In Church today the Pastor discussed the short comings of individuals today is settling within their lives. Whether it be their faith, their relationships with others, their jobs, or their current physical/emotional state, at times we all have the thought run across our minds that "This is it." Settling brings with it an overwhelming sense of despair and of hopelessness, it is the darkness of depression that begins to shadow one's life with an ever constant sense that nothing you can do will make things any better and therefore you should just give up the fight and deal with the hand you were dealt.
Waiting is a word that you will see multiple times within the scripture:
Psalm 27:14
"Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD."
Often times I find myself getting the term waiting and settling confused. I start out with good intentions of wanting to wait on the Lord but then my human nature creeps in and the Devil preys on my weaknesses and I begin to question and fear that maybe I'm settling. I'm a fighter, I do not like the idea of settling, I am terrified with the concept of settling and often times my human pride pushes me to try to make more of my life because of this deep fear. I hear God say wait, but I question that maybe I am hearing that wrong because God can't want me to be unhappy, He can't possibly want me to remain in a situation that I can not find happiness in.
There is this inner battle every minute of every day of trying to give all things to God and then trying to quiet the doubts and fears within my own mind of giving up the fight. I'm exhausted by the fight though, my spirit is so worn down because of this constant battle I put myself through that after a while, I don't even know what I'm fighting for other than just the act itself. We are creatures of chaos--we've been taught in our lives that we need to be strong, we need to push ourselves, we need to conquer our battles and prepare ourselves for any situation. We put ourselves in constant motion because if our feet are moving, if our arms are strong, if we can outrun our problems then we are winning the fight. But what are we fighting for? What is our focus, our purpose, or deepest desires?
Ephesians 3:20
"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us..."
We are only settling when we do not trust God with the desires of our heart. As the passage states, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine;" God knows our hearts, He understands our desires, but He also knows our weaknesses and shortcomings within our wants and desires. I long to have faith in a God that knows me better than I know myself, who understands what I'm thinking and feeling when I do not have the words to express myself, I choose to trust in a God who has a purpose for me and a plan for me when I feel that all hope is lost. Waiting on the Lord is the complete opposite of settling because we are not without hope--we instead are putting our hope in someone else's hands other than our own. This act takes the greatest strength any man or woman may posses and defines the very act of faith.
2 Thessalonians 3:5
May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance.
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