“How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain
the praise that comes from the only God?”
John 5:44
Too often we believe the lies we are told. We believe that we are “no good” and worthless. Jesus says, “Not so. I came to show you that you are more than you think you are.” You are the image of God.
God always sees what men and women only look at. In a manger, God saw a King…in a servant, a Savior…in a sacrifice, salvation… in a crucifixion, a resurrection. In death, God was working at life; in defeat, He was looking at victory. What you or I, or your country or my country, looks like is not what God sees. God looks beyond the surface to the potential deep within. That is God’s way of thinking about everything. Beyond the immediate troubles God sees success, and He continues to call it forth until what He sees becomes reality.
Remember that the seed of every tree is in the fruit of the tree. That means the blessings of the Third World nations are in the Third World nations, and the prosperity of America is in America. When we become concerned about our individual lives or the corporate life of our countries, we come up with all kinds of schemes and plans to solve the problem. But the answer is not in a multitude of systems and programs. The answer is right inside of us. It’s our attitudes that make the difference. No one can make you rowdy or careless or thoughtless. You are rowdy and careless and thoughtless because you choose to be. So stop it! Stop being rowdy…stop being careless…stop being thoughtless. Only you can control how you act. You’ve got the potential to be considerate and sensitive.
God looks beyond the surface to the potential deep within
