Out of Order

3/24/2020

John 3:30 “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Chambers’ lesson for today is a bit counter intuitive for the believer. We are caring, and want to try to bring others to the truth of salvation through Christ. We want to be of use to God, but, in our humanity, we often lose sight of His will and go forward in our own strength. Chambers’ first sentence says, “If you become a necessity to a soul, you are out of God’s order.” Why would this be? Shouldn’t we be there for one another on this journey called life?

I will share with you how I see this statement by giving you all another peek into my life. My husband and I had been married for quite a while when I became ill with a debilitating anxiety disorder. We were very solid in our love for each other and our relationship; we have always been best friends. We loved being together, whether having fun, doing home projects, or being in ministry and worship. We became so close that our focus was truly more on one another than it was God. We had lost our order of importance, where God comes first always. When my illness hit, the disorder was very obvious. We were praying, of course, but we were so wrapped up in each other that the worse my illness became, the shakier our foundation turned out to be. We had not only lost sight of our God, but in that time, each other. When the storm hit, we were more battered then we would have been if we had gone vertical throughout our marriage. We were believers, but over time had started focusing horizontally on each other.

This is NOT God’s way for our lives. He wants to be first in our lives always. Even with our best intentions for someone else, we should never let our emotions and our sympathies get in the way of our witness to them. We cannot be their savior. God will have that person grow from the seed planted, no matter what circumstances He uses as a refining fire in their lives. Our job is to pray for and love one another; bringing someone to a saving grace through Jesus’ sacrifice is God’s. We are to be a vessel full of the spirit that overflows out to one another, while also not getting in the way. “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

It took my husband and me some time, but with God’s mercy, we reordered our lives and truly put Him first, not just in our relationship, but in everything. God’s order for our lives is perfect, and we rejoice in striving to be “my utmost for His Highest.”   

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2 Chronicles 7:14 “If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.”

May God have mercy on us all.