Did the title get your attention? Victory. Okay, now that you're here, I've been reading the book "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan, and it's been ruining me......in a good way. Just finished chapter 4, titled 'Profile of the Lukewarm'. I have to say, this chapter calls for a serious amount of introspection, so introspect I did! Here's my conclusion:
It's difficult to think about this fervently loving God being so ready to accept me where I am, for who I am, only having the intention of making me.....well, a better me. Despite the fact that I come nowhere close to the mustard seed with my faith, He has all the faith in me. Despite the fact that the time I spend thinking about Him is very meager in comparison, He is always thinking of me. Despite the fact that I can find my commitment to Him lacking, He is always committed to me. Are you catching my drift here? HE IS ALWAYS DOING HIS PART!!! Yet at times, I find myself falling short. Unfortunately, this happens all too often, sinking into the "lukewarm". I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer here (my apologies if there really is someone named Debbie Downer out there), but I think there is a time for introspection, on His terms. Time to look into ourselves and try our best to see what God sees in us. Yes, there will be shortcomings. Yes, there will be faults. Even more than that, I can recognize that it is because those very shortcomings and faults that Christ's strength is made that much more perfect. What I once thought was an incredible strength is now that much stronger, and stronger, and stronger. He will never stop. He will never give up. He will never surrender. He loves me too much.
The more I recognize His ever-increasing strength in my life, the more effective I want to be as the salt of the earth. The more I see His hand holding my life, the more I want to bring out the taste of everything He is to this world. The more I want to do my part in building His Kingdom. "Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out" -Luke 14:34-35 If I am to be the salt of the earth, than I want to be the best I can, because He is worth it. Whether that means bringing out the flavor in a fine food, or helping to make manure be an effective fertilizer, I'm all in. Because He is worth it.
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