“Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”
Luke 18:17; Mark 10:15 (NKJV)
My daughter in many cases shows me the truth of this. However, she also sheds light on a problem that we carry into adulthood.
With a wife that is in the travel industry, we have gone on several vacations and have been blessed with visiting her family internationally on more than one occasion. I say this not to brag, actually I have become a bit spoiled about it, and have no longer been filled with joy when trips are planned. I digress. The point is that we travel. When we do, there are usually several bags involved, and not always enough hands to guide Leila through the airport as I would like. My solution has been very simple. We have created a protocol for airport travel. Maybe a slight misuse of the word, but it sounded good at the time. I actually was imagining that ridiculous Goldie Hawn film from the 80’s. Our plan of attack was: Lariza, my wife, with a suitcase on wheels in one hand, walks out front as our travel guru with passports and boarding passes at the ready in the other hand. Leila with her Dora carry-on rolls right in line behind Mama. Then I bring up the rear, supervising these maneuvers to ensure we all get where we have planned: our gate.
In route to the preplanned destination, something frustrating and insightful happens. Leila manages to get out in front of Mama. For many different reasons, such as wanting to show she knew the way, wanting to get there first or speed things up, etc, she just struggled with sticking to the plan. As the overseer, I would have to often give her a loud verbal cue, “Protocol!” Upon hearing this she would relocate her Mama and fall in line. Her youthful impatience, didn’t anticipate a stop to examine a map, or a restroom visit along the way, or maybe braking to pick up a snack. These detours were only visible to her when she was following the plan, in her place in line. Otherwise, she would hear the cue and have to backtrack to her position.
One area that I have been most guilty of neglecting to acknowledge the Holy Spirit, was in my service in the church. Right now you might be thinking that I needed to get more active and use the Spirit to energize my activity. Nothing could be more wrong for me. I had been active in every ministry that would have me. I like to call this sin “Out-working the Spirit.” I was attempting to do everything that I could for God, foolishly and subconsciously envisioning that if I didn’t do it, it would not get done. The funny thing is: if it is a God idea and a God sanctioned activity, it will get done with or without me.
I heard one way to cure yourself of feeling like you are more vital to God’s plan than you really are is to put your hand in a bucket and fill it up with water. Imagine your hand in this bucket is your activity for God. What impact would your inactivity have on God’s plan? Quickly take your hand out of the water. The space that your absence leaves is your answer. This is not to say that we are not important. God’s miracles happen through us on earth. The Bible is filled with people who became heroes, but only because they were subject to God’s power, not because they were so great. We are nothing without Him.
The key is to not work for the Spirit, but cooperate with Him. There are so many things that God has willed to get done. This why He made so many different people, with so many different gift sets. You can do all things, but are not gifted to do all the best, and are not called to do everything. Why is it that we as Christians get wrapped up into that “do all” spirit? I believe it is simply because we have been trained with the can do attitude. This is a great c
ure to laziness, but God works most consistently through the dependent on Him attitude, the broken and pleading attitude. Our workaholic tendencies say, “If something needs to get done, I’m going to step up and do it.” However, if we are always just stepping up, are we leaving opportunity for someone better equipped and gifted to step into their calling?
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
~Isaiah 26:9 NIV
Wherever you go, be sure that the Lord has sent you there. If he didn’t then you are wasting your time, because He will only send you to places that will aid you in completing his vision for your life. Seek his guidance in all you do. You may be doing great things, and still missing the mark for the “God thing” that you were created to do. Dr. Martin Luther King would have been highly praised, had he dedicated his days to building an orphanage and caring for orphaned youth. That would have been a great thing. But that would not have been the “God thing” that was set aside for his future. He was meant to impact greatly global and national racial equality and civil rights.
Look at what you are doing on a daily basis, in your church, at work, in the community.
Is he sending you out into that field, or are you just going?
Many of us get like Martha and just get to workin and workin, but never stop to examine what things we are working at. We just know they need to get done. This is why were are called the body of Christ, let the hands heal and the feet walk. You could travel on your hands, but that would be so much harder. Do what you were sent to do. That is what you were meant to do.
As always Arman, you call me to examine, to envision that plumbline (Amos 7:7}. I still stand on my thoughts from the early part of 2010 – I want to please God. Oh I don't get it right nearly often enough – my natural appetites get in my way. So thanks for sharing your locale on the journey, and let us journey on, always striving.