Have Thine Own Way BY: KB © 1.24.15

Have you ever wanted something so badly that you were willing to do just about anything to get it? Have you had "that thing" within your reach only to have it disappear just as quickly as it appeared, leaving you feeling stupid, dejected and questioning all the "work" it took to get "that thing"? I often teach that what we actively pursue will be the very thing that will cause our demise...and demise I mean what we will allow to interfere with our relationship with Christ.

Let me start by saying this...I try to read  and reflect on at least two daily devotional; my personal favorite is by Oswald Chambers. I read My Utmost for His Highest on a regular basis: I've actually read it several times and each time I read it more is revealed. Today's reading was about making room for God.

He paraphrases Galatians 1: 15 by over simplifying the passage a bit  by shortening " When it pleased God…" but you'll get the gist as you read further.

Oswald's introduction to his piece totally relates to my questions:

As servants of God, we must learn to make room for Him— to give God “elbow room.” We plan and figure and predict that this or that will happen, but we forget to make room for God to come in as He chooses. Would we be surprised if God came into our meeting or into our preaching in a way we had never expected Him to come? Do not look for God to come in a particular way, but do look for Him. The way to make room for Him is to expect Him to come, but not in a certain way. No matter how well we may know God, the great lesson to learn is that He may break in at any minute. We tend to overlook this element of surprise, yet God never works in any other way. Suddenly—God meets our life “…when it pleased God….”

We all want what we want when we want it...now and not later. When things don't happen the way we have mapped out and scripted in our minds, we tend to ask, "When, God, when?" Like we can really rush God! We need to grow in the area of trusting God instead of focusing on the "how and when?" If joy and peace are missing from your life  you're not trusting God: plain and simple. If you're mentally overtaxed and you're beat up by stress and worry, you're not trusting God.

Our tendency to play God, wanting to be in His business can be detrimental to your Christian walk. Sometimes knowing too many details can be detrimental. I continue to struggle with impatience frustration and disappointment because I was like Sergeant Joe Friday , wanting the facts . God had to teach me to leave things alone and quit feeling that I needed to know everything. I had to learn to trust God,  who knows all things and accept that some questions may never be answered; I still struggle with this from time to time but I've come to know that we our relationship with God and His revelation to us comes alive when we refuse to worry.

REAL TALK - This push me-pull you relationship, tension, dynamic (whatever you want to call it) only serves to demonstrate the true power of Christ. We have free will and free reign to make decisions but when we develop a genuine relationship with Christ ...we can ask, wait and then look at the situation and say "Nobody or Nothing but God could have made this happen!"

How ya livin'?