Is God Well Pleased with You?

I really want that "well pleased and beloved child" endorsement from God. You know the feeling if you’re a parent, grandparent, proud aunt, uncle or friend – and you love that one so much that you can’t help yourself. You exclaim "That one's mine! I am so proud of him/her.”

In our Gospel reading yesterday, we heard the second time when God’s booming voice declared “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.” (Matthew 17:5) This time it was at the transfiguration of Jesus. The first time it was at Jesus' baptism by John the Baptist when Father God's booming voice declared from heaven: "“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17) We take after our Heavenly Father. He was a proud Papa and wanted the world to know He was proud of His boy. It was sort of like His birth announcement for His boy. He flung one colossal star in the sky to let us know that He was giving us mere mortals the STAR of the show!

With all my heart -- I want to hear “You are My beloved daughter” because I have brought God so much pleasure with my life. Those words about Jesus were obviously an endorsement by God the Father for His Son, Jesus Christ. But as we hear it again, hear it as an endorsement by God over YOUR life. Imagine if God announced you as “My beloved son or daughter.” The fact is: we are His beloved children. We are not His beloved slaves, or servants, or employees. We are His beloved children!

And here is the challenge for us: “Is our life measuring up to the phrase “with you I am well pleased”? We literally need to think of each action that we take during our day and ask ourselves, “What is God saying about me?” Is He taking pleasure over us when we acknowledge Him, when we sit at His feet and visit with Him, when we choose the fruit of the Spirit during our day (love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) and those times we put others before ourselves?

I have a feeling each time He says the same thing about us as He did His only and only Son "I am well pleased.” And when we fail and even sin, He is still saying “You are my beloved child” but He reminds us that we can do better. Daily, we should strive for hearing those words to us: "You are my beloved son or daughter. I am well pleased with you." I want to make Papa God proud. How about you?

I Want to be a Pointer

Okay. I’ll admit it. Some days I struggle with humility. I get so fixated on who commented or liked or loved my blog, that I fail to remember it is HE Who deserves all the honor and praise. Less of me, more of Him. That I might decrease and He increase.

We’ve been talking about John the Baptist a lot lately and, WOW, did he ever exude humility! Those two boys – Jesus and John – were cousins with intimately close mamas – so intimate that when Mary showed up at Elizabeth’s home, Elizabeth’s baby boy, John, leapt in her womb. They were quite a foursome. I suspect those boys had many play-times together. They were more than cousins – they were “soul and spirit” brothers.

Just think how John could have been jealous of Jesus, but He continued to say things like: “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30) And, I agree with John. I want that, too! I really do desire that when others see me, they see Jesus. I want any attention I get to deflect off me and land right to He Who is worthy of all praise. He must increase, but I must decrease.

I suppose this is a common struggle in the world we’re living in today. In this “survival of the fittest” to gain the most followers or take the best “touched-up” selfie, or profile our amazing “bestie” friends, it is easy to allow the self-praise desires to cloud the path to Christ. This is why I know I am inspired by the humility of St John the Baptist. When given the opportunity to claim personal fame, he deflects the attention to Christ.

I wonder how much of what we do proclaims to the world, “more of you, God"! In the midst of racking up those likes and loves, are our efforts leading others to Christ, or are they fattening up the number of followers in the popularity score we’re keeping for ourselves? Lord, please help us show You off and be a pointer to You as an example of true humility. And when the world seeks to capture our attention with promises of glory or fame or accolades of any kind, may we point to the One who deserves all our praise. Less of me, more of You, God!

Our Great Creator and Entertainer

My typical Sunday morning routine is to listen to an online church service or Christian video while I'm endeavoring to “beautify” myself -- hair, make-up, clothes selection, etc. Yesterday, my search left me wanting, so I stopped looking. I promptly apologized to God and said, “How could I be looking for something to entertain me when you are the “Great Entertainer” Who brings me so much amusement and enjoyment!

The Entertainer of the Year at the Country Music Awards or Grammys is announced when a single or group wins the accolades of fans who vote them in because of their talents. I love it when I hear the performers give all the credit to God for their abilities and fame. They are giving credit where credit is due when they do that -- like when John the Baptist announced “I must decrease. He must increase!” (John 3:30).

God our Creator, deserves all the glory and praise because He created everything, including you and me. Maybe it sounds irreverent to call Him the Great Entertainer but how could I think otherwise when I realize He entertains me with the wonder and beauty of His creation. He entertains me through my friends and family. He entertains me when He nudges me in the direction I should go. And, here’s one I hadn’t thought about until Sunday morning -- He entertains me when I’m sleeping and gives me sweet rest and sometimes gives me dreams. In fact, He entertained me Saturday night when I dreamed that Jesus was dead and lying on a slab. People were with me and we were mourning His death when all of sudden His eyes opened up and we started cheering and shouting “Jesus is alive! Jesus is alive!”

I’m thinking the Jesus I saw in that dream was probably Jim Caviezel who played Jesus in Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ”. Jim’s parents attend my church here in Frisco and I remember hearing his testimony about how, during the filming of the movie, that he was hit with lightning at precisely the time of the crucifixion and on the cross. He had a near-death experience. It was captured on film and his realistic acting wasn’t acting at all. He lived through it to tell the story. Talk about God being the Great Entertainer!

He continues to entertain us as we watch the shenanigans of the enemy who is making such a fool of himself in the political and Hollywood arenas. That’s how we should look at the enemy – a weak, fearful, screwed up (as written by C.S. Lewis’ “Screwtape Letters”) and near-to-his-end. We will certainly be entertained by giving him the “last laugh” one day.

It’s time we put God on the pedestal and give Him the honor, the glory, and the praise that He is most worthy of because He is truly the incomparable, undeniable, indescribable GREAT Entertainer Who surprises us each day with His newest and greatest performances. He’ll make us laugh and we’ll cry with the thrills of His beneficent mercy and grace. He made all of this just for us! Perhaps it’s time to switch off the social media, TV, and the voices that endeavor to drown Him out. When we do that….we’ll most likely realize “There’s no business, like God’s show business…..because He shows out every day!”

But put your hope in God, Who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. (1 Timothy 6:17).