Weekly Thought – August 5, 2014
Fred took a dim view of superstition, religious or secular. “There is magic in believing if you don’t believe in magic” was his pithy summary. He held to a God of process who didn’t arbitrarily operate within a manmade system of blessings and curses.
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Flawed Thinking
Have you ever met anyone who thought the good and bad in their lives was a direct result of their present relationship with God? This is superstition, not spirituality. They have a misunderstanding of grace and works. It is God who saves and sustains. We cannot jump high enough to impress God.
Many times immature believers think they control the outcomes of their lives by being “God’s pet.” They are surprised to find He doesn’t raised spoiled brats! They claim during good times God is blessing them, but during bad times they are being disciplined. This is more superstition than faith.
Often they take the next illogical, unbiblical step and believe an abundance of good works will break the chain of bad. This is not what Scripture teaches.
The laws of nature and life apply to us all. The last time I looked, the rain still falls on the just and the unjust. When we attribute our situations to God’s favor or disfavor, we view the solutions unrealistically.
We toss off, “God is blessing me” too flippantly. Rarely do I hear someone say this when undergoing financial, health, or relational difficulties. This shows an immature understanding of God’s working in our lives and in our world. We highly value comfort and convenience and praise God when we experience ease. God has a bigger, better plan that serves to bring Him glory.
Great athlete, A.C. Greene says, “There are a lot of people who know what they should do in life, but don’t possess the inner power, the courage, and the guts to do it. I don’t want to be one of those people. My faith helps me keep things in perspective when things are going good, and stabilizes me when things are going bad.” He takes his faith as seriously as his basketball, and he knows that neither one depends on superstition.
This week carefully consider: 1) When do I slip into superstitious thinking? 2) How do I define God’s blessing? 3) What is my heart’s desire right now?
Words of Wisdom: “There’s magic in believing if you don’t believe in magic.”
Wisdom from the Word: “Stay alert, stand firm in the faith, show courage, be strong.” (1 Corinthians 16:13 NET Bible)