This AI Screwtape letter wrecked me in the best way possible

One of [Jesus’s] disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray.” (‭‭Luke‬ ‭11‬:‭1‬)

I spent the first decade of my career trusting Jesus for the forgiveness of my sins while trusting the world for the accomplishment of my goals.

That’s a shame because Jesus is not just Savior and Lord. He’s also the wisest person who ever lived. We’d be foolish and arrogant not to seek wisdom about our goals from Christ first and foremost.

That’s what this series (based on my new book, Redeeming Your Goals) is all about: seven principles from the life of Jesus, each paired with a practice, to help us achieve Christlike goals in Christlike ways.

Let's start here…

Principle #1: Choose Redemptive Quests — To redeem our goals in the model of our Redeemer, we will choose to follow Christ’s quest of redemption: goals pursued with God, like God, and for God.

The Gospels never record the disciples asking Jesus to teach them how to set goals, preach, or turn water into wine. The only thing we know they asked Jesus to teach them was how to pray (see today’s passage).

Pastor John Mark Comer says the disciples must have concluded that “Jesus’s extraordinary outer life of power was the result of an even more extraordinary inner life of prayer.” In other words, while Jesus’s goals were clearly for God, it was the fact that he pursued them with and like God that people marveled at most.

We love pursuing goals for God and “for the kingdom.” The harder part is pursuing our goals with God and like him. But these postures are infinitely more important. Why?

Because God doesn’t need us to do anything for him. If we fail to achieve our goals, God’s purposes will not be thwarted (Job 42:2). The thing we are uniquely asked to choose is whether we’ll pursue our goals with him—through prayer and abiding—and like him—pursuing Jesus’s mission via Jesus’s methods.

If you think you’re immune from the temptation to pursue goals for God but not with and like him, try this gut-wrenching practice.

Practice #1: Read Your Personal Screwtape Letter

In C.S. Lewis's classic The Screwtape Letters, a fictional demon named Screwtape advises his protégé Wormwood on how to thwart people in general. With the help of AI, we can make the general specific and imagine how you might be personally tempted to pursue your goals for God, but not with and like him.

Feed this prompt into your favorite AI chat app:

Based on what you know about me, write a “Screwtape letter” to imagine how Screwtape might advise Wormwood to thwart me personally. Highlight how I might be tempted to pursue goals that are FOR God while neglecting to pursue them WITH and LIKE God.

About a year ago, I read my Screwtape letter with a small group of ambitious Christians, and it brought us to our knees in repentance.

Generate your letter right now. Share it with a friend. And review it regularly to remind you to pursue your goals with and like God and not just for him.