Midweek: Something Different

I sat with someone a little bit ago and tried to impart some of my GenX wisdom. Of course, the Bible was my preferred reference point; but there are things I've learned along the way that, whether specifically mentioned in Scripture or just supported by biblical principle, were worth sharing. Today I share them with you.

1. That which must befall us must befall us; that which must pass us by must pass us by. In other words, there is a sovereign God who orchestrates all of life and death, who brings rain on the just and the unjust. Our lives are the story He is writing (and I'm not talking about Christians exclusively). Whether we acknowledge Him, obey Him, ignore Him, or deny Him, He has the final say in what happens. That, however, does not provide us some fatalistic pass. We are to plan and work and pray for His kingdom to come and His will to be done --all with the express understanding God has the final say. If we are His, we are enabled to accept that with joy and peace; if we are not His, we go the way alone and with fearsome uncertainty.

2. It ain't over 'til it's over.  Thanks to Yogi Berra for this one. Until a person is in his or her grave, we pray for their salvation. Until God tells us to leave our church for another fellowship, we remain in prayer and fight valiantly for the local family to which we belong. Until doors and windows and keyholes are closed, we keep doing the thing God has called us to do. Until our children are with Jesus or we are, we parent them in whatever capacity God gives opportunity. Until our heart beats its last, we pray, we hope, we give thanks, we work, we seek peace, we engage in the ministry of reconciliation --all for the glory of God. Like Jacob, we wrestle for the blessing of servanthood and surrender... until it's over.

3. Kavanah. In short, Kavanah is the Jewish practice of utmost reverence and intention as we petition, adore, and quietly sit before God. We may use posture or movement, scents or sounds, pauses or intentional breathing to assist us with focus and draw us into knowing before Whom we stand; revering and surrendering any sense of self before the almighty, eternal God through His Son, Jesus Christ. 

4. Expectation is the thief of joy. The expectations we often set for ourselves and for others may be good, honorable, biblical, and the very fruit of God's promises, but to put it bluntly, we are entitled to none of them. As disciples of Christ, we are called to work and pray --whatever outcome God allows. When the results are unfavorable, it is common to abandon obedience or worse, become disillusioned in our faith. But obedience is obedience whether we receive the tangible, immediate, expected results of it, or not. God always honors the prayers and the work of obedient saints even when (or, perhaps, especially when) those things do not yield the results we anticipated. The joy comes from obedience to our King, not the results produced. If expectations are the incentive for obedience, our compliance will vacillate based on the fulfillment of those expectations; we will never know the joy of having endured for the sake of love for and fealty to our Father who designs outcomes with an eternal perspective.  

5. Philippians 1:6. When I feel like a failure, when I know I've not done my best, when the process seems slow, when I come to God, day after day, knowing that the same inconsistencies and sins reside within me that plagued me the day before, I trust. God called me to Himself --the evidence of His work in me. For as long as I continue to return to His well day after day and moment by moment, God's work continues. I encourage you to grab on to the assurance and comfort in this verse and never let go. It is a process with which we must cooperate, but it is a process that works in God's time.