So What, Now What? This was the question my campus minister, Doug asked each time he introduced us to a new concept in college, “So what, now what?” In other words;
“If this is what ___________(any particular idea or concept) means, then what do I do about it?”
It has become a powerful tool in my life for framing the active response that I believe God is looking for in our lives. I will be using it to help us move from just thinking about truth to living it. And, YES, I did just say “us” and I mean it! As a person, I am not finished. I am a flawed, broken, and still growing follower of Christ (as anyone who has to interact with me regularly can tell you!)
SOoo, So What, Now What? We see in the Bible that God is the initiator in our relationship with Him, so how do we demonstrate our love back to Him? What do you think? What are ways that we show God that we love him? (This is a great moment to sit back and reflect.)
God has shown us how he loves us by writing us a love letter, actually it’s an EPIC. The best-selling EPIC of all time, in fact. Now, the Bible is not just action and adventure and romance, though there’s plenty of that, and it’s not just poetry, though there’s lots of poetry too. It’s full of instruction, and visions, and clear direction embedded in a story of God’s relationship with His chosen people, the apex of which is the coming of God Himself. The Bible is a gift given out of the most powerful and enduring love that there has ever been.
In the Bible, God tells us that we are to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength; every bit of ourselves. He tells us that He desires steadfast love. That He is looking for a real relationship, not the outward motions, but hearts oriented toward Him, true love, built to withstand the reality of REAL life.
He tell us in the book of Zephaniah that He rejoices over us with singing. That HE loves us so much that He gave His only son, the son who laid down His life for us and then took it back up again! Bottom Line: HE LOVES US. How do I know? Because in the immortal words of a children’s hymn, “This I know, for the Bible tells me SO!”
Tomorrow, on the first day of the 2018, when everything is shiny and new, let's embrace some radical resolutions that don't usually make it onto the list.