I must confess: way too many times I’ve contemplated the words of Ephesians 3:20-21 as to how they benefit me, how God will do things amazingly, exponentially beyond my imagination FOR ME.

Now I see that’s not what it says at all.

God works IN us and THROUGH us. He is able to accomplish exponentially more than we can imagine THROUGH us because His mighty power is IN us.

I mean, really, who could imagine that a group of twelve regular guys could stand up and share the story of Jesus to a crowd of people from all over the known world, speaking all different languages, and see over 3,000 of them (probably women and children added to that, too) accept God’s free gift of salvation? Seriously?

And for a couple guys who knew the Lord to walk past people sick and crippled and when only their shadows fell on those people, they were healed? NO WAY!?!

Have you spoken to another believer and had them say just the right thing to answer a question you didn’t even ask them? Yep. That’s God at work IN them to answer you THROUGH them.

While we like to think of what God is going to do FOR us, He thinks about what He can get done for the Kingdom THROUGH us.

It’s time for us to grow up some and realize that the Kingdom of God is not about pleasing or pampering us. It is all about glorifying God. Now, there are some really fantastic benefits – peace we can’t explain, abundant life we don’t deserve, grace we can’t earn, joy that is beyond words and more, but those are not God’s focus. His focus is on bringing lost sheep back into His fold – finding those with whom He does not have a relationship and bringing them into the salvation relationship with Jesus Christ, and He works IN us and THROUGH us to accomplish that. SO COOL!

Let’s try it today, thinking about how God can and will work IN us so He can work THROUGH us. Let’s drop the notion that His job is to bless and benefit us and simply enjoy when He does. (There’s a difference.)

Coffee, Bible, Journal.