a debt He did not owe, because we owed a debt we could not pay. The Cross truly demonstrates God's love. The Bible says: Love conquers all, and also, that Love covers a multitude of sins. God clearly demonstrated His own love for us in the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. There is no greater act of love than to give your one and only son for the world. There is no F.E.A.R. in Love. Perfect Love drives out F.E.A.R., because fear has to do with punishment. The man who fears is not made perfect in Love, (1 John 4: 18).

.....Today, we are free to grow in Love for Him by the grace, (The Unmerited Favor) He has given us, that we may serve Him with joy, presenting our bodies as living sacrifices. Not presenting ourselves to an enemy whose motives and purposes are suspect at best, but to a Living God, a wise, loving, and powerful Heavenly Father, who's motives and purposes for us are founded in His perfect goodness.

.....The Law could never produce true growth in grace and actually worked against the process. 1 Corinthians 15: 56 says, " The power of sin is the Law." As long as people are kept under the Law, they are kept under the power of sin. Romans 7: 7-8 says, "I would not have known what sin was except through the Law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the Law had not said, Do Not Covet. But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the Commandments, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from the Law, sin is dead."

So, is the Law bad?

.....No, because in 1 Timothy 1: 8 it says, " The Law is good if one uses it properly." In it's proper use, God uses it as a mirror to show us the truth about ourselves, so that we will see our need for total dependency upon Jesus Christ. In it's misuse, it produces an "Outward Conformity" with an absence of Faith, Hope and Love. This results in a total lack of Christian maturity.

An example of this is a contrast between:

A City Dog, and A Country Dog.

.....I personally have had one of each, and the Lord revealed this to me through the Spirit while in my personal studies with Him. Have you ever had a dog that you kept in the house, or penned up in the backyard? What happens when there is a momentary crack in the doorway or fence? The dog takes off like a bolt of lightning! Give it a glimpse of freedom and he's gone. You end up chasing him up the street, constantly calling his name. Does he stop? No way! He would actually turn and seem to grin at you, and keeps running. The more you chase him, the faster he runs.

.....On the other hand, have you ever had or seen a country dog? Picture "Old Duke." There are no fences, but only miles of pasture and woods to run in. He can go wherever and do whatever he wants. But where is he? Right smack on the front porch of your house, sleeping, and resting contently. He is happy to hang around the house, waiting for his master to come and play or take him for a walk.

.....People are the same way. They can't stand to be in bondage! They remain in captivity if there are enough strong threats, persuasive deceptions, or peer pressure, but if you give them a crack of freedom in this situation, they are out there like a city dog.

.....This is what Christians do who have been kept penned up by legalism. Without a personal understanding of the Grace and Truth found in Jesus Christ to guide them, they see freedom only as an opportunity to indulge the flesh.

.....Christians are all too quick to condemn people who are so called, "Rebelling Against God," without first looking more closely and asking, "What are they really rebelling against?" Usually, people are actually rebelling against "Legalistic Religion," brought about by man's traditions, that has kept them in bondage, not against God Himself.

.....Do you really think the city dog is running from his master? No, he is running from the fence. He loves his master. He just hates being penned up. These kind of rebels are some of the most excited, dynamic believers, once the errors of legalism have been corrected in there lives.

Let's emphasize what God has added above and beyond the removal of the Law.

.....God's method of releasing us from the Law is by replacing it with His indwelling Life and Spirit. That is why the country dog stays near to the front door. Because he knows and loves his master, His freedom is not freedom from bondage, but freedom to be with the one he loves. In the same way, we grow to know and love Jesus Christ more intimately, and find ourselves experiencing incredible freedom, hardly ever thinking about the Law at all. The issue is not what I can or cannot do. I'm Free to know my Heavenly Father in an unhindered personal relationship. Then, through that relationship, God teaches my mind to think His thoughts. When I am wrong, He uses Grace to remind me who I really am, so that I can return to a dependancy upon Him. He doesn't just lock me back behind the fence. He is faithful even when we are not. Hebrews 13: 5 says, " He will never leave us nor forsake us." We may get deceived sometimes, or feel beaten down, but His Love and Grace continue to draw us to Himself as He continues to fulfill His Promise in Phillipians 1: 6 which says, "He who began a good work in you, will carry it out onto completion until the day of Jesus Christ. John 3: 30 says, "He must increase, and I must decrease." That is a good way to describe what growing in grace is like.

.....Through our trials, tribulations, and personal failures, we come face to face with our own inadequacy, and are forced to turn to Him for His total adequacy. He then lifts us up, and then we see that He still loves, and accepts us, even if He hates what we did. This causes us to be drawn to love Him, and to trust Him more, as we continue our walk through life.

.....In closing, I want you to know that God truly cares about you and me. There is nothing we can give Him, no service we can perform, no self discipline we can apply that He wants more than just us. He wants to reveal Himself, and His Love to us, and wants us to grow to love Him in return. This is how we grow in grace, abiding in the Truth of God's Word, especially the Truth which deals with our total acceptance, forgiveness, righteousness, and life in "The Finished Work Of The Cross." Within the Truth, we have the boldness to approach God, and get to know Him in a personal way. Through, a relationship, not religion.

We must abide in His Grace, in order to grow in His Grace.

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A Proper Self Image By His Grace

.....A proper self image is an identity based on Truth as it is taught in the Word of God. It is only as we learn and rest in what the word of God teaches us about our total acceptance before Him that we can become free, and then go on to love and accept others. The real focus of the Christian life is in knowing Christ. Until we rest in the finality of the Cross, we will never experience the reality of the Resurrection, which is Christ living in and through us today. We must rest in the fact that Jesus did it all, and it is a "Finished Work," or we will keep busy trying to "pay off our own debt," atoning for our sins. We will never enjoy a personal relationship with God or anyone else when guilt stands between both parties. God knows this, and that is why Jesus Christ has dealt with our sins once and for all. Total forgiveness for entire lives, Past, Present, and Future.

.....Concerning the old covenant, Hebrews 10: 11-12 says, "Day after day, the priest would stand, ministering and performing his religious duties, over and over again, offering the same sacrifices, which could never take away the sins. But when this man (Christ) had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God."

.....Hebrews 9: 14 says, "The blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleansing our consciences form dead works, and acts that lead to death, so that we may serve a living God.

.....The sacrifice of Jesus, God's Son, was and is not only superior because of the "once and for all" offering, but also because through it, God could reach where no ritual offering ever could, man's heart.

.....One place where we can see our common failure to understand the "Finished Work" of Christ is in our celebration of communion, the Lord's Supper. 1 Corinthians 11: 27 is commonly misquoted. The verse says, "Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord." Paul never said that the people must become worthy, he was talking about them examining the way in which they are celebrating communion. Because of the common misuse of this verse, we miss the wonderful picture of grace in the Lord's supper. We end up examining ourselves with morbid introspection, searching for, and confessing our sins, feeling painful regret.

.....The dominant emotion is often F.E.A.R. (False Evidence Appearing Real), and inadequacy. This is not what God intended, and misses the true point of the Lord's Supper. In 1 Corinthians 10:16, Paul refers to the observance as a "Cup of Blessing or Thanksgiving," not a cup of regret, or morbid introspection, seeing where we fall short and missed the mark. The Lord's Supper has become like the "Day of Atonement" for many, where the Israelites were to remember and confess their sins. The Lord's Supper is where we should be remembering the forgiveness of our sins. A time of true celebration. A time of joy, thanksgiving and unity in recognizing that we are one in Christ. The wrong way of taking communion produces a total concentration on self, never obtaining relief from the burden of guilt. And as I said earlier, with guilt standing between us and God, we will fail to rest in Christ's total forgiveness, and can never go on to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, (2 Peter 3: 18).

.....The Bible says we are right with God, completely, because of Jesus Christ's Finished Work on the Cross. We have been given the gift of righteousness, (Romans 5: 17), by His sacrifice. Christ has made us perfect forever, being sanctified or set apart from the world, and its ways. This our proper position in life today. Jesus Christ is the propitiation, (appeasement or satisfaction) for our sins, not for ours only, but also for the whole world. We need to celebrate communion in the way God sees us, through His Son's Finished Work.

.....I encourage you today to take communion in a different light and perspective, with a proper self image.

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For Those Now Struggling With Sin

Let me ask you:

Have you ever tried to save a drowning man?

.....The trouble is that his F.E.A.R. ( False Evidence Appearing Real) prevents him from trusting himself to you. When this happens, there are only two ways of helping him. Either you knock him unconscious and then drag him to shore, or leave him to struggle and shout until his strength gives way before you rescue him. If he has any strength left, he will clutch on to you and drag you under and you will both drown. God is waiting for each of us to totally exhaust our strength before He can deliver us from the exact sin that we are wrestling with in our lives today. Once we have ceased to struggle, really "Let Go, and Let God", then and only then, will He do everything that needs to be done to remove that sin or Life Controlling Issue from you and your life. So my advice to you today is surrender and sit. When we seek to do it ourselves, we place ourselves back under the Law, which is absent of His Grace and Mercy. Mathew 11: 28 - 30 sums it up pretty well, " Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light." The secret of deliverance from sin, any sin, is not in doing something, it is in sitting, (setting yourself apart), finding, (seeking the Truth), and resting, (accepting and renewing the mind), on what God has done. Let God's Truth Set You Free.
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