It's not because it's a boring chapter, but because none of us know how long we will live. James writes (4:14b) "you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." God knows the number of our days (Psalm 139:16): "Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Is it easy to take our lives for granted? I get up and go to work every day just like I expect it, like I'm not thankful for breath. Do I not realize that someday my life will end? And that it could be at any moment?
According to Francis Chan "worry implies that we don't quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what's happening in our lives." Do you believe that? I know when I worry, I focus on myself. I focus on what's going to happen to me and how I can avoid negative outcomes. Why don't I focus on God instead? I should focus on Him and know that He will take care of everything according to His purpose. Matthew 10:29-31 says "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." Francis also says stress is basically a lack of trust in God also. I think of stress as worry multiplied by time.
I love Francis' description of the movie. He says how I have a two-fifths-of-a-second scene in the whole movie of life and reminds us that its God's movie. What do you think of that story? It reminds me that life is not about me. Like Rick Warren writes in The Purpose Driven Life, "It's not about you." He ends the section, "The point of your life is to point to Him. Whatever you are doing, God wants to be glorified, because the whole thing is His. It is His movie, His world, His gift." Let's ask ourselves, "how can our lives point to God?"
Summary Questions:
- Is it easy to take our lives for granted?
- Do you agree that worry is basically a lack of trust in God?
- What do you think of the movie Francis describes?
- How can our lives point to God?
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