The I-FactorSample

While I was writing this book, a school of thought became extremely popular in the Christian world. Its main tenets assert that God does not see the sins people commit, that confession is unnecessary, and that repentance is a form of legalism. Its goal, apparently, is to make Christianity easy. It allows for behaviors and excesses that traditional orthodoxy views as unbiblical, and it portrays God only as a supreme being who wants life to be fun and free from any kind of discipline or difficulty. Although I realize many people are attracted to this movement, its theology focuses too much on certain aspects of the gospel message, such as God’s great grace and abundant mercy, while completely ignoring others, such as the need for acknowledgment, confession, and repentance of sin. This kind of thinking results in an unbalanced view of God and a faulty view of what a healthy, thriving relationship with God ought to be. I mention this because any time people view God as a cosmic feel-good machine, they miss out on a rich and vital aspect of His love. You may be thinking, What? Isn’t God’s love all about helping me feel better? Not really. God’s love is about helping you be better—helping you become a stronger, wiser, more compassionate, more whole person equipped to fulfill His great plans for your life. . . . Sometimes the best thing that can happen to us is something we would describe as painful or difficult. This is because problems and crises are often God’s chosen tools to develop character in us. When He allows these situations in our lives, it’s not only to build our character, but also to build our character so we are equipped for the next level of destiny and greatness He has for us. I’m convinced your best days are ahead of you, not behind you. I know this because 1 Corinthians 2:9 says, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him” (NLT). You can be sure God has prepared great things for you, things so good you cannot even imagine them. Those things are prepared for you, so the question becomes: Are you prepared for them? In other words, are you ready to handle the wonderful opportunities that are in store for your life? Do you have the wisdom, the maturity, and the character you need to steward them well?