Weekend Speaker: Ben Sigman
Theme: Not Afraid - GOING ALL IN
Read: Habakkuk 3:19; Matthew 22:37; Isaiah 30:21
Think: Throughout my life unfortunately fear has played a large role in my day-to-day walk with Jesus: fear of the future, fear of the past, fear of finances, fear of not following Christ "correctly", etc. I feel fear creeping into my thoughts and daily interactions with others, knowing all the while fear is not supposed to be a part of the kingdom of heaven; yet my natural tendency was toward fear. For years I have prayed about this and slowly, I feel, the Lord has shown me a few things to begin the daily transformation of my mind. But reader be warned: It is not a discussion for the faint of heart, nor is this article a 'quick read.’ These require prayerful introspection and an openess to making some changes.
Many of us who follow Christ today suffer from three fears:
1. Fear of allowing Christ to plant love in our hearts.
We yearn for peace, we desire the benefits of heaven so everything can “be ok”. But are we truly open to change? Are we so settled in the the valleys of this world that to actually look to where Christ longs to guide us? Christ has divulged to us the secret of this life: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37), but there is a price. “To love does mean to put yourself into the power of the loved one and to become very vulnerable to pain” (Hinds Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard). In the hands of God we know our lives are not our own, we fear change, we fear true transformation, we fear the inevitable pain which comes when we finally allow Christ to tear out the sin inside and transplant that with a seed of love. But what a glorious transformation! The thing we fear most, the change Christ will bring, is the one thing which leads to true sanctification - us becoming more like Him.
2. Fear to love as if heaven has just begun.
The irony is we as Christians tend to live in one of two states of mind: One, that we are meant to walk the valleys of life, suffering, until the glorious return of Christ, at which point we will transcend into Heaven and our true journey begins; or two, that because Christ has died for us we no longer have to feel suffering or sorrow. We think that somehow even though we live in a fallen world, the sin of this earth somehow no longer applies to us. But are those our only choices? If so, I would say, “Why bother?” The first manner of thinking leads to apathy and a sense of profound loss. What is the point of God putting us here on this earth if we were never meant to walk in it? Why would a perfect God put us in a place only waiting with bated breath for the moment when He can “take us out of it”?
The second is equally as dangerous, for to assume that the fallen state of this world no longer applies to us simply because we are being transformed/sanctified is like believing that just because we have taken an anti-venom serum that we won’t be bitten if we are standing in a brood of vipers. So interestingly, the context in which we live our lives has not changed, the external world in which we abide has not blinked an eye in our acceptance of Christ's transformational process, even though we are internally aware of planting of the seed of love in our hearts. So what has changed? Where does that leave us?
Once we have truly accepted the reality that no matter how hard we try to further our souls in the eternal ways of Christ, it is utterly futile, we are finally open to except the guiding hand of our Lord. Only then in those daily/hourly moments, when we allow Christ to rip out our old nature and replace it with His true love will we ever cease to be afraid of what our souls are crying out for - true and lasting transformation. I believe this to be one of the hardest, yet simplest, things our Lord asks of us, to simply surrender and allow Him to grow Himself in us.
We fear the unknown, we fear what we can’t see, we fear for our future without us in control but when we truly surrender, our loving Shepherd is immediately there guiding us on the paths of becoming more like Him. Even if the way up to the High Places appears to be obscured and we are led to doubt whether you are following the right path, we must remember the promise, ‘ Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left. (Isaiah 30:21) “Always go forward along the path of obedience as far as you know it until I intervene, even if it seems to be leading you where you fear I could never mean you to go.” (Hinds' Feet on High Places) The Kingdom of Heaven is now, the seed of eternal love has been planted in our hearts and heavens transformational process has begone its eternal work.
3. Fear of where He might lead you
“As Christians we know, in theory at least, that in the life of a child of God there is no second causes, that even the most unjust and cruel things - as well as all seemingly pointless and undeserved sufferings - have been permitted by God as a glorious opportunity for us to react to them in such a way that our Lord and Savior is able to produce in us, little by little, his own lovely character… the actual conditions and test permitted by God, by a continually repeated laying down of our own will and acceptance of his...” (Hinds' Feet on High Places)
Do: So where does that leave us? There is hope, we have a promise from our Shepherd that "He is faithful to complete the work he has begun". The work has 'begun' and won't stop until it is finished. My life is not my own, it belongs in the loving embrace of my Lord and no matter where he leads, what seeming troubles pound my soul, no matter what sorrow I am called to endure, His grace is sufficient and his work will be completed.
Pray: God, I submit my fearful heart to You - and am open to the change you want to work in me. God I know you're trustworthy, I choose to put my fears aside and walk with you, knowing each step of the way is with You, guided by You and leading me to become more like You! In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.
The eDevotional is written each week by a team of volunteers from Timberlake Church.