Discovering Your "Chazown" among Vacillating Values

I'm reading a great new book just out from Craig Groeschel, the pastor of LifeChurch.tv.  The book is called "Chazown" (which is kind of a weird title).  But actually, "chazown" is the Hebrew word meaning a dream, revelation, or vision.  The whole book is about discovering vision for your life from a biblical point of view.  I'm really enjoying it so far, and would recommend everyone that reads MMI grab a copy and read it... it fits right along alot of the things we discuss here.  Here, for example is a short section called "Vacillating Values".  Craig writes:

Living with integrity is hard.  The world tries to coerce you to adopt its values.  Don't forget your spiritual enemy loves to distract you from God's best.

But we're citizens of heaven.  God gives us the basis for our values.

If only we all truly believed that.

I recently experienced one of my most disturbing weeks in ministry.  I surveyed about fifty Christians, asking two questions.

First, I asked, "If money were no object, what would you do for the rest of your life?"

I fully expected answers such as: 

"I'd volunteer my time at the Crisis Pregnancy Center."

"I'd adopt children from a third-world country."

"I'd mentor young inner-city kids."

Sadly, the most common answers orbited around personal comfort.  Instead of Spirit-led, selfless responses, virtually everyone gave answers like:

"I'd quit working, buy a nice car, a new house, a boat."

"I'd travel."

"I'd hire people to help me around the house."

Then I asked, "Besides ministering to your family, what do you believe is the number one, most important thing God wants to accomplish through you?"  To their credit, the people were pretty honest.  But I found their most common answer heatbreaking.

It was "I don't know."

How dismaying!

Do we really think God sent His Son so our greatest life goal would be a new boat?  Do we think He created us uniquely and wonderfully, with all of our gifts and passions, so we wouldn't have to work another day in our lives?  Or even worse, just so we would stumble around for years, ignorant of our reason for existence?

And we wonder why we're so unfulfilled.

We say one thing -- we want God's best, for example, or we don't want to waste our lives -- but we do another.

What do you treasure?  What do you stand for?  What would you fight for?  What do you know is so important that you'll let go of everything else in order to grasp it?

God has put your personal core values deep in your heart.  They're there for a purpose, to help you aim for and hit the right target for your life. 

It's time to know exactly what they are.

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Amen, Craig.

I would encourage all of you to get a copy of this book and read it for yourself.  It's very challenging.

And, if you'd like to help support MMI in the process, just follow this link and order it from me.  :)  You'll get a great book, (at a discounted price) and also help support MMI!

Order your copy of Chazown now!

FOR DISCUSSION:  What is your chazown for your life and ministry?

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