02/04/08

People experiencing real relationship with God are happy

Psalm 68:3 - But let the righteous be joyful; let them exult before God; let them be jubilant with joy.

I went with a friend one time to two different meetings of religious people - both ostensibly Christian - each group largely unaware of the other. I asked my friend what he saw as the difference between the two groups, mostly to see where my friend was coming from in his thinking.

He could have mentioned doctrines, differences in traditional backgrounds, or different ideas about how to worship God - these things I would have expected in response and have heard hundreds of times from hundreds of people. But my friend surprised me a little. Pointing to one of the groups we had visited he commented "These are the happy ones." What food for thought! We are always seeking evidence for stuff - for doctrinal rightness, traditional authenticity, for orthodoxy. Yet a key piece of evidence is right before our faces and we largely miss it. People experiencing real relationship with God are happy - where there is religious cancer there is pain. Characterized by bitterness, argument, one-upmanship, jealousy, judgmental spirit, self serving, self righteousness, the diseases of spirit kill happiness in churches, individuals, politics, and society in general. If you want my advice about which group you should join - choose the happy one. You will not go far wrong.


[ Prayer Starter ]

There is no life as joyous as the life we experience with You, O God. Our buckets overflow with your abundance - our hearts are made glad by your presence. I prayer Father that all churches experience your joy by building a better relationship in You. I ask this prayer in Jesus Name, Amen.

The Word of God was given free to us, therefore we should also share it freely with others. (All rights are with God)