Wanna Trade?

Remember being a kid and asking someone, "hey, wanna trade"? The question usually motivated by a belief that what the other kid had was better and fueled by a desire to have the better thing for self......

Been thinking recently about what we trade for something we believe is better for self.

What do you trade in order to get a good laugh, have a fun time, obtain some approval for self ( or at least the fleeting semblance of approval)?

What do you sacrifice in order to gain attention, be heard, look good, experience pleasure?

Is it the wisdom from above that you forfeit because foolishness is momentarily more fun?
Is it grace?
Is it obedience?
Is it lasting joy?
Is it your integrity?
Your purity of speech?
Is it the very likeness of Christ being formed in you - traded for some fleeting rubbish of self-pleasing pomp?

I asked myself these questions?
Then I asked myself this:

Is it worth it?

Purposeful vs. Permissable

Do you ask yourself, "Is there anything in the Bible forbidding this?"
or do you ask rather, "Is there a command, example, principle, sanction in God's word supporting this?"

There is a stark difference in these questions, and they reveal much about one's reverence for God's word.

The one question reveals a desire to merely avoid discipline or punishment....to know just what we can "get away" with. This is incomplete reverence.

The other question reflects a heart desire for God's glory....pursuing His pleasure over oneself to the fullest. It is focused on what is purposeful rather than what is merely permissable. It reveals a higher aim than just "staying out of trouble".

Every thought, activity, choice, relationship, joke, priority etc, should be brought under the governing rule of God's word not merely to see if it's "ok", but to determine it's neccesity and fruitfulness in regards to the highest aim - God's glory made evident in the lives of His people.