Running On Empty

A repost from my xanga...

So take a look at this picture:

You never miss a Sunday in church and you lead a Bible study every Friday. During the week, you work as a bagger at the grocery store. You frequently help older ladies cross the parking lot, even on your breaks. And because of conversations with the elderly patrons of the grocery store, you've started to visit the local nursing home every Tuesday that you have off. Because they know you're religious, they've even asked you to do the honor of blessing their meals, which you do with great satisfaction. Although you have memorized several chapters of the Bible and you're working on a few more, you feel empty. In the midst of all of your doing for God, you wonder what's missing.

Does the sounds familiar? Maybe not so much the working part, but do you feel like something is missing when you're trying to glorify Him in all you do? Sometimes?

You may have something in common with the Pharisees, the religious leaders of Jesus' day. The Pharisees did a lot of religious stuff too. They went to synagogue regularly. They observed the Sabbath. They prayed the most eloquent prayers. They followed the "Things Religious People Are Suppose to Do" list to a T.

And it bothered Jesus, "On the outside you appear to people as righteous, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness."-Matthew 23: 28.

Supposedly the Pharisees were doing things for God, but in the midst of all their doings, they missed God altogether; even when He was right in front of their faces. When it comes to putting our faith in action, sometimes there's a little Pharisee in us too. Agree? A.W. Tozer once wrote, "We have become so engrossed in the work of the Lord that we have forgotten the Lord of the work."

The key to honoring God is staying connected to Him...

"Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me... apart from Me you can do nothing." -John 15:4-5

Have you ever feel like you've been doing for God, but doing without Him? Or have you ever feel bitter when people don't respond to your actions with rave reviews? How about feeling grumpy and easily frustrated when doing things? Do all these things apply in your life?

If so, we need to step back from what we're doing and reset our focus on who God is and how much He loves us. "No matter what you say, what you believe, and what you do, you're bankrupt without love."