1/25/2020
Galatians 1:15
“But when it
pleased God…”
Sadly, in today’s
world, much of society tries to make God small or non-existent. There is a push
towards self-empowerment, and although God may factor into some self-help movements,
He rarely seems to be the center of those programs. Many people believe in some
sort of Higher Power, with a focus on nature or the supernatural. In an April 2019
Gallop Poll, it was reported that church attendance in the West was at an all-time
low. Also, most public displays connected to faith are being expunged. Some
people are very vocal in their mistrust of people of faith, because they have
experienced hatred through prejudice or judgement. At times, God’s people stay
silent so as not to align themselves with such hatred, only freely speaking of
their faith in places of like-minded safety. We are living in an age where
people try placing God into a beautiful box with a bow that may get opened once
in a while. What a sad time. The truth is that God’s power and majesty cannot
be contained; it is everlasting and eternal. The same God that spoke to Moses
and led His people out of Egypt, healed the sick and raised the dead, the God
of the Old and New Testament, Creator of the Universe and Savior of the world,
is the same God for now and forever.
In the past eight
years I have grown in my walk with the Lord. He pulled me up from the depths of
despair, and healed my brokenness. I have been trying to listen to Him more
fully and stay open to His leading, but as Chambers asks in today’s lesson, do
I give Him “elbow room?” Am I open to the Holy Spirit’s leading without getting
in the way? Do I look for God in limited ways? Is my expectation high but my
participation low? Am I connected and open enough to be surprised by what God
does? Do I make room for Him? Do I live a life of expectancy? Is my faith open,
vibrant, and alive enough to truly believe that God may break in at any moment?
Do I get in the way? I know that I have many, many times in the past. My deepest
prayer is not to put God in that pretty box with a bow, or to project this in
my witness. My desire is for a connection with the full spectrum of His power
and glory, and to reflect that to others. I pray to be still and be ready.
Chambers says, “Do
not look for God to come in any particular way, but look for Him…However much
we may know God, the great lesson is to learn is that at any minute He may
break in. We are apt to overlook this element of surprise, yet God never works
in any other way.”
Good, Good Father - Chris Tomlin
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