August 15, 2004

Four Things I Need God To Do For Me

Psalm 139:23-24

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”(NIV)

As we seek to live for the Lord I am in need of several things.

1. I need God to search me (v.23)

I need to allow God to search me. This reminds me that nothing in my life is off-limits to the Lord. This speaks to the issue of surrender. I need to surrender continually to the Lord. The idea is one of raising both hands in total surrender. I take my hands off of my life and give everything to the Lord.
The issue is the heart.

This speaks to heart issues. In the Bible the heart is used to describe all that makes me who I am. This is what is meant by heart issues. Is there anything in my life that is not under the Lordship of Christ? Just as we are interested in our physical heart working properly, we must take care of our heart/life. Periodically, we should allow the Holy Spirit to search our lives.

2. I need God to test me

I need to allow God to test me. Tests are used to measure whether we have mastered the subject matter; they are given over material we should have mastered. They are tools of evaluation. When we were in school, most of us did not care for tests. Yet, tests are a part of life. Life is filled with tests. In the life of a Christian there are many times of testing. Tests are given to see if we have learned to depend upon God.

This speaks to the issue of trust.

Tests speak to the issue of trust. Do I trust God in everything? Even when I don’t understand the reason for the challenge I am facing, I must learn to trust God.

What is the point of tests in life?

A. They serve as valid standards of evaluation

B. They reveal the purpose of God for our lives

C. They reveal that Christ is faithful

The issue is my thought life.

God is interested in my heart, but he is also interested in my thought life as well.

3. I Need God to see me (v.24)

I need God to see me, to see me as I really am. There are times in our lives when we are interested in looking good. Many of us are fearful that if people really knew us, they would not like us. Because of that concern, we are interested in appearances. Sometimes that is how we approach our relationship with Christ. Rather than being open, we think we can impress Christ. He already knows everything about us; therefore, it is freeing to know we can come to Him just as we are. There is no need for play-acting.

This speaks to the issue of attitude.

Having God see us speaks to the area of our attitudes. Every once in a while it is good to have God give us an attitude check. For most of us the area where we struggle is not so much our doing as it is our thinking. Though we would never go out and murder someone, it is a temptation to have a bad attitude. I need for God to help me keep my attitude in check.

4. I Need God to Lead me

Leadership is crucial in life. As a believer I have given leadership of my life to the Lord. We all are leaders in some aspect of life. Allowing the Lord to lead me is a life-long reality. There never comes a time in our lives when we do not need the Lord’s leadership. We are constantly in need of direction.

I remember a time when I was traveling between Chicago and Orlando. Everything about the trip was uneventful. The landing in Orlando was perfect. As we were heading to the gate, the airplane ran off the runway and came to an abrupt stop in a ditch. As I looked out my window, I saw the emergency vehicles coming to meet us. Finally, after a few minutes, we were evacuated off the airplane. We were put on buses and taken to the terminal to get our baggage. As I was sitting on the bus on the tarmac, I believe I was given a new insight. The journey is never over until we arrive safely at the gate. This is not only true for airplane trips, but it is likewise true of life. We may think everything is going very well today, and we are tempted to take control of the direction of our lives. I need to periodically ask God to continue to lead me. I need His leadership everyday.

This speaks to the issue of lordship.

This area of leadership has to do with Lordship. Is Jesus Christ truly the leader of my life? Have I tried to take the lead myself? This is a good time to ask God to search us and know us, and lead us in every area of our lives.