Worth-y

There are words and phrases that Christians use so frequently we’ve become desensitized to them. They lose their meaning. Sometimes we fail to realize we’re even saying them.

That’s why I was so ecstatic a few months ago when the Lord breathed new life into the word “worthy.” We’ve all read about the worthiness of God in the Bible, and sung songs and prayed prayers about it. But I never quite “got it” until one day when I was listening to my iPod and heard these lyrics:

“Your love makes it worth it, your love makes it worth it all.”

That moment, it hit me: To say, “Lord, you’re worthy” is to say, “Lord, you’re worth it all.” If a picture is blurred, we say it’s blurry. If a road has bumps, it’s bumpy. Because God is worth it, he’s worthy.

In the past decade, I’ve learned that following God into the great unknown will sometimes cost you not just an arm and a leg, but also hands, feet, heart, money, energy, time, approval, and so on. In fact, I’m glad I wasn’t able to see beforehand what certain decisions in my life would cost me because I might well have backed down. Over the years I’ve lost sleep, security, friendships, and even my reputation because of choices I’ve made that were God-ordained. As a result of following God into difficult and frightening places, I’ve endured emotional pain so intense that I pray I never have to face anything like it again.

But would I do it all again? Was God worth it all? 

Yes! Without hesitation, at the top of my lungs, YES!  

• Maybe God is leading you to quit your job and start a business but your whole family will think you’re bonkers and you’ll lose your standing as the sensible one.
• Maybe he’s asking you to knock it off with the boyfriend and wait until you’re married but you’re not so sure you want to give up sex.
• Maybe he’s asking you to take care of your body by facing the sugar addiction head-on but you can’t even fathom the thought.
• Maybe he’s asking you to break off a destructive relationship but the idea of living a single hour without this person is terrifying. 

What would it cost you to follow God where he’s leading you?

Is he worth it?

Here's the song I was listening to that day. Wait for it... around 5:45.