Why do u believe in God?

The most recent issue of Daily Bread has this little article pamphlet about
"Wisdom of Motives".

(the online version is available at this link):
http://www.rbc.org/bible-study/been-thinking-about/2008/04/01/column.aspx

After reading that article, I found myself asking: "Why do I believe in God? Is there a motive behind my Faith in God? Do I seek God for my own selfish reasons?"

Do I believe in God because if I do not I go to hell and If I believe I go to heaven? Did God promise I'll have a good life free of problems and be successful in life? Who is the Lord of my life? Am I the Lord of my own life, and treating God as a means to solve my problems, Seeking Him only in times of deep trouble and then chucking Him aside when things go fine?

Do I see my relationship with God as something I can stand to gain, then I will believe God? What if I cannot gain anything from God? Will I still recognise Him as the God who created all of the universe? Preacher Rf asked a hypothetical question:" If today God decided that if you believe Him, you will not get any salvation, nor go to heaven. Will you still believe in Him, and recognise He is God?"

Our motives speak for alot of things we do: a means to an end.

we study hard so as to get good results
we work hard so we can earn money
we do this this this..... so to get that that that....

Well.., is Christianity like that?? Do we as christians believe God only because we stand to gain something? We tend to forget one thing: God did not have to/ or obliged to save us from our sins. He did not have to come to the world and endure hardship, and die on the cross for us. Yet He did. He did not have to suffer for our sakes but He did.

The only Motive behind what God did was LOVE for us, even when we do not know about His love. Because when you love someone, you will want the best for the person. And when you love someone you don't need to earn the person's permission to love him/her. Just like parents will love their children, its not trying to gain someone's approval.

Here's a verse from Revelations 2:1-4

1"To the angel[a] of the church in Ephesus write:
These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: 2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.

The church of Ephesus was a blessed church by God, they were adept in their knowledge of God. They had gifts of God but yet, they have forsaken their first love: GOD.

I hope I will not forget that I Believe in God because It was my heart's response to knowing God's Love for me. It is the heart's response to want to know God and His love for others.