Living In The Vision of God

Okay, so I'm still reading Dallas Willard's The Great Omission (and getting to read it a lot, as my kids have been in Texas for the last week!), and I came across the strangest statement. He is actually quoting Henri Nouwen, who said, "Nothing conflicts with the love of Christ like service to Christ." Wow. He goes on to explain that well-meaning service to God has a very strong tendency to undermine the kind of vision of God that fuels greatness for God on the human scene.

He explains the pattern he has seen in so many churches and organizations: Intense devotion to God by the individual or group brings substantial outward success. Outward success brings a sense of accomplishment and a sense of responsibility for what has been achieved - and for further achievement. For onlookers the outward success is the whole thing. The sense of accomplishment and responsibility reorients vision away from God to what we are doing and are to do - usually to the applause and support of sympathetic people. The mission increasingly becomes the vision. It becomes what we are focused upon. The mission and ministry is what we spend our thoughts, feelings, and strength upon. Goals occupy the place of the vision of God in the inward life, and we find ourselves caught up in a visionless pursuit of various goals. Grinding it out. This is the point at which service to Christ replaces love for Christ (95).

I think this describes what I have experienced in several churches. I'm wondering if anyone else has seen this pattern at work or has experienced it firsthand? Is it unavoidable? If not, how do we not lose the vision of God and God alone?

Dallas Does It Again...

I love every book that Dallas Willard has written, but his newest, The Great Omission, is wreaking me. It always amazes me how God uses books to teach and transform me. Today, I was reading chapter two and it tapped into something I had already been contemplating... the idea of power. God's power. I have become increasingly aware of how often I live in my own power despite my desire to live only in God's power.

Dallas writes, "Jesus is actually looking for people he can trust with his power... but only constant students of Jesus will be given adequate power to fulfill their calling to be God's person for their time and their place in the world. They are the only ones who develop the character which makes it safe to have such power" (16-17). I realized as I read this that I have been asking for the power without wanting to pay the price of discipleship. I deeply long to be God's person full of his power, and I am humbled at the thought that perhaps I haven't yet developed the character that makes it safe have that power.

Yesterday, one of my kids did not want to go to bed and declared that he wanted to be the parent so he could stay up late. Cam told him that that would be just fine, and he proceeded to list all of the responsibilities of a parent. "Never mind," my son interjected, and off he marched to bed. Why do we always want the power and privilege without the preparation? My prayer today is for the grace to remain a "constant student" of Jesus... one day at a time.