One day a group of scientists got together and decided that man had come a
long way and no longer needed God. So they picked one scientist to go and
tell Him what they had decided.
The scientist walked up to God and said, “God, we’ve decided that we no
longer need you. We’re to the point that we can clone people and do many
miraculous things, so we don’t need you anymore.”
God listened very patiently and kindly to the man. After the scientist was
done talking, God said, “Very well, how about this? Let’s say we have a
man-making contest.” To which the scientist replied, “Okay, great!”
But God added, “Now, we’re going to do this just like I did back in the old
days with Adam.”
The scientist said, “Sure, no problem,” and bent down and grabbed himself a
handful of dirt.
God looked at him and said, “No, no, no. You have to go get your own dirt!”
This is a cute joke, but it had me thinking. How many times in our lives do we act like the scientist? I don’t mean to ask if there are ever any times we intentionally “talk back” to God. What I’m asking is…are there any areas of our lives where we let pride get the best of us to the point where we start thinking that we can do it all on our own? Do we ever inadvertently tell God exactly what the scientist told God in that joke – that we don’t need Him anymore?
Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.’ The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” – Jeremiah 17:5-9
The truth is, we need to fully surrender to God in ALL areas of our lives. Scripture doesn’t just say that we can’t “excel” without Christ. It says that apart from God, we can do NOTHING.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. – John 15:4-5
So in what areas do we tell God “I don’t need you anymore?” Is it in your finances? Work? Family? Relationships? Illnesses? Whatever it be, surrender it to God and remember to Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. – Proverbs 3:5
Erin Culleny serves as a Marketing Assistant and Staff Writer. She loves encouraging women through her Victory Calls and finds such joy in praying for her sisters in Christ. Her favorite activities include reading her Bible, encouraging others with scripture, buying new makeup, buying dresses, and eating at the Cheesecake Factory… In that order!