I went snowboarding last week and it was the first time I went since last season. So, I felt like I was relearning some things... i.e. how to get off the lift without face-planting. ha.
It was my first time up the lift, I get to the top and I'm like oh no... don't fall... don't fall. and then I get off and what's the first thing that happens?? i go for a little tumble. :-p. The guy next to the lift was like, "Don't look at your snowboard, look at where you're going, and you won't fall"... I looked back and smiled at him and was like "thanks" in an embarrassed-type face. He's like, "trust me I've been doing this for a while".
While I was embarrassed some... I sat there on the hill, getting my boot in the binding and thinking of the spiritual sense of that. At that moment, it's like the Lord was convicting me of only looking at my circumstance and not looking ahead and what the bigger purpose was in my life.
It's sooo easy to just get caught up in the moment, in the emotions of life, and in the temporary ideas that pop into your head, or the impulsiveness that is pressed into us from the world. Sometimes I get so caught up in all that's going on around me... the whirr of busyness... and surviving in the world. But I forget the purpose for why I am here.
A brother came to share at our congregation recently, and he asked a few questions during one of his messages that really hit home for me and convicted me. He asked.. did God bring you to Seattle? Did He put you in the job or school you're at now? Were you sent here by God? Have you forgotten that you were sent here by God? Have you forgotten His purpose for you here? Do you know His purpose for you here?
... and I ask myself, "Am I living in the purpose that He has for me?"
How focused I am on figuring out my circumstances... surviving the rush of work, getting my house in order, making sure I can make it to all the church activities, and social events, getting addicted to online shopping, managing car issues and finances, while trying to figure out my personal life and still trying to keep my sanity and stay close to the Lord... which gradually begins to slip away as I get caught up in life's rush. ...deep breath.
And then I speak with a brother this weekend who is ministering far away where he and his family are very literally persecuted, beaten, kidnapped, raped, and killed because of their faith, and their desire to spread the Word of the Lord. And then hearing the previous brother share on the ministry of the Kingdom, and what our purpose is here. To be Life, Light, and Love.... to a dark world. Wow... what am I doing with my life?!
Where is my focus?? If it's down at my snowboard, I fall. If it's ahead I see the bumps before I get there and I lower my stance a bit. If I'm looking up I can steer away from other boarders and skiers as I make my way down the hill... and I can enjoy the ride so much more.
In our Christian Life, if we're always looking at our situation we are doomed to get caught in the trap of the world... and our life will always depend on the moment. In this way our peace and our joy will be suffocated, and we will always find ourselves failing to grow in the Lord.
But if we lift our eyes upon the Lord, and look ahead at the goal He has shown to us. If we draw near to Him we will be able to be prepared for whatever life throws at us, and still reside in His rest. If we look towards the Goal of Christ and the coming Kingdom, and have our hearts set on what the Lord's heart is set on, we will learn to grow in Faith, and see the purpose in each day.
I may not understand everything that happens in my life and in the life of others... even as we see more and more tragedy these days. But we press on towards the goal of the upward call in Christ Jesus our Lord, knowing that God is working everything out for the good of those who are called according to His good purpose.
May we learn to commune all the more with our Lord, and in doing so, learn of His heart, and understand His calling for us in each day.
No comments:
Post a Comment