When God's mission is not compelling enough good things become god things. Several weeks ago one of the big stories within the sports realm was focused on a college basketball player who shoved an opposing fan during a game. Sadly, it didn't surprise me that an athlete who is thriving on adrenaline and emotion in a close game against a rival would lose their control and shove a fan that had been badgering them all game. What shocked me was who he shoved. As I waited for the video to load (does that make me a bad person that I wanted to see the video of the incident?) I fully expected to see him shoving another college student from the opposing team. However, that was not the case. As the clip plays you see a man in his middle ages (maybe older) pointing his finger at the player and screaming. I was shocked. My first thought was how is it possible for a middle age man to get so worked up about a college basketball game where men half his age are competing. How is it possible for a middle age man to think that it is ok to point, and yell in the face of a player from the opposing team. How do we get to the place where this can even happen? It is a basketball game. In the middle of my self-righteous judgement God stopped me in my tracks and reminded me that anytime His mission is not compelling enough in my life good things turn into god things.
After we put our faith in Jesus we have been given a mission. We have been called to be about making disciples of all nations. God's mission, which is to make Himself known, becomes our mission. Our mission is to make God known. Our life is to be about making God known to the ends of the earth. That is a God sized mission and it is a mission that is so massive in scope that it can and should dominate our earthly lives. It is a mission that countless people have given their lives for. It is a mission that countless people have made huge earthy sacrifices for. It is a mission that God was and is so passionate about that He sent His son Jesus here to die on a cross to clearly communicate that He wants to make Himself known, and He wants to invite people into a relationship with Him. The problem is not with the mission. The problem is that somehow we take this God-sized mission and we file it away under "church" and unless we are at "church" this mission that God has called us to is pushed to the side and forgotten about while we dive head long full of passion, enthusiasm, and support into a basketball game. You see, the problem isn't the basketball is bad. The problem is that God's mission is not compelling enough in our minds so instead of those resources going to God's mission, they go to basketball and all of a sudden a good thing becomes a god thing.
When we treat things that are not ultimate things, as if they were, we look foolish. I look foolish way too often and up until this point I can be thankful that my foolishness was not caught on national television. I look foolish when good things become more important than God's mission. I look foolish when good things affect my emotions more than God's mission does. I look foolish when I look forward to mindless entertainment more than I look forward to participating in God's mission. I look foolish when I am more concerned about what others think about me than what God think about me.
So what do we do? I don't know all the answers, but one thing I have been doing is reminding myself of God's mission in every area of my life. Reminding myself that....
-God wants my marriage to be a part of making Him known.
-God wants my work to be a part of making Him known.
-God wants my leisure to be a part of making Him known.
-God wants my parenting to be a part of making Him known.
-God wants my neighborhood to a place where I am making Him known.
-God wants my family to be a part of making Him known.
-God wants my gifts, and passions to be used to make Him known.
-God wants my money to be used to make Him known.
-God wants my time to be used to make Him known.
I wish I knew exactly how this looks in each of these areas but I don't. What I do know, and what I need to keep reminding myself is that God wants to use ALL of my life to be about making him known. When I forget that good things will become god things and I will look foolish. When I remember that truth, good things (like enjoying a basketball game) never become a god thing and are seen as another opportunity to be a part of God's mission to make Himself known to all people.
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