Complacency Kills Any Relationship

you can't be complacent in relationships.

A.W. Tozer talks about complacency and too much religiosity in Chapter 1 of The Pursuit of God. Here are my reading and reflection notes on the Chapter.

Marked:

• How tragic that we in this dark day have had our seeking done for us by our teachers. Everything is made to center upon the initial act of “accepting” Christ (a term, incidentally, which is not found in the Bible) 
• The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire.
• Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth.

Thoughts:

• Complacency kills any relationship. When you are complacent, you are falsely satisfied. You become lazy with the situation. You don't put in the efforts to deepen the relationship.
• Important relationships need efforts. You need to put in the time for meaningful communication and togetherness. You can't be complacent if the relationship is to grow stronger.
• Instant prayer books, instant devotional books… this is the trend. Supplementary works created by others have great value but we must never abandon our own studies and discoveries of God and His Word.
• Moses (Exod 33) has already seen and discovered things about God more than any man during his day, yet he knew it wasn’t enough. He longed to know God more.
• The apostle Paul (Philippians 3) understood that knowing Christ and being intimate with Him is the ultimate pursuit and reward in this life. Nothing was more important. Nothing was more valuable than Christ in his life.
• Solomon’s realization in Ecclesiastes 12:12-14 comes to mind:“But beyond these, my son, be warned: there is no end to the making of many books, and much study wearies the body. When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is: fear God and keep His commands, because this is for all humanity. For God will bring every act to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.

At the end of all things:

• This life is not all there is.
• All the negatives will pass.
• All the positives are temporary perks.
• What’s lasting is in the after, in the eternal.
• What counts is a life lived for God.
• What’s most valuable is God’s commendation and reward.

Marked:

• The shallowness of our inner experience, the hollowness of our worship and the servile imitation of the world testify that we know God only imperfectly, and the peace of God scarcely at all. 
• Right now we are in an age of religious complexity. The simplicity which is in Christ is rarely found among us. In its stead are programs, methods, organizations and a world of nervous activities which occupy time and attention but can never satisfy the longing of the heart.
• If we would find God amid all the religious externals, we must first determine to find Him. We must simplify our approach to Him.  We must put away all effort to impress, and come with the guileless candor of childhood.

Thoughts:

• Ministry is not the ultimate pursuit.
• Neither is Intellectualism.
• Relationship is.
• Too little or too much religiosity, there is danger on both ends.

How do we come to a balance?

By pursuing God.

1. Because, when we can’t get enough of Him, then we won’t be happy with too little.

2. Because. when we see that ultimately, He is all that matters, and that the time and efforts we have are best spent on the pursuit of God, then we won’t bother with too much religiosity.

photo credit to: photomix-company