The Nutri-God Lie

If you watch the sales ads, you’ll notice a theme this month: sales abound for workout clothes, exercise equipment, juicers, and blenders. If you made a New Year’s resolution to lose weight, gain muscle, get limber, or just get healthy, now’s your chance to buy all the tools necessary to get you there!

One of those typical sales items is the Nutri-Bullet. Robby’s mother got me one of these a couple years ago for Christmas. It’s designed to easily chop and blend veggies, and you can even drink right out of the mixing container so you don’t have to dirty multiple dishes. It’s brilliant!

Although I love my Nutri-Bullet, I don’t use it every day. I don’t want it to get dusty or in the way, so I don’t keep it out on the counter. It’s really handy, though, so I store it in a cabinet, within easy reach.

 

The Nutri-God

 

I get the feeling that most of us treat God like a Nutri-Bullet.

 

The Excitement

We get so excited about the gift of salvation God has given us (especially around Christmas time).

Wow! You did this for me?

We tell people about Him.

I got the best gift ever! You should get some of this!

 We make plans to incorporate God in our daily lives.

I’m going to get the most out of this every single day!

 

The Problem

We have good intentions. But, come January, life happens, and all our goals and plans – even those concerning God – take a back seat.

We begin to treat God’s Word like the little cookbook that comes with the Nutri-Bullet.

I’ll look at that tomorrow, when I’m in the mood. Besides, I don’t need that right now.

We begin to feel like God is actually getting in the way of things.

 I can do this easier on my own. I don’t really need Him for this.

 We get self-conscious of having “too much” God around.

 I don’t want my friends to feel uncomfortable when they come over. Maybe they’re not as “into this” as I am.

 We don’t even realize the moment when we first put God away, out of sight and out of mind.

Where is that peace I need today? I think I put it here somewhere….

 

The Lie

The enemy wants us to believe his lies:

• All we need to do is “incorporate” God into our lives. There’s no need to go overboard.
• It’s OK to pull God into our situation, ask Him questions, and use Him as we need to.
• When we’ve got what we need, we can just clean up the evidence and stow God safely away – close enough to reach again in the future, but out of the way, and hidden from view.
• Certainly, God should never get between us and our dreams, and He shouldn’t interfere with our lives as we want to live them.
• Since “God is love,” He’s OK with this plan. Like the Nutri-Bullet, He’s here to serve.

Those are all lies.

 

The Truth

God’s truth is so much better:

• Our purpose is to serve God. (Exodus 20:5)
• The Word of God is the power to save. (1 Corinthians 1:18)
• The Word of God is living, active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing into the soul and spirit. (Hebrews 4:12)
• Everything we do should be in the name of Jesus. (Colossians 3:17)
• We should be obedient to God’s will, and our actions should be holy. (1 Peter 14-16)
• We should (and can) rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks for God’s will no matter what the situation is. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

This short list doesn’t even scratch the surface, but it does help put a few things in perspective.

 

The Encouragement

God does not exist to serve us; we exist to serve Him. Therefore, we should not attempt to incorporate Him into our lives but, instead, should surrender our lives to Him.

I want to encourage you, as we dive into a new year, to continue to learn more about God and His will for your life. Resist the urge to treat God like your personal Nutri-Bullet. Take God off the shelf and out of the cabinet. Make Him the focus of your life this year and every year.