God's First Priority

I've mentioned before how I've been going through the Experiencing Christ Within workbook by Dwight Edwards. I've done my fair share of Bible studies, but this one seems so fresh and new. I am learning so much and hope some of what I'm learning is rubbing off.

In week two, I explored the idea that people are not God's first priority. That God's main purpose is to show his glory!

Did you get what I just said?

We are here on earth to serve the living God and reveal His glory through our actions. Dwight Edwards says it like this, "Nothing-nothing-matters more to God than the glory of His name. He is ablaze with a perfect, pure jealousy for His reputation."

In this "What about me?" society we live in, this could be a shock to many. I had to read it a couple of times to fully understand what was being said. How many of us, me included, have been guilty of using God to meet our needs? Even the church and the Christian book stores are guilty of "selling" Christianity as a way to be successful and happy. But Jesus never promised success or happiness. Luke 21:12 says, "...they will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name."

According to Dwight, the main point of our spirituality has been forgotten. The Bible is full of examples of God trying to further his glory, not "fix" lives. Sure, he loved, cared for, protected and answered the prayers of his people, but behind every answered prayer was the revealing of His glory.

Dwight says, "So the question isn't whether God is on our side, responsive to our call, but whether we are genuinely on His side, responsive to His call. It isn't how God fits into what we're doing, but how we fit into what God is doing. He is the Creator; we are the creatures...He runs the universe. We fit in."

So the phrase this week has been "do my actions glorify God?" I've used it a couple of times with my kids this week and it's really stopped them in their tracks. Now I need to start applying it to my parenting. Do my actions with my children glorify God? Well, that's a whole other post for another day.

Gina Conroy is a homeschooling mom of four. For more musings by this author visit Portrait of a Writer...Interrupted.