The Giver

During our time in India, a question Jeff and I have come back to often is this: Do I love the gifts or the Giver more? Sometimes we can get so consumed with what we want…our house, our jobs, our comfort, our kids, our life…but in the end… if we have God, that should be enough.

Slow down for a moment. Breathe deep. Sit with these words from Augustine. May his prayer rest in your soul like it did ours:

For You, O Lord my God, are above all things the best. You alone are most high, You alone most powerful. You alone are most sufficient and most satisfying, You alone most sweet and consoling. You alone are most beautiful and loving. You alone most noble and glorious above all things. In You is every perfection that has ever been or ever will be. Therefore, whatever You give me besides Yourself, whatever You reveal to me concerning Yourself, and whatever You promise, is too small and insufficient when I do not see and fully enjoy You alone. For my heart cannot rest or be fully content until, rising above all gifts and every created thing, it rests in You.

Our pastor from California, Francis Chan, wrote this in his book Crazy Love, “Do you believe that God is the greatest thing you can experience in the whole world?...Are we in love with God or just His stuff?... Do you love this God who is everything, or do you just love everything He gives you?”

May we love Him alone and desire the Giver above all else.