Love or Lust for God?

Article by: Russell Hoyt http://russellhoyt.com/2011/07/02/hidden-adventure/

Recently I discovered that I had lost my love for God. Its interesting how you can quickly become so task oriented, “Doing Spiritually,” and lose your true purpose. I have done a lot of questioning over the past two weeks and have found kernels in my burnt spiritual popcorn (bad analogy, one of many to come). First, loving God wasn’t my true motive in this relationship. The subtle difference between motive and motivation is key. See a relationship with God is like a relationship with another person. I had all the motivation to be in a relationship with God: my wife, my kids, my ministry, my sin, my fear, my hurt, but my motive was imply to solve my life problems. A relationship with God will only satisfy a person when they are seeking true love, not lust. To lust after God is simply to desire Him for what He can do for our lives and not who He is. Second, prayer must be primarily motivated by love it is, as the kids say, “An Epic Fail.” Seriously, have you ever spoken with someone, a salesman perhaps, who is only interested in your life and conversation because they want to sell something to your or ask for something in return for the conversation. I can’t stand people like that, but more and more I realize I am that type of person, particularly when it comes to God. God and I sit down and have a conversation about something or other, then I cut right to the chase, like a teenager asking to borrow the car, “Can I have it, can I have it?” In my limited life experience and past experiences with others, most people are dissatisfied with their “relationship” with God because He doesn’t seem to respond or is different. The reality is that if we treat God like the Divine vending machine all we will get is our money taken with no “Jesus Candy” in return.
Soluation: Love God with all your heart, mind, and strength.
How: Put him first in your waking moments, your hour, your day and lastly at night. Speak to Him out of a desire to be with Him and pray and hope that He is who He says He is, a loving Father who will care for your needs. Mention your needs to Him and that leave them alone, because if all you ask for is a house and keep asking for a house, all you will get is a house, when what you really need is God.

Let go and Let God!

"How many young  people, for example, hesitate to give their lives entirely to God because they do not have confidence that God is capable of making them completely happy.  And they seek to asure their own happiness by themselves and then make themselves sad and unhappy in the process. This is precisely the great victory of the Father of Lies,(satan): succeeding in putting into the heart of a child of God distrust vis-a-vis his Father!"
-From the beautiful words of Father Jacques Philippe

I wanted to write this post about surrendering completely to God, because I know so many, including myself, struggle  with it.   I think we all have to be reminded that God is thee ultimate, perfect and loving Father!  Our Father not only wants what's best for us, He Knows what's best for us.  So why aren't we completely trusting in our beautiful Father?
  It is doubt that the Father can truly take care of us.  It is the lies that are being whispered to you from satan telling you that if you surrender to God, He's going to let something happen that you don't want to happen.  So we tell ourselves that we can only let God in a little bit, and the rest of our lives is up to us to control.

These our words from Christ spoken through the mouth of Saint Catherine of Siena....
My Child,


"Why don't you have confidence in me, your creator?  Why do you rely on yourself? Am I not faithful and loyal to you? Redeemed and restored to grace by virture of the blood of my only Son, man can then say that he has experience my fidelity. And, nevetheless, he doubts it, it woul appear, that I am sufficiently powerful to help him, sufficiently strong to help and defend him against his enemies, sufficiently wise to illuminate the eyes of his intelligence or that I have sufficient clemency to want to give him whatever is necessary for his slavation.  It woulb appear that I am not sufficiently rich to make his fortune, not beautiful enough to make him beautiful; one might say taht he is afraid not to find enough bread in my home to nourish himself, nor clothing with which to cover himself.

So I think it's time to get know our Father a little more.  Know that you CAN trust Him with everything.  I think it's all time we Let go and let God!