As narrow as our church walls.

On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to teach our women's bible study. We're currently going through "The Screwtape Letters." As with most of the chapters, there' usually a re-awakened conviction or something brought to light. I know that there was no coincidence that I taught that night because it truly hit home for me. The topic spoke of knowing of God, but being completely far away from him. This chapter focused on the little pleasures & vanities we excessively indulge in. Sure, those things are not evil in & of themselves, but when placed of higher importance than the Lord, we've got a surefire way to be distracted & wooed by the world. I won't be the last to admit that I've read that good book into the wee hours of the morning & never even opened up my bible. Or purposely didn't pray or do my devotions because there was a sin in my life that I felt guilty about.

In Chapter 12, Screwtape & Wormwood (the demon characters in the book) said that it was good that their "patient" was still going to church. As long as he never saw the true condition of his decaying faith, long as he was convinced that the bad decisions he was making were "trivial & revocable," then all was well. My friend Jenn stated, "Sometimes we think that the 'narrow' road is just as broad as our church walls, but I know that the way is much, much more narrow than that." Pastor Paul Washer's message came to mind.. he said that we gauge our holiness by the spirituality of whoever is around us. So we only become as holy as the person next to us, being fooled into thinking that we have a relationship with God, or that our faith is a fiery furnace.. when its truly just cold & dead w/o all the "catalysts" surrounding it. What a wonderful wake-up call to me, to us. God doesn't want lipservice, or drudgery.. as always, he just wants us. And everything will flow freely after.

Matthew 6:33 "Seek first the kingdom of God & his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."
1 Samuel 15:22 "So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams."