Where do we go? What do we do?
When I was a child I thought these were questions that only consumed children. Now that i am nearing thirty, I see that to be false. Everyone I know is asking themselves this question, from age two to ninety. Every adult I know is wrestling with this, even the ones considered successful. It is the nature of this life. We are never done. Not ever. Those who love God will always be battling this, because the battle isn't over until we are dead. We will always ask, how can I love more? What can I do better? I have few things that God has had sitting on my heart.
But first, I want to recall the main point of the gospel, and that is that it is not about what anyone but Christ has done. In that there is peace. I remember hearing this quote, though I cannot remember it fully, nor could I find it. It goes something like this, "Christian, now that there is nothing left to do, what are you going to do?" Now that you are free from condemnation, and cannot earn God's favor, how will you respond to such a wonderful act. Surely not out of fear or worry, but with joy and boldness.
I must confess I have been tangled up in a bit of worry as of late, and it has brought nothing good to my life. It has only made me feel more like I am god over my own life. I have been faithless and arrogant. Only this very morning, after much meditation on some scripture, did the Holy Spirit reveal what had been going on inside me, that I had taken all these wonderful things God has given and swept the joy out of them by thinking them my own. My own to cling to and worry about. Idiot. But, God is ever faithful, and I has given me not only momentary victory, but has given me more perseverance against such a lie, more joy in the face of such a lie, more mercy to those who struggle with such a lie, and more love to Him for bothering to even show me it was a lie, for He certainly is not bound to do so, accept out of the love of His heart.
Now that is said, I will throw out where I have gotten in my pursuit of wisdom in this area of knowing what to do and where to go. As always, take it with a grain of salt, and take it to God. I am simply sharing.
One thing I have seen is that God's will for our lives is very much hammered out in how we are to be. We are to love greatly, and with great service and self sacrifice. We are to obey His commandments, knowing that they will bring us joy though intimacy with Him. Yet, specifically, the Bible is not specific, in that it doesn't tell me what exactly I am to be, and where I am to go. At first glance this may seem frustrating, but over time, God has shown me the absolute glory and wonder in how He has chosen to do things. Christianity is not a religion, it really is a relationship with the God of the universe!!! You want to know what you are to do? There are no hard and fast answers, but there is a living God who has not only welcomed, but commanded you to come to Him with your needs and wants! I can't access president Obama, but I can access the God of the universe for my every petition. The Holy Spirit dwells within us to move our hearts, to guide us. It is mysterious, and that can be frustrating, but it only so because it takes more control of our lives out of our own hands! Trust in the Lord you God. When you fall, ask for forgiveness, turn, and run back toward the Lord your God, and repeat. In the end, it is such a mystery that will speak the truth of God's existence and love into your heart.
I have also gotten this piece of wisdom from others. At first, I got listening to someone speak to singles about how to find a mate. In the same way, there is actually very little written about how to do so. There is only one clear cut rule for dating, shared faith in Christ, not to be unequally yoked. That's it. It surely isn't perfection, or no one would get married. Well, no honest people would. Yet, something that we know is that God exhorts us to pursue Him outright. If the greatest commandment is to love the Lord you God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, then all others fall underneath it. So, if you are looking for a mate, or job, or a place to live, the question can always be asked, "What will bring me closer to God? Which choice will help me love Him more? Which one will help me love others more? Which one will end with me most serving? Most giving? Most dying to self?" Such a question is surely answerable. God is faithful in hearing our cries for more of Him. He withholds no blessing, pleasant or not.
Lastly, I read an article on crosswalk.com about callings, and the way the author defined a calling was amazing. it was simply, "What do I have to give others?" That struck me as particularly wonderful, as I had always been much more selfish in my approach, thinking, "What can I do that people would pay me for?" The slight variation in the two questions is immense in outcome. My way was ultimately about me. What can I do that I can get stuff from people for? Awful. On the other hand. The question, what do I have to give, is focused on loving other people! What talents do I have, abilities do I have, strengths do I have, that I might pour them out as a living sacrifice daily? That I might become nothing.
May God grant you and I such a heart. May we yearn and burn for His glory to the point of giving up our every physical comfort if it were called upon us. May we look to our gifts in humility of origin, and yet boldness in application. May we not be tepid with what is perishable. May we live lives that seem mysterious to the world outside, that they are lived with such abandon for Christ, and subsequently for others. May all praise His Holy and wonderful name! In Jesus' name, amen.
When I was a child I thought these were questions that only consumed children. Now that i am nearing thirty, I see that to be false. Everyone I know is asking themselves this question, from age two to ninety. Every adult I know is wrestling with this, even the ones considered successful. It is the nature of this life. We are never done. Not ever. Those who love God will always be battling this, because the battle isn't over until we are dead. We will always ask, how can I love more? What can I do better? I have few things that God has had sitting on my heart.
But first, I want to recall the main point of the gospel, and that is that it is not about what anyone but Christ has done. In that there is peace. I remember hearing this quote, though I cannot remember it fully, nor could I find it. It goes something like this, "Christian, now that there is nothing left to do, what are you going to do?" Now that you are free from condemnation, and cannot earn God's favor, how will you respond to such a wonderful act. Surely not out of fear or worry, but with joy and boldness.
I must confess I have been tangled up in a bit of worry as of late, and it has brought nothing good to my life. It has only made me feel more like I am god over my own life. I have been faithless and arrogant. Only this very morning, after much meditation on some scripture, did the Holy Spirit reveal what had been going on inside me, that I had taken all these wonderful things God has given and swept the joy out of them by thinking them my own. My own to cling to and worry about. Idiot. But, God is ever faithful, and I has given me not only momentary victory, but has given me more perseverance against such a lie, more joy in the face of such a lie, more mercy to those who struggle with such a lie, and more love to Him for bothering to even show me it was a lie, for He certainly is not bound to do so, accept out of the love of His heart.
Now that is said, I will throw out where I have gotten in my pursuit of wisdom in this area of knowing what to do and where to go. As always, take it with a grain of salt, and take it to God. I am simply sharing.
One thing I have seen is that God's will for our lives is very much hammered out in how we are to be. We are to love greatly, and with great service and self sacrifice. We are to obey His commandments, knowing that they will bring us joy though intimacy with Him. Yet, specifically, the Bible is not specific, in that it doesn't tell me what exactly I am to be, and where I am to go. At first glance this may seem frustrating, but over time, God has shown me the absolute glory and wonder in how He has chosen to do things. Christianity is not a religion, it really is a relationship with the God of the universe!!! You want to know what you are to do? There are no hard and fast answers, but there is a living God who has not only welcomed, but commanded you to come to Him with your needs and wants! I can't access president Obama, but I can access the God of the universe for my every petition. The Holy Spirit dwells within us to move our hearts, to guide us. It is mysterious, and that can be frustrating, but it only so because it takes more control of our lives out of our own hands! Trust in the Lord you God. When you fall, ask for forgiveness, turn, and run back toward the Lord your God, and repeat. In the end, it is such a mystery that will speak the truth of God's existence and love into your heart.
I have also gotten this piece of wisdom from others. At first, I got listening to someone speak to singles about how to find a mate. In the same way, there is actually very little written about how to do so. There is only one clear cut rule for dating, shared faith in Christ, not to be unequally yoked. That's it. It surely isn't perfection, or no one would get married. Well, no honest people would. Yet, something that we know is that God exhorts us to pursue Him outright. If the greatest commandment is to love the Lord you God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, then all others fall underneath it. So, if you are looking for a mate, or job, or a place to live, the question can always be asked, "What will bring me closer to God? Which choice will help me love Him more? Which one will help me love others more? Which one will end with me most serving? Most giving? Most dying to self?" Such a question is surely answerable. God is faithful in hearing our cries for more of Him. He withholds no blessing, pleasant or not.
Lastly, I read an article on crosswalk.com about callings, and the way the author defined a calling was amazing. it was simply, "What do I have to give others?" That struck me as particularly wonderful, as I had always been much more selfish in my approach, thinking, "What can I do that people would pay me for?" The slight variation in the two questions is immense in outcome. My way was ultimately about me. What can I do that I can get stuff from people for? Awful. On the other hand. The question, what do I have to give, is focused on loving other people! What talents do I have, abilities do I have, strengths do I have, that I might pour them out as a living sacrifice daily? That I might become nothing.
May God grant you and I such a heart. May we yearn and burn for His glory to the point of giving up our every physical comfort if it were called upon us. May we look to our gifts in humility of origin, and yet boldness in application. May we not be tepid with what is perishable. May we live lives that seem mysterious to the world outside, that they are lived with such abandon for Christ, and subsequently for others. May all praise His Holy and wonderful name! In Jesus' name, amen.
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