By Chris WittsFriday 14 Jul 2023Morning Devotions with Chris WittsFaithReading Time: 1 minute
Transcript:
Back in 2001 after that horrible tragedy in New York. With the attack on the twin towers, many people started going back to church. Interesting. I guess that during this time of uncertainty and turmoil, Americans were turning back to God. And one minister who was fascinated by the swelling of the church attenders at his large church by thousands actually wanted to find out why. There were so many newcomers on Sunday and at his mid-week services. And he started discreetly asking questions. And he found the most common response was, “I need to get my life straightened out spiritually.”
It certainly was an honest admission that something was lacking in their lives and the tragic deaths in New York had unsettled them. So my question is, what does it take to get my life straightened out spiritually?
And what does that mean … anyway?
I think it’s quite a profound matter, actually taking time to stop and think about my life’s purpose. Where am I headed? What do I really believe? And how does this affect my actions? And what spirituality is, is something that’s talked about a lot that’s often misunderstood. Many people think that spirituality and religion are the same thing, and so they bring their beliefs and prejudices about religion to discussions about spirituality. And although all religions emphasise spiritualism as being part of faith, you can be spiritual without being a member of an organized religion. It’s a personal matter that only you can work through. Life is full of ups and downs, good times and bad, and many people see spirituality as a great way to see comfort and peace in their life.
It’s a way of gaining perspective, and spirituality recognizes that your role in life has a greater value than what you do every day. It can relieve you from depending on material things all the time, and you can see that life has greater purpose. Spirituality can be used as a way of coping with change or anxiety. Now there are a lot of voices that try to influence the way we think about ourselves or the way we look at our potential, our talents. But these voices can be misleading.
The opinions of and even our own feelings really don’t define us – the Bible teaches that our true worth and value are found in Christ. It doesn’t matter what people think or say, or how many mistakes we make. We are valuable because God loves us and accepts us completely. But if we’re going to walk with God, we need to be in agreement with him and learn to think as he thinks. It’s exciting to know that the Christian faith opens the door for a fulfilling life.
When the Apostle Paul was speaking to a crowd in Athens, he pointed out that they had an altar inscribed with the words to an unknown god, and he told them about the real God who they can know. And he reveals this in Acts Chapter 17 in the New Testament that God gives everyone life and breath and everything else. He said that God did this so that we could seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him. Though he is not far from any one of us.
God himself speaks to people about seeing him in Jeremiah 29 where it says, “I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope in the future.” “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” –
So the key to genuinely knowing God is to connect with him through a relationship with Jesus and to keep growing closer to God through that relationship.
And thanks to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus for our sins, we can come to God and get to know him. After all, Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. By looking to Jesus, we can gain a profound understanding of who God is, Jesus said. Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father so we can know God, and this is real spirituality.
God is not a distant being who’s difficult to know. He is a loving Father. He wants us to know him personally. Truly knowing God involves more than just gaining head knowledge. It means enjoying a relationship with him that’s based on love. God’s love is at the core of who he is, so when we truly know God, we live in love and so it is time to answer the question – “Is it time to get your life straightened out? Spiritually?”
Let’s Pray
Heavenly Father, it’s one thing to go to church on a Sunday, but it’s another thing to know Jesus as our personal Saviour. Give me understanding Lord and courage to take that step forward, to sort myself out spiritually and to know you better. Amen.