Hooked

Sometimes I learn about God in the most unexpected ways - and a lot of times that means songs that aren't particularly God related that somehow help me realize something about Him. Lately, the song Hook by Blues Traveler has been doing that for me.

Basically, the song is about how we get drawn to songs purely because of the melody/"hook" (certainly true with this song for me!). I normally think of myself as a fairly logical person who is drawn to things for specific reasons; however, this song points out that often we often get hooked on things purely because they are good. When I think about my relationship with God, I certainly love Him for all of the "right" reasons: He sacrificed Himself for my sins, He cares for me, He has a plan for my life, just to name a few. While it is not bad to love God logically for all of the things he does for us, it is also important to love God just because of His character: God is good. One of my favorite verses from Psalm 73 talks about loving God both for His actions and His innate goodness:

Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. Psalm 73: 25-28

It's wonderful to love God because He is the strength of our heart and our inheritance, but it is even MORE wonderful to desire nothing besides the Lord and to seek the goodness in His presence. As I pray to have more of God this year, I hope to mediate more on the qualities of God's character so that I can become hooked on the goodness of the Lord.

You are good, and what you do is good; teach me your decrees. Psalm 119:68