Skewed View of God

Tying in to my post last week about Giants and Ants, Greg shared with me Sunday an illustration he did in his class for new believers.

He was talking about a person's view of God. Sometimes when we have a big problem in our life and we concentrate on that problem, instead of the greatness of God to see us through it, God looks very small compared to our problem. But if we concentrate on God our problem looks much smaller. Kind of like looking at giants or ants. Greg demonstrated this by asking a student to look at the TV on the wall across the room. It looked big to the student. Then Greg held up a pad of paper in front of her eyes. Suddenly she couldn't hardly see the TV (God) but just the pad of paper (the problem). This really hit home and it hit home with me when he explained it. Try it, it really works.

I finished my Chasing Daylight book yesterday and looked at 4 choices for my next book. They included Uprising by Edwin McManus, Just Walk Across the Room by Bill Hybels, Courageous Leadership by Bill Hybels, and Facing Your Giants by Max Lucado. I chose Facing Your Giants. Max takes us through the story of David, who killed Goliath, the giant. I've never read Max Lucado, but find his style interesting and frustrating at the same time. While reading, I got some great nuggets.

"For forty days, twice a day, morning and evening, the Philistine giant strutted in front of the Israelite army (1 Sam. 17:16). Yours does he same. First thought of the morning, last worry of the night-your Goliath dominates your day and infiltrates your joy."

"More than 'David versus Goliath,' this is 'God-focus versus giant-focus."

Talking about David cutting off Goliath's head: "You might say that David knew how to get a head of his giant. When was the last time you did the same? How long since you rant toward your challenge?"

"Rush your giant with a God-saturated soul."

"Focus on giants-you stumble. Focus on God-your giants tumble."

Many times David talks about God when facing his giant, not the size or power of the giant. "Do you ponder God's grace four times as much as you ponder your guilt? Is your list of blessings four times as long as your list of complaints? Is your mental file of hope four times as thick as your mental file on dread? Are you four times as likely to describe the strength of God as you are the demands of your day?"

Makes you think! Let's concentrate on the good God is doing in our lives, not the piddly things the enemy is doing to thwart us! Have a blessed hump day!