The Greatest Weekend of the Year

In light of this Resurrection Weekend, I've been doing a lot of reviewing, reflecting and refocusing on Christ, the cross and my calling. It's been a time of letting go of selfish dreams and embracing a lot of the unknown, trusting God's goodness (character) and greatness (control over all things). It's been a time of seeing how much of my "living sacrifice" to God had crawled off the altar of worship and surrender. It was a lot more painful than I expected, but in the end, my soul felt a lot more free ... the weight of carrying my own burdens had been lifted by the arms of my Savior who died to set me free.

I also went back to reviewing something that challenged me all throughout my seminary years, something that always helped put things into proper perspective for me ... the Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards. There are so many favorites for me on that list, but for today, #10 and #19 were especially tugging at my heart.

I also found a second list of convictions recently and that is the one pictured above. It belonged to John Piper's father who passed away recently and was a mini-version of his own resolutions that kept him focused on living for Christ. You can read an article of Piper explaining the list here.

The older I get, there seems to be 2 dangers that keep getting stronger that I must fight: 1. The lure (and lie) of financial security and all the toys that come with it, and 2. the dangerous feeling that God "owes me" for what I did or didn't do while serving Him. Both those dangers reveal, at its core, a heart that is no longer beating for Christ and His Kingdom. Instead of reverence, there is resentment, instead of worship there is worry. And for these reasons, there is the cross on which Christ died ... so that this selfish heart can be renewed to new life, new passions and new energy and joy that we never would have known before.

And this Resurrection weekend is a reminder that I need Christ and His sacrifice more today than I ever have before. It's a reminder that I was a beggar who received life's greatest riches that will last through eternity. It's a weekend to soften my heart again and remember the reason why God gives me life each day ... and that is live my life aways for Christ, His honor, His glory and His Kingdom. Happy Resurrection Sunday everyone. He is risen!

Currently Listening How Great Is Our God By Passion ... Live Worship From Passion05 Holy is the Lord