Why God Matters to you…?

Why God Matters to you…?



helloooooo!

Walking in to the conference room this afternoon, I casually asked my corporate brothers, ‘Why does God matter to you?’ I realized in the few minutes we spent in discussion about the subject, that everyone answers the question somewhat differently - which I believe is a good thing. Christianity is meant to be individual; it is meant to be personal, with each of us having unique takes and experiences in our relationships with G-d.1 [Think of it, if I asked you why marriage matters, responses would range from ‘it doesn’t—at all’ to ‘because it is a sacred institution, and my mate is my best friend!’ to something in between both of those positions.]

Always adding in new readers, it bears repeating that for just about six years now, I have been the corporate pastor to an international company. It has been a pure, God-blessed, God-sanctified, God-protected relationship that has grown and deepened over the years. Besides a weekly 30-minute conference-call prayer meeting, we try to meet for face-to-face Bible study as often as travel schedules permit. We pray for God’s wisdom, direction, favor and blessing on the company and our individual lives and families. For various reasons, it had been several weeks since we had met, until today.

So, what did the guys say? The first – ‘God keeps me grounded’, which after further exploration meant, God is my compass, and having a relationship with him makes all the difference in the world in my day-to-day life and peace of mind. Morality? Sure. I take my cues from Jesus; I want to live like Jesus would have me to.’

‘Eternity!’ another said—a single word, his readily confident answer.

Yesterday in “Why God Matters,” [http://pastorwoman.com/ReadArchive.aspx?id=1383], I proposed that God does indeed matter for the following reasons:

God matters because he is real.

he gives you your reason for being, your purpose

God matters because when you have a relationship with him,

you will never be alone again … no matter where you find yourself

God matters because he will lead and guide your life if you look to him.

God matters because he is the one constant in a world that changes.

God matters because faith in him is defensible—because faith in him

makes sense.

God matters because eternity matters … God is the key to

life eternal, life lived with him forever.

So, those are their thoughts about why God matters, and my thoughts about why God matters. And then came one. The one had a totally different ‘take’, and I could only quantify his feelings when I got away from the conversation. The guy has had some serious hardship and personal loss in his immediate family—the sort that takes your breath away. His answer about why God matters was not really direct; in fact, his answer about God’s value in our lives was rather circuitous. Fact is, God was in his life before—sorta, in a religious kinda way; but after his loss—

he has come to know that not only does he want God in his life,

he wants to be in God’s life.

because of the great love of faith-filled friends, he began to pray,

he began to reach for God … and wonder of wonder, in many ways—

some strange, some wonderful -- he has felt God reaching back. He has felt God involving himself in his life as well! And then there is the unexplainable in our friend’s life– like why ‘there seems to be a positive driving force . . . ‘Like my business opportunities have exploded’!

So here’s what caught me by surprise – the notion that suffering in this life is pointless, it is useless, unless or until God somehow purposes it for his good. While I will not try to presume about the painful circumstances of others, dire as they might be--it seems to me, blessed is the one who sees the good God has wrought from the pain of this world’s goings-on.

On the other hand, can you imagine pain in this life without perspective in which to place it, or the knowledge, that in the end or one day, God sets all things aright? Reminds me of Solomon’s ramblings in Ecclesiastes 1, ‘Vanity of vanities, all is of vanity!’2 Aye, what is the meaning of life—and in particular, the meaning of sufferings in this life without God’s perspective of it? I think of the life of Job, captured in the writings of the Old Testament—who suffered in an unparalleled fashion—what would his life be without the leveling of all things by God? As in Job’s life, God does indeed set all things aright.3

What does God matter to you? Well, I suppose it is hard for me to fathom what it would be like to sit opposite Jesus, when he asks, ‘and you… do I have any place in your life, Child?’ I shudder to think of the enormity of such a question. Whether God matters to you because of eternity, his faithfulness, life’s perspective, his ability alone to set all things aright, or his unceasing, unfailing love - fact is, life with God is unparalleled! Why does God matter to you? Because there is nothing else like having relationship with God! Nothing else substitutes for relationship with our Lord Jesus.

Christine



1 – Think G-d was a typo? Nope. For many Jews, it is a sign of respect.

2 – Ecclesiastes 1.2

3 - Job 42