First Church of God

Don’t you love it when God gets your attention in some small but miraculous way?

Last night Candi and I spent some time with friends. Our discussion turned to "favorites". What are your five favorite movies? Your five favorite songs? Your top three Christian artists? Candi talked about James Taylor being one of her favorite, but someone commented that he is not a "Christian" singer. Her reply was that being at one of his shows is a spiritual experience.

The night went on, the conversation forgotten, until this morning when I opened a new book. "Healing Life’s Deepest Hurts," by Edward Smith.

His words from page 18… "I am afraid that much of what we call spiritual encounters with God are program-driven events, planned to create a pleasurable moment for the recipient. Yet, if our lives are not transformed, it is questionable as to whether we have had a genuine God experience. We can have a warm and nostalgic experience at a James Taylor concert. However, this cannot be said to be a spiritual moment. (Sorry baby boomers, this does not qualify as a God experience)."

I have to believe that God loves me enough to arrange all the details of our conversation and the word choices of Edward Smith just to get my attention. I’m not convinced that I cannot have a God-experience at a James Taylor concert, but I am convinced that God has gone to great effort to get my attention for a reason. I am excited to see what He has to say!