Who's Pushing Your Cart?

These days, when we talk about offerings, we mean donations to a church. If we give money or time to a charity or cause, we just call it a donation. The word has been reduced to a euphemism. The Old Testament has a lot to say about what, where, how and why we need to make offerings to God. The New Testament simplifies and clarifies it to a few verses.

“When Christ came into the world, he said to God, ‘You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings. But you have given me a body to offer.’” (Heb.10:5 NLT)
A body to offer…we are to give of ourselves; not ten percent of ourselves, but complete, unconditional surrender.

Yet, we are reluctant to surrender completely because we want to retain some control over our life. There is a misperception that when we hold back a little part of ourselves from God, we still retain a handle on things.  In truth, we are never in control. Either we hand our lives completely to God, or we hand over the reins to other forces. 
 
“Everybody eventually surrenders to something or someone. If not to God, you will surrender to the opinions or expectations of others, to money, to resentment, to fear, or to your own pride, lusts, or ego.” (from--The Purpose Driven Life, by Rick Warren)
When my son was a toddler, he used to like to ride in these car-shaped grocery carts.

 

Kids could get in the car and pretend to drive, while the parent pushed the whole thing around while grocery shopping. I’m pretty sure my son thought that the whole purpose of our shopping trip was for him to amuse himself on these contraptions, while, in reality, it was to gather provisions for our family. 

 

Our bodies, our lives, are similar to these plastic cars attached to a shopping cart. We think the main purpose of this journey is to enjoy ourselves. But God’s agenda is to provide and care for His whole family. Just like the kid in the cart, we think we are controlling where we are going. But someone is always pushing us. If it isn’t our parent, then it’s probably a stranger with malicious intent. If God, our Father, isn’t the driving force behind us, then we are in trouble.

 

Look back and see who is pushing your cart. Trust me, you aren’t driving this contraption.