The Anglican prayer book contains an interesting but very accurate concept. It claims that we were created to enjoy God. On the other hand, I remember John Hagee preaching that people should stop using other people for their personal gains. I have since discovered that the one we use the most to achieve our goals is God. Therefore, I call this post “start enjoying God instead of using Him.”
At first blush, the title may offend you. What?! How can anyone suggest that I have been using God? I most certainly have not been doing that! Well, maybe I have not been enjoying Him, especially in recent times, but I have definitely not been using Him.
Keep reading and this will no doubt bless you. Allow me to confess that it surprisingly blessed me as I contemplated God afresh in preparing for this piece. What you discover about your relationship with God may surprise even you.
We All Need To Start Enjoying God Instead Of Using Him
It might shock you to realize that rather than worshiping or enjoying your creator, you have been using Him. Later in this post, you will see how that is a sin. Hopefully, by the time we are through, you will start enjoying God instead of using Him.
You do not need me to tell you that you expect God to give you a good life. In most cases, that is how we advertise Christian life, albeit erroneously. Come to Jesus and your life will be smooth-sailing. Who does not desire a good life?
Which believer does not know that every good and perfect gift comes from the Father of lights? What do you do but to come to the source of all good things with your petitions? Isn’t that what we essentially do when we pray? Or are we no longer supposed to pray? Questions, questions, all with no answers, not ready answers anyway.
We come to God and lay our petitions down before Him. When He sends the desired blessings, we thank Him and share testimonies. That is how it works, isn’t it? Perhaps we enjoy God as a by-product of the blessings. “God is good” we intone, to which listeners respond “all the time.” That is what being a believer means.
Do Not Relate To God As Santa Claus.
Or is it? Because, when He does not send the requested blessing on our list, it is another story. We shake our fist in His face. We may pray harder, ask for greater faith or fast for a few days. What we do in that area depends on the counsel to which we expose ourselves. The bottom line is that we are either unhappy with God or with ourselves or both.
It is like visiting Santa Claus. Santa has no relationship with you and you do not know the man behind the white beard. When he gives you a good gift, you enjoy your Santa day out. Otherwise, you are gloomy for the balance of the season.
Maybe he does not have a gift for you. Or else, the camera malfunctions just when it is your turn to sit in his laps. Perhaps the gift you get is not the one for which you asked in your letter to Santa. He has not delivered on his promise. You cannot enjoy such a Santa.
I wonder, is that how we relate to God? Your answer, like mine earlier in my Christian walk, is likely to be “yes.” But it does not have to remain so. We can decide right now to start enjoying God instead of using Him for our purposes. If He gives us a good life, fine. However, if He decides to withhold the good life, we shall still love Him.
Not All Will Start Enjoying God Instead Of Using Him
Allow me to rephrase that last sentence, seeing as it is such a paradigm shift. For a lot of believers, the only way they will enjoy God is when He is blessing them. When He refrains from acceding to their requests, they find it impossible to enjoy God. They become like the petulant child.
Nevertheless, the truth is that God created us to enjoy Him. In that respect, the Anglican prayer book is accurate. Take the story at the creation. God deliberately left the making of man to the very last. He wanted to be sure that everything we could ever need was in place. Think of light, water, air, plants, animals, whatever we might need. He even gave us a friend with skin on.
Every evening, Adam and Eve enjoyed God in the garden and in the interim, they enjoyed each other. It should remind you that in the Presence of God, there is the fullness of joy. Everything was cool. That is, until sin entered and they wanted self-gratification. With that Fall also came tedium and lack. Fear was another by-product of their sin of self-gratification.
You Can Start Enjoying God Instead of Using Him
And no, I am not talking about you but about all believers. Regrettably, unless God is gratifying our desires, we want nothing to do with Him. However, once we realize that such selfishness entered with the sin of the Fall, we know we should repent.
We fully appreciate the need to turn away from using God for our personal gratification. Consequently, all of us should start enjoying God instead of using Him. Realistically, however, I know that is not going to happen. So, the amended sentence becomes: a handful of us will start enjoying God instead of using Him.
We will see clearly that God created us to enjoy Him. Hopefully, you are one of us. You can do it. After all, a few young men were able to enjoy God regardless of their situation. They moved from empty faith to trust in God as God. They did not believe Him because of His blessings in their lives. These believed in spite of the absence of blessings.
You too can do it; start enjoying God instead of using Him.
Maranatha!
