Discovering the Limitless God

(Here is another excellent article by John Paul Jackson, enjoy!)

Discovering the Limitless God
By John Paul Jackson

Most of us truly, desperately want God to be all in all in our lives. We want to want His good and perfect will to be done, even if we have to die in the process. We want to do whatever He asks of us -- to be perfect for Him, to spend ourselves for Him.

Obviously, nothing is wrong at all with this passion; however, it can occasionally cause some problems, because we, being human, often try to survive on our own willpower. We have the tendency to try to make things happen in our own strength. So saying, Christians can live in extreme guilt if we feel we don't measure up to "the divine standards" of God.

The scary realization that we have issues -- issues that might even include keeping God at a distance -- can be difficult for well-meaning Christians to live with. But here's the rub: The walls we've unconsciously, or consciously, built to protect ourselves from injury do not make God mad at us. He is not disgusted or disappointed by the walls we've thrown up or by the signs posted to keep Him out. Our boundaries do not condemn us. We will live trembling, terrified, unproductive lives if we believe that our salvation rests in our strength instead of God's. This is why trusting Jesus' love and free, grace-full salvation is so important -- because it sincerely is a matter of trust, even when we feel like all is lost. Is He who He says He is? This is the question of our existence.

It is hard for human beings in a fallen world to comprehend the Father's heart -- the true-blue, romantic, passionate, fatherly, brotherly, motherly love of God. He completely respects us in all regards, including our walls. This next statement flies in the face of traditional Christian teaching, but -- it's okay to have boundaries with God. He wants what is real from us. He doesn't want lip service. He is willing to wait for as long as it takes in order to have our hearts. If all we can give Him right now is a glance from across the room, then He'll take that glance and patiently wait for the rest.

If all we can give Him is a mere sliver of our true self, He'll take that piece, no matter its size . . . and patiently, lovingly wait for the rest. To quote a man long remembered for his romantic nature, "Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds" (Shakespeare, Sonnet 116). Do you know -- sincerely know in the depths of your heart -- how true this is of your Father? Your walls don't send Him on a pity party. Your wrong choices don't scare Him away. Whatever you're going through right now, He knows. He understands it even more than you do, so don't think that what you're dealing with might make Him angry at you. Don't be afraid of making mistakes. Don't worry about your runaway emotions. Don't worry about the things that scare you in the deepest parts of your soul. Don't be afraid of God. There is nothing in Him to condemn you. He knows, and He loves, and He fights for you more than you could imagine.

(For more information about John Paul Jackson or Streams Ministries chick here)