Self-Seeking Spirituality

How many times do you do a good thing for the single purpose of pleasing God? When was the last time you considered your interests as unimportant when pursuing a spiritual agenda?

We were sharing with a bishop yesterday about people who fast too much and why they do it. For a majority of them, personal is the reason they do it.

They fast to get a spouse. They fast to get a job. They fast for their bothersome spouse to get saved. They fast for many other things which are not really a priority on God’s scheme of things.

And we see the same with giving. Pastors are celebrating all the bounty because they have convinced their congregations that giving is the magic key to that better job, that great contract, a piece of land. People will therefore give so that they will get this or that with no concern at all for the bigger picture, at the very least the corporate or church picture.

It also goes for ministry. I know many who join ministry because they are frustrated at their work places. Some do it to attract a mate or get a job or other benefits. There are some who join ministry because in their eyes it is the least demanding profession, the one asking for the least qualifications. It also does not ask for any experience. Just say you are called and very few will care to find out the nature of that calling or even its source.

But why do we relegate God to the periphery when we are looking for our thing? Why should we be the focus of the worship we are not ashamed to direct at Him?

David said that he will not offer God something that does not cost him anything. We seem to operate on the contrary spirit. We will not offer to God anything that does not offer us anything in return.

The Bible states that all things were created by Him (Christ) and for Him. This means that He is the ONLY focus of creation. Is it in order to even imagine that God exists to meet our needs? Is that not blasphemy?

When did you fast to know God’s will for your life? When did you give simply to meet a need? When did you join ministry simply because you felt that God wanted you there without considering your affairs?

In the beatitudes (Matthew 5 – 7) we see some things that indicate whether we are pursuing God or selfish interests.

The prayer closet leaves me with God so that I can get His agenda and pursue it. KJV says He sees what we do in secret but answers us openly. Why? Because it we are exposing our hearts and spirits to God’s scrutiny.

We are supposed not to let our left hand to know what our right hand is giving because we are responding to a prompting outside of ourselves. We are able to fast without letting anyone even suspect because we are fasting for a purpose outside ourselves. And we are supposed to minister with the single purpose of pleasing God.

We do not sing for God so that we can sell our albums. We do not go for missions to increase the weight of our CV. We do not give to the needy to demonstrate how philanthropic we are.

God is the focus of everything we do or we are not really serving or worshipping Him.

(I am sorry I am not able to write conclusively because my computer is down. Pray that God either gives me another or makes it revive. As of now I use someone’s for the sort time it is available)