Once in a while, I have an spiritual experience that sticks with me.
Last week a very good friend of mine, Christy, shared the story of her life in Chapel. It's an amazing story where it is so obvious that God pursued her and helped save her from her previous lifestyle. Here is someone who hit rock bottom and God has turned her life completely around.
I'm sitting in the audience unsure what to think. I realize that if anyone else said what Christy did about her conversion experience, I wouldn't have believed them. I would have brushed it off. Life doesn't work that way. But coming from my good friend, I have to take it seriously. Which leads to hard questions. Why are miracles so hard to believe? Why am I skeptical? Am I growing blind to what God can do?
Christy has seen Jesus. Actually seen him. Does that sound hard to believe? Does it make you cringe just a little bit? Too good to be true? Yeah, me too.
That's why I'm scared. Because I don't think about God often enough. Usually, I know what I want, I have my plans, and I work to get them done. I succeed at school because I work. If I'm feeling burnt out, I'll continue to be burnt out until I change something. I'll sometimes take my life to God and ask for help, but then I act as though I still need to solve everything.
Some people would praise this as being self-reliant and self-responsible. But if I'm self-reliant, how can I be drawing closer to God? If I have the answers, what is there left for God to do? Will God help someone who doesn't always think he needs help?
Last week a very good friend of mine, Christy, shared the story of her life in Chapel. It's an amazing story where it is so obvious that God pursued her and helped save her from her previous lifestyle. Here is someone who hit rock bottom and God has turned her life completely around.
I'm sitting in the audience unsure what to think. I realize that if anyone else said what Christy did about her conversion experience, I wouldn't have believed them. I would have brushed it off. Life doesn't work that way. But coming from my good friend, I have to take it seriously. Which leads to hard questions. Why are miracles so hard to believe? Why am I skeptical? Am I growing blind to what God can do?
Christy has seen Jesus. Actually seen him. Does that sound hard to believe? Does it make you cringe just a little bit? Too good to be true? Yeah, me too.
That's why I'm scared. Because I don't think about God often enough. Usually, I know what I want, I have my plans, and I work to get them done. I succeed at school because I work. If I'm feeling burnt out, I'll continue to be burnt out until I change something. I'll sometimes take my life to God and ask for help, but then I act as though I still need to solve everything.
Some people would praise this as being self-reliant and self-responsible. But if I'm self-reliant, how can I be drawing closer to God? If I have the answers, what is there left for God to do? Will God help someone who doesn't always think he needs help?
I'd like to comment on the final question posed here. It seems like, for those of us who truly want to be desciples of Christ, there is this constant question nagging at us: "Am I living in the will of God?" We're always wondering if we're heading in the right direction, or if we're supposed to be somewhere else.
ReplyDeleteI heard it preached in church once that we spend far too much time on this question, and that we need to start trusting in the Holy Spirit. "Unless you feel specifically called to be somewhere else, just keep doing what you're doing!" said my pastor.
Psalm 37: 3-4 says "Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart."
I think we all need to start trusting that God created us, in all our intricacy, deliberately, and that having said that, He actually appreciates our diverse and complex personalities.
Even so, it is a valid point that we should all remain eager to hear the voice of God. We must not grow comfortable and settled and go our own way without considering God in our plans. Proverbs 6:19 says that "A man determines his way in his heart, but the Lord guides His steps." I think rather than sitting in the car with the engine running and going nowhere because we're so terrified of crashing, or on the other hand, driving at 110 clicks without knowing where we're going, we all need to just pay more attention to road signs. And maybe pick up more hitch-hikers too... ;)
Anyway, now that I've put my two-bits in, here's one more scripture I think is pertinent to the subject.
Psalm 119: 1-16
Sitting in Car -----110 clicks
ReplyDeleteI often want to go to either one or the other. Creating a middle route is something I'm recently trying. There's a lot of wisdom there!
I completely agree with you about keeping on doing what you're doing. Much of my life has been realizing that things aren't going the best, and then just continuing... until they are awesome. There really is something to be said for perseverance.