PLEASE GOD


From time to time people have asked me the question, "What does God want from me? What am I expected to do?" Surely, there are some things that God wants you to do, some rules that he wants you to live by. Most Christ-followers know about those Ten Commandments. But the question is, what does God most want from us? The writer of the book of Hebrews tells us in chapter eleven and verse six that, “It is impossible to please God without faith.” That's what God wants most from you. It is mentioned several times. Verse 2 “God gave his approval to people in days of old because of their faith.” Also in verse 5, “It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying ...Before he was taken, he was approved as pleasing to God.” Then in verse 7 it talks about Noah, “By his faith he condemned the rest of the world and was made right in God's sight.” Faith is the only way to please God. 
 
I heard a beautiful story recently. A couple was getting married. They were engaged for a few years, but last year the man went through some pretty serious setbacks. He lost his business and he lost his home; he's in debt up to his eyeballs. Something told him that he should call off the wedding, or at least postpone it until he was back on his feet. But there was one problem with this idea, he said. "I love her. I want to marry her." Finally, he sat down with her and said to her, "Two years ago I was ready to give you the world, but that's not possible now. I no longer have a beautiful home to offer. I can't even afford take you to McDonald's for a value meal. The only thing that I can give you is my love and my loyalty." She said to him, "What made you think I wanted anything else?" They're going to be married soon, and it looks like she'll be the chief breadwinner for awhile, and he's learned a lot about what a loving relationship is really all about.


The same can be said about our relationship with God, because faith and love walk hand in hand. That's what God wants from you. He wants you to believe in him. Not just to believe that a Supreme Being exists — almost everyone on the planet believes this, but it's not enough. He wants you to believe, to have faith, that he is who he said he is. 

God is the God of love. He wants you to love him, but you can't love him properly without faith. God is also a holy God. He wants you to obey him, but you can't obey him properly without faith. God is also a God of mercy. He wants to accept you as you are and he wants to help you become what you can be. But, you can't do this without faith in him. Faith is the starting point for a relationship with God.

Do you know what I've encountered in the church? Even among some pastors? Practical atheists. People who live their lives as if this material world is all there is. They may go through the motions of religious activity, but they don't live a daily, faith based connection with the God of the universe — and that's what God wants most. That's where your life in him begins.

I'm encouraging you to put more focus on your faith, now! Don’t wait because, your faith is the foundation of your relationship with God. I'm encouraging you to say, "God, I believe that you exist. I believe that you are the God you claim to be. And I'm willing to risk my life on it." 
 
You’ve got to nurture your faith. That's how you please God — by putting your faith in him. That's where your life begins. It's not optional; it's priority one. Faith is the only way to please God.

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