A God First Life

I think in life there are three types of Christians. Those who are actively putting GOD first in their lives. Those who want to put GOD first but can't quite figure it out. And those who care more about their fleshly desires than putting GOD first in their lives. 

It may seem kind of harsh to think of such categories, however when you really think about it, its not too far off. For those of us who are actively pursuing a relationship with GOD yet need the help with really putting HIM first, a book to help you would be The God-First Life by Stovall Weems.

This book looks at Christian life as if you were a babe in Christ trying to figure it out. You know you want more you just don't know how to obtain it. Then read this book and it will help. One thing that I love in this book is on page 99 in which the author breaks down the Lord's Prayer:

In breaking down the Lord's Prayer as such, the author helps the reader to see that while they may not pray this exact prayer they can get across the same effect of Praise, Purpose (us doing God's will), Provision (God providing for us), Pardon (asking for forgiveness), People (praying for others), Protection (asking for God's protection), and closing out with Praise.

Then the author goes further and reminds us that even in the Lord's Prayer we are putting GOD ahead of ourselves. 

Another topic I enjoyed in the book is the chapter "You've Got to Feed Yourself." Many Christians, regardless to whether they just got saved yesterday or been saved for years, are not always aware of the need of daily fellowship with God beyond prayer. Yes, prayer is important but the only way to truly hear God's response to your prayers is to learn who HE is through studying HIS Word. Many times, God's answer's to your prayers will come through reading HIS Word.

I have gotten plenty of responses to my prayers while studying HIS Word. The Holy Spirit teaches and its our job to ask for instruction in the Word.

"Be careful of approaching the Word with your own agenda"- Stovall Weems. 

So often we do just that, we bring our issues and desires to the Word of God and try to make God's Word apply to what we want. If we want revenge on someone, we'll try make God's Word apply to that situation. If we feel we deserve blessings, we'' try to make God's Word apply. However God's Word does not exist to be a genie but to be instruction, to correct, to admonish, to guide. 

And to be honest, I used to think this was normal, because I watched people do it everyday. They would take a Scripture out of the Bible and make it apply to their situation, whether it did or not. They would tailor the Bible to fit their lives instead of taking their lives and circumcising it to align with God's Word. Yet this is the very thing the author warns us about.

Whether you're a new believer or a seasoned believer, you're never too old/young to live a God-First Life. Many of us lead a me-first life not realizing that it is what holds us back. We look at how we can benefit from God instead of coming to HIM in humble servitude.

~Kris

[I received this book through the BookLookBlogger program in exchange for my honest review.]