Personal Relationship or President of the Fan Club, Part 2

[The following is a repeat ... somehow, when I was trying to add song lyrics to the end of a previous blog post, it was deleted from the originally posted day.  I don't know exactly all the finer workings of a blog yet, but with some searching I was able to retrieve it, but it's not where it was before.  I apologize for any confusion -- it was posted the day after "Personal Relationship or President of the Fan Club?"]

On an earlier post. I brought up several things that I would like to expound on here, if you will humor me.  

If I were the President of Sandra Bullock's fan club, I might coordinate events where I would meet with other members of the club so we could study about Sandra Bullock.  We would all dress like her, talk like her, walk like her . . . we might even decide to go out and tell others about her.  I could be so busy being the president of the club that when the opportunity comes about for me to meet Sandra Bullock in person I miss it.  I totally flub the dub and miss the opportunity of meeting Sandra Bullock, miss getting to know her better, miss getting to become her personal friend.

Or, I could be so busy being the President of the Sandra Bullock Fan Club, that I begin to like being in the spotlight.  I mean, Sandra never comes around, so why should I work so hard just to promote her?  Why not also get some attention for myself?  The club members and I are the ones who are always there and spend out time, our money on promoting Sandra Bullock.  Shouldn't we get something out of this too?

Or, I could have met Sandra Bullock, spent time with her and gotten to know her a little bit.  But, then I felt like she wasn't all that I thought she was.  (She was!)  I didn't feel that she cared for me like I had cared for her.  (She did!)  I didn't think she paid me enough attention.  I didn't like the advice she gave me.  I was even jealous of all the attention that she was getting - attention that was being away from me.

Isn't that exactly what some of us do with Jesus?  We join a church, even become the Bible study teacher, the choir member, the WMU director, the Brotherhood director, the preacher, the preacher's wife . . . We get so busy doing things in the church, appearing like the perfect little Christian, that we neglect to actually meet with Jesus and accept His free gift - Himself.  We miss out when we fail to meet with Him, fail to get to know Him on a personal level.  We know all the Sunday school answers, tell others about Him, we can even quote Scripture, but we don't do the most important thing - get to know Jesus Christ personally for ourselves. 

We do what we believe to be Kingdom work, but when things don't go our way we begin to feel put out for all the work we do for Jesus.  We want to share in the spotlight.  We feel we deserve it.  We grow weary in doing good for others and feel we never get anything in return.  We don't feel that Jesus ever shows any gratitude for all that we've done for Him.  We don't know that it's not supposed to be about us.  It's supposed to be all about Him!

Or, maybe we join a Bible study because the facilitator is a friend of ours.  She wants us to come, so we do.  We enjoy the other people attending.  We meet Jesus and learn a little about Him.  We think we might trust in Him, but we're not real sure about that just yet.  We don't like all that He has to say to us, and we certainly  don't want Him telling us how to live our life away from the church!

What have you done with Jesus Christ?  Have you accepted Him as Lord and Savior?  Have you surrendered all taht you are and all that you have to Him?  He offers Himself to you, but just like you have to say yes to someone who proposes marriage to you, you have to say yes to Jesus!  You have to choose Him.  

"Not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord' 

will enter the kingdom of Heaven, 

but only he who does the will of 

my Father who is in Heaven.

Many will say to me on that day,

'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, 

and in your name drive out demons 

and perform miracles?' 

Then I will tell them plainly,

'I never knew you.  

Away from me,  you evildoers!'  Matthew 7:21-23

Going Through the Motions by Michael W. Smith

Actions have been justified

All is compromised

Looking for approval there

In someone else's eyes, oh

Dodging all you really are

Becomes your greatest task

Acting out your lonely part

You hide behind your mask

Never true to yourself

Knowing well this is not like you

Fooling yourself

You're just living a lie

Goin' goin'

Goin' thru the motions

Goin, goin

Goin thru the motions

Goin, goin

Goin thru the motions

Goin, goin

Goin thru the motions 

Victim of the circumstance

Prisoner of the shame

But it's the double standard life

That keeps you in the game

Taken by your own disguise

But when it's wearing thin

You'll do anything it takes

To impress your friends

Never true to yourself

This is not what you want to be

Fooling yourself

You're just living a lie

Goin', goin'

Goin' thru the motions

Goin', goin'

Goin' thru the motions

Goin, goin

Goin thru the motions