Have our own kingdoms

It is so true that many of us want to give our hearts to God and worship Him and to feel His presence in our lives... but... we want to do it in our own way. We want Him to come into our lives and for the Holy Spirit to guide us and give us direction, but only when it fits into the plan that we have made for our lives. We want Him to guide us so long as that means we do everything perfect, free of any mistakes or problems. We want Him to give us gifts so long as they are better and more convenient than everyone elses. We gladly welcome the special talents that God gives us so long as they benefit us and we don't have to use them to help others. We want to "hear from God" so long as He doesn't ask us to do something that makes us uncomfortable. Essentially, we all want to have our own kingdoms.

I'm not writing this so that anyone who reads this will be full of guilt and self-condemnation, instead I am writing this to point out the truth of how many of us, myself included, are living our lives whether we realize it or not. It is time for us to stop giving God our lip service and instead give Him not only our hearts, our minds, but also our lives. It is time to work to build His kingdom and stop building our own in His name. It is time to except the gifts God has given us and use them to bless those who are meant to be blessed with them. It's time to stop figuring out how we can use our gifts and talents to serve ourselves and instead start serving others with them. It's time we start thinking about others first rather than ourselves. It's time to lay it all down before the King and to ask Him what we can do to advance His kingdom. As Jason Upton sings, it's time to "lay it all down for the heart of Heaven."

What I find so fascinating is that we live in a country that was founded by people who were chasing hard after God and His kingdom, however, somehow over the centuries our country has gone from one based on God's laws to one that now publicly rejects those laws for fear of being politically incorrect. In the New England Confederation of 1643, the Pilgrims stated: “We all came to these parts of America, with one and the same end and aim, namely, to advance the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Yet today, our country insists on seperating church and state, even to the point of not allowing kids to bring their bibles to public school. Our country is on a very dangerous path right now which makes it increasingly important that we as Christians take a stand and make sure that the body of Christ is working together for the glory of God, not for themselves. If my people, who are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV)

Burning In The Sky Lyrics by Jason Upton
Youve been too long upon this mountain
Its time you journey to the sea
Sometimes to trust in your false comfort
Is easier than trusting me
Some men only believe in what their eyes can see
Some men only believe in what their minds conceive
But believing's like conceiving
This child that were receiving
A gift beyond our reason
Its more of what we need, and less of what we know
It calls not to our mind, but cries out to our soul
That mountains burning in the sky
To the heart of heaven
Without the fire well never fly
To the heart of heaven
Can you hear Gods holy cry
From the heart of heaven
Lay it all down
Lay it all down
Lay it all down
For the heart of heaven