If we are God-centered, we will be on the lookout to meet the needs of others and do them good.
God-centeredness does not lead to an inward focus on ourselves, or simply our own relationship with God (as important as our own relationship with God is). Rather, it leads us up and out of ourselves to be disposed to the good of others — both Christians and non-Christians.
This is because if we love God, then we will love people since they are in the image of God.
Mark Dever captures this well in the preface he wrote to the expanded edition of Nine Marks of a Healthy Church:
If I had to add one more mark to what you’re about to read, it wouldn’t be missions or prayer or worship; but it would touch on all of those things.
I think that I would add that we want our congregations to be outward-looking.
We are to be upwardly focused — God-centered. But we are also, I think, supposed to reflect God’s own love as we look out on other people and on other congregations.
That’s well said. Loving God and being God-centered leads you (and your church!) to be outward looking. For when we love God, we also find within ourselves a strong desire to serve those who are in his image and reflect the character of the God that we love in the world.
If we don’t have this desire, we might not be God-centered in the right way.