Why did I wait so long to visit the Grand Canyon? I finally went last month and took the pictures on a hike down from the south rim. I took lots of pictures, but as cliche as it sounds, it's true, "pictures don't do it justice." But they are all I have for illustration, so it will have to do.
“This is shocking. The love of God is not God's making much of us, but God's saving us from self-centeredness so that we can enjoy making much of him forever. And our love to others is not our making much of them, but helping them to find satisfaction in making much of God. True love aims at satisfying people in the glory of God. Any love that terminates on man is eventually destructive.”1
Later, he summed it up: “Nobody in this room would go to the Grand Canyon to increase your sense of self-esteem. Nobody stands on the edge of the Alps or the Rockies or the Grand Canyon in order to go there to feel better about ourselves. Do you know why you go there? Because you were written to be satisfied with splendor, not self. You were created and a law written on your heart to be infinitely, eternally, fully, joyfully satisfied in a grand splendor not a great self. I plead with you lay it down. Lay down your quest for the applause of men, the approval of men, and begin to get on a quest for the one thing that will satisfy your soul -- the splendor of Jesus Christ and all that God is for you in him. I just plead with you for your own soul's infinite happiness that you will stop pursuing it in the wrong place … We have an invincibly triumphant savior - Jesus Christ. Don't turn away from him to yourself. Don't want praise for you; give praise to him. Know him; he'll satisfy you.”2
1“The Goal of God’s Love May Not Be What You Think It Is,” Dallas Morning News, October 14, 2000.
2 Piper, “Thankful for the Love of God! Why?” November 18, 2001. Both articles available from Desiring God Ministries
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3 Comments:
I still remember how awestruck I was by the Grand Canyon when I went almost 30 years ago. It had not been at the top of my list of places to visit - desert brown rock was what I expected to see. It absolutely blew me away. How anyone can go there and not worship God is beyond my comprehension.
Yet another example of Romans 1:20!
T~cool shots!
never been there!
did ya get any sunrise or sunset pictures? they say it is something too see! :)
Ive never been there, always wanted to go. Maybe one day. Richard from the Amish settlement of Lebanon,Pa
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