Most of us would agree that life is a journey, right? And by definition, a journey means you're going somewhere...in fact, you could then conclude that if you're NOT going somewhere, you're at a "sit" - a "rest" - a "standstill"...
One thing we ought never do, however, is we ought NEVER to be at a standstill in our relationship with God. We ought to always be going somewhere.
Let me pause here for a moment to make something perfectly clear. To "rest" is not a bad thing, if you define the word correctly. For example, to say that we "rest" in Christ is to say that we are trusting in Him - we have confidence that He will accomplish His will. This is not a picture of "in-activity" but rather continual action, unhampered by the concern that I have to take control because God might need a little help here!
Then there is the "rest" that scripture refers to in Genesis. God never tires - he did not "rest" in that sense of the word, but rather, He stepped back to reflect on and enjoy what he had just finished creating. Likewise, there are times when we need to step back and reflect and enjoy all God has done and is doing - too often our "vacations" are just a different form of "busyness"!!
But "rest" is never used as a synonym for laziness, slothfulness, or a "hands-off" attitude (i.e,, 'That's not in my job description'). Indeed, scripture has some very strong words for those who adopt this mindset!
So, back to our journey...
Our journey - our "going somewhere" - ought to be centered on the goal of getting closer to God and looking more like Jesus. What I love most about my journey is when God reveals more of Himself to me - and, oh, how He has been doing that lately! For instance, last night Pastor was preaching out of Ephesians 4:7 & 11, and he made this statement (I'm paraphrasing):
"It is GOD who gives us the gifts and talents we have. It is GOD who decides who gets what. There is NO room for jealousy or dissatisfaction - the GOD OF HEAVEN makes those choices!!"
And I thought, Whoa!
Ok, so, academically, I knew this, of course. But something in the way Pastor said it just slapped me up side the head. Am I jealous of others? Am I dissatisfied with the talents and gifts God has given me? I did some soul-searching right then and there...
I love to play the piano. In fact, God has been increasing my desire to play and my enjoyment. I don't consider myself to be particularly good at it - in fact, there are times when it seems I have mittens for hands and I pity the hearers - but, life is a journey, remember? So, I'm growing. I see progress. I'm willing. It's more about pleasing God than "performing perfectly."
I love to teach, particularly ladies. In the past, I have been envious of those who seem to have all the answers. But then one day I realized, Hey, I KNOW I don't know EVERYTHING - so why does this bother me so? When someone asks me a hard question, God is giving me an opportunity to grow - because now I'm going to go dig for the answer, and in so doing, I learn something - and the next time someone asks, I will know the answer!
Life is a journey, remember?
We raised 4 kids. (And only by the grace of God, I might add, as culinary talent is NOT one God gave me!!) Now we have 4 more kids, and 8 grandkids! Were we perfect parents? Of course not!
Did we learn anything? LOTS! Now God gives us opportunity to use what we've learned with our grandkids and to encourage other young parents.
Life is a journey, remember?
So, my encouragement to you is this: Take the talents and gifts God has given you and RUN with them! Don't stand still - let GOD expand them for you; face challenges head-on and look for ways to grow, ways to encourage others, way to bring the lost to Christ, ways to glorify God...
Life is journey, remember? :)
