I'm going to talk about a song: More Than Life from Hillsong. More specifically, its chorus: and all I know, I love You more than life. This really struck me this evening – do I really love God more than life?In Acts 6 & 7 we get to hear of a rather amazing guy of the name of Stephen. He is arrested for being a "man full of God's grace and power, [who] did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people" [Acts 6:8]. Now, I am hardly worthy to lick Stephen's sandals, but what really hit me was what Stephen does when he is before the Sanhedrin [the religious rulers of the day][Acts 7]. Instead of whimpering and apologizing he tells them exactly why he is doing what he is doing. From Abraham all the way through to Jesus' death and resurrection! In other words, he tells a lawyer how to do law. Result: Stephen is murdered [Acts 7:54 – 56]. Stephen evidently loves God more than life.Now, Paul happened to be there at Stephen's stoning – here God works an amazing miracle – for those of you not knowing of Paul's conversion you can read about it in Acts 9. Paul however, goes on from here to speak to many hundreds if not thousands of people about his Savior – many of these people don't particularly wish to hear this though, Paul is in danger many times throughout his travels. Paul also loves God more than life.So there are two examples of two amazing Christians who loved God enough to give up everything they had and held dear – even to the point of life itself? Why?Why go to the lengths of dieing for something you can't see or prove? Why give up everything? Family, friends, pets and college? These people must have had complete belief in everything they had seen and been told, so much so, that they enacted Jesus' words, and "pick[ed] up [their] cross" [Luke 9:23] and followed Him.So what can we/I learn from this? Following God is eternal – there's no just doing it on Sundays, it has to be a complete sacrifice. Giving everything to God, making sure He is more important to you than life. Put it this way: this world will end, but God won't – which is more important?So, back to the song Let go of everything I've done, and run into Your open arms
Fall back on everything You've done, fall back on everlasting arms when all the world slips away,
You are the things I need
You are the air I breathe.