Who Is Your Source?

The Fallen Pyramid vs. the Fruitful Pyramid

After the fall, Adam and Eve became the ‘source’ of meeting their needs. They did not trust God anymore so they stopped coming to Him as their ‘Source.’ They started looking out for #1. They needed something from each other, but they were too selfish to share.

Dr. Crabb says that married couples who don’t love each other with God’s love are “two ticks with no dog.” I love that. What a great picture of couples futilely trying to ‘love’ each other without giving. The essence of love is ‘giving,’ not getting. For God so loved the world that He GAVE…

Let’s get to the pyramids.

The Fallen Pyramid

The foundation of this pyramid: I do NOT trust God.

God is the only Source who can meet my needs. If I do not trust God, and I refuse to go and get my needs met from Him, then I need YOU, not God, to meet my needs.

Since you cannot meet my needs because you don’t have it in you, I get mad at you when I can’t manipulate you to do what I ‘need’ you to do. As a matter of fact, I hate you.

When I hate you, the devil tells me what a lousy Christian I am. He tells me there has to be something wrong with me, or else you would meet my needs. Then I begin to hate me for being such a louse.

At this point, I come to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action. What am I going to do?

Am I going to throw myself on the mercy of God and go back to trusting Him as my ‘Source, or am I going to try harder to control and manipulate you?

If I don’t go back to trusting God, I just have to try to survive my way. And here’s how I will do it. I will become a master people-pleaser. I will try other tactics in order to coerce you into meeting my needs. And the cycle starts all over again.

The Fruitful Pyramid

When I get tired of beating my head against the wall trying to survive on my own, I decide to go back and start trusting God as my ‘Source’ to meet my needs. I take Him at His Word.

And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19 NIV).

In Christ, I have no needs. He IS everything I need. I need nothing outside of Him. Since He has no needs, and I am ONE with Him, then I have no needs either.

Now I don’t need you to meet my needs. Now I can love you. I can release you to live free apart from my control and manipulation.

Love is freedom. If you choose not to meet my needs in my way, I’m still okay. All my needs are met in Jesus.

Now do you understand why you cannot love someone from whom you need something?

Here is how the Fruitful Pyramid plays out:

I trust God as the ‘Source’ of all my needs. I need nothing from no one but Him. Then, and only then, am I free to love you. I don’t need you anymore. I now love you.

If you choose not to meet my needs in the way I want, I still accept you. I don’t hate you. I accept you as God accepts me… unconditionally.

But sometimes, the ‘flesh’ overcomes me, and I start to fall back on being my own ‘source’ for my needs. When that happens, instead of hating myself for being such a lousy Christian, I examine myself.

“Kenny, why are you frustrated? Have you stopped trusting God? Are we back to being the ‘source’ of meeting our needs? We better run to the Lord and tell Him. Then we need to get back to allowing Him to live His life in us, through us, for us, and as us.”

Instead of trying to survive, I surrender. I tell the Lord that He is God, and I am not. Here is how I do that.

“Lord, I’m returning the stool of my heart back to you, its rightful owner. Please take care of my needs for me. Go back to loving people in me, through me, for me, and as me. Thank You, Lord.”