Are You Self-centered or God-centered?

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES The Life You Were Meant To Live

Are You Self-centered or God-centered? By Rick Warren — Oct 17, 2016 “Instead of worrying, pray .... It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life” (Philippians 4:6-7 MSG). What will be the center of your life? In other words, who or what are you going to live for? There are a lot of options. You can center your life around a career, a sport, a hobby, making money, or having fun. There’s nothing wrong with any of these things. They’re all fine, but they all make a lousy center for your life. You need something at the center of your life that is absolutely unchanging, that can never be taken away from you. Because if it can, you will lose your security. You will always be under stress. You need something that is unchanging and secure. One of the ways you know that Jesus is at the center of your life is you worry less. Any time you start worrying, it should be a red flag, a warning sign that says, “I’ve allowed someone or something to become the center of my life instead of God.” You could make a person the center of your life, and you’ll be under stress because you know that person can walk out of your life any time or die or get sick. There’s only one thing you can put at the center of your life that will never change and is strong enough to sustain you through life: Jesus Christ. Do you remember years ago they used to have these things called Super Balls? When you bounced it on the ground, it’d go 30 or 40 feet high. Why? Because the center of a Super Ball was a tightly compacted, solid core. That’s what gave it its bounce-ability. When your core is solid in God, you have bounce-ability. You bounce back from stress faster. You bounce back from problems faster. You bounce back from grief faster. You bounce back from crisis faster. You have something solid in your life that doesn’t change, and you worry less. The Bible says in Philippians 4:6-7, “Instead of worrying, pray .... It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life” (MSG). PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over What do you think about the most? What does it say about your priorities? Why do you think you bounce back faster from adversity when your life is centered on Jesus? Our Gift: The Life You Were Meant To Live Complete Audio Series In this new series, Pastor Rick helps you understand the steps you need to take to obey and choose to do God’s will so that you don’t miss God’s best and the life he planned for you. LEARN MORE Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes six full length teaching CD's from Pastor Rick's series The Life You Were Meant To Live. LEARN MORE Series Summary Message 1: ​​Evicting Envy from Your Heart Message 2: ​​​​​​​​​​Getting Ready to Be Used by God Message 3: ​​Slowing Down Message 4: ​​Building Margin into Your Life Message 5: Remembering What Matters Most Message 6: ​​Lightening Your Load Message 7: Focusing Your Life PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at pastorrick.com. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He’s the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including "The Purpose Driven Church" and "The Purpose Driven Life," read by more than 100 million people in 137 languages. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered across America. This devotional © 2016 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences  |  Unsubscribe