Let This Mind Be in You

I've designated my 25-30 minute morning drive to work as time to listen to preaching. I justified the purchase of my iPod back in December by telling myself it would profit me as a person. And it has. I asked friends for names of speakers they listen to, and I picked up some of my own.

My podcasts include some of the following preachers:

1. Andy Stanley
2. Mark Dever
3. Francis Chan
4. Tim Keller
5. Matt Chandler
6. Mark Driscoll

Don't run away just because Driscoll is on that list! :) I don't agree with everything every preacher does or says, but that doesn't make everything they say completely nullified.

The one I've been listening to the most lately is Tim Keller, mostly because his sermons just recently became available on iTunes. I have been trying to read his book, The Reason for God, but I've struggled to get into it. After listening to a few of his sermons, I have a better feel for him as a speaker/author, so I'll have to get back into the book soon.

Tim Keller hit a list of things that really struck me as amazing and helpful. As I googled, I found these things seem to be the theme of his book, Counterfeit Gods, so perhaps I'll have to grab that book. In one of his sermons---actually, he mentions this in a couple---he talked about four things that people base their lives on. These are the four things:

Comfort
Approval
Control
Power

For most people, these are the driving forces in every area of our lives. He pointed out that Jesus relinquished all of these things to be our Sacrifice. Keller also mentioned the opposite spectrum of these things. I cannot remember his words, but I will guess they were similar to this list:

discomfort
disapproval
lack of control
weakness

Keller's point was this: We should not seek either list, nor do we deny either list. That was ground-breaking for me. I would think that in order to shun the first list, you'd have to seek the second. Keller said not to deny the first list, but to be suspect of those things. He said, don't seek the second list, but _____ them. I can't remember the word he used, and I wish I could because it was so fitting. I can't retell it the way he explained, but it was along the idea of being okay with these things when they happen, knowing glory goes to God in all things.

In most decisions I make, I seek comfort, approval, power, and definitely control. I struggle to relinquish those things in my life. I feel like I was taught to reach for discomfort and disapproval to gain a godly life, but this isn't true either.

Lord, whatever place I find myself, may I be suspect of my reasoning for the good things I seek, and understanding of the difficult things that cross my path.