The Awe of Our Position- Day 1

Marriage is a foundational relationship given to man. However, there is a greater relationship, more intimate and essential than the gift of marriage. It is one that every person on the planet is in, whether they realize, or recognize, it or not. It is the relationship with our Creator God through His Son Jesus Christ.

After all, marriage, based on Ephesians 5:33, is to model this relationship and affection to the world so that we might better understand how we relate to our Savior. So, consider the next 40 days as a love dare, not for your spouse (though I know it will enhance your relationship… it will and must if this challenge is to be truly completed), but for the Lord Jesus Christ. It will be radical; Christ’s love was. It will be challenging; Christ’s commitment was. It will be meaningful; Christ’s purpose was.

We begin this journey by stopping to realize that the Creator of all things, the Sovereign God, desires a relationship with us. How many times do we think about the awe of that fact? World religions abound which desperately toil to "bind back" man to his god; as if that god were residing in a heavenly home, satisfied to distance itself from us unless we are one of the few who are able to attract its attention by our devotion and sacrifice.

Yet, the God of Scripture is not so. God has revealed that He created us with the intention and promise of an eternal relationship with Him. He began in creation, forming us in His very own image, placing us in an authoritative position over the created order to rule and reside as His ambassadors on earth. But beyond this, John 17:3 states that humanity is to seek eternal life which is described as knowing the Father and the Son He has sent! These same principles drive the psalmist to pen those famous words, "What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?" Psalm 8:4.

Challenge: As the new year has begun, carve out time today to be reminded of the wonder and awe that comes knowing that God truly does desire to know us and be known by us. Commit today to reading Psalm 8 and delighting in the special position that God has uniquely placed us.


NOTE: As my senior pastor preached last Sunday, I have committed to focusing more attention on my main blog page, bjdonahue.blogspot.com, using it to write a daily thought on our 2009 daily Bible readings. I hope as time allows to add pages to this site as well. The premise is wonderful and very challenging. It is an adventure that I still desire to take.

A Humble Beginning

This project had it's genesis in the "Love Dare" book as I worked through its chapters. It was around the eighth day that I realized the focus of this book could be broadened from its emphasis on marriage (which I highly respect and appreciate) to the even more fundamental human relationship, the one with our God.

Not all of us are in a marriage situation. However, everyone in the Church is in the covenantal relationship to which marriage points us, an intimacy with Christ. My intention for this blog is to challenge specifically my home church, as well as anyone else who might be willing to take the journey, to a committed love affair with their Lord. It will follow the same structural layout as the Love Dare book, giving a devotional thought followed by a specific action which challenges the individual to put into practice the thoughts of that day.

I will be the first to say that this adventure may or may not get off the ground. I am planning to launch the site Jan 1 of 2009, in conjunction with a sermon I will be preaching on December 28th at my church in Northern Kentucky.