Three Oranges: God's Will for EveryoneSample

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Growth stems from value

True growth comes from rightly valuing Christ above all else. What does growth look like? It means that I can visit a relative or a friend in a hospital and value Christ above knowing the answers to questions about illness and death. It means that I can place a higher value on a mission trip with my family than a grand vacation.

When you rightly value God, you can release your grip on things of lesser value. Your mind can be renewed to love differently. God can enlarge your heart, and teach you to love Him more.

I did this in a luxury hotel, where I was at a conference: I saw my beautiful room, and said, “Jesus, I love You more than wealth or comfort.” When I saw my name tag that read “speaker,” and was greeted by everyone I said, “Jesus, I love you more than notoriety and the attentions of men.” By declaring the higher value of Christ and my love for Him, I could fight the temptations of envy and pride. The more I discover and profess the indescribable value of the Savior, the more my love for Him grows.

What have you incorrectly valued that might be hampering your growth in Christ? A relationship? A job? Your performance? A special gift or skill? Growth will not occur in that area until your values are rightly aligned.

C. S. Lewis famously assessed our wrongly placed values when he said:

We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.¹

As you walk out the door to do life today, deliberately state your intent to value Christ over whatever else your heart may desire. When you see something that impedes your progress, something you naturally place a high value on, look at it dead in the eye, and say, “Jesus I love you more than______.” This love will find its way to action as your Bible becomes a prized possession and your prayers become conversations with God, instead of perfunctory repeats. When we do this, time spent with Him is joy, and pursuit of Him is a happy discipline.

Note

1. C. S. Lewis, “The Weight of Glory,” original sermon delivered in the church of St. Mary the Virgin, Oxford, June 8, 1942. Published in Theology, November 1941.