My Goal is God, Himself

I put this up every single day on my blog. It's over there on the sidebar in the section labeled "Thoughts." It is my suspicion that we have a tendency to come to ignore things that occur every single day, and this particular concept has been growing in importance and intensity in my thinking, so I'm borrowing it from the sidebar there and placing it right here for you to review.

My goal is God, Himself.
Not joy or peace or even blessing,
but Himself, my God.
'Tis His to lead me there --
not mine, but His.
By any road, dear Lord,
at any cost. - Francis Brook

We (Christians) need this mindset. Too many of us are "foxhole Christians" bartering with God. "If You will do this for me, I'll follow You." And when He doesn't, we're mad. An illness, the death of a loved one, a stubbed toe, any "setback" can trigger us. We think, albeit not likely consciously, of God as our "butler" -- our "genie" -- whose job it is to make us comfortable and happy. As long as He does that, we'll follow.

In Lamentations where the prophet Jeremiah bemoaned the tragedy of the enslavement of his people, he complained about God (Lam 3:1-20). Long and loud. "My endurance has perished," he says. "So has my hope from the LORD" (Lam 3:18). But hope hasn't perished. "But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope" (Lam 3:21). Where, in all this suffering, does he find hope?

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in Him." (Lam 3:22-24)

That is what Francis Brook said above. That is the critical key. If we seek pleasure or comfort or painlessness or other things from God, we will lose hope. If God is our portion, our point, our aim, our singular joy, then we cannot lose hope. Because we cannot lose Him. The daily process of cutting off our commitment to self-indulgent pleasures in place of God-indulgent confidence is hard, but it is necessary. It goes against normal human thinking, but it is approved by the Maker of the human. When He becomes my highest joy -- He alone -- then nothing else can shake us. And the route He takes to get us there is not a problem. "By any road, dear Lord, at any cost." Is God enough for you?