Hello everyone!
Even if I am starting this post as early as Wednesday just before I watch "Lincoln" on Film4, it won't make it up until weekend, so I hope things are going okay for everyone!
I made quite the confession last time, didn't I?
Was it bold or was it stupid? I don't know, only time will tell, I suppose...
Reckless Abandonment
Some of you may consider it reckless of me to admit what I did, whilst still others will be impressed by my candid attitude. I must admit that it was the nature of this series that forced me into cancelling my self-professed "I Am Stu-tacus" posts because they just... no, I've been over that!
What I'm looking at today is simply what happens when we do find our moments of doubt and unbelief clouding our decisions.
Let's just have a quick reminder of what the man with the demon-possessed boy said in last week's reading: -
Let's just have a quick reminder of what the man with the demon-possessed boy said in last week's reading: -
Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief" Mark 9:24 (NIV)
As I mentioned last time out, the man was indeed recognising that there was potential for a miracle to take place and in Jesus he saw the answer to his prayer.
But it's what he did next which was where his first decision was made that was going to lead to his son's breakthrough; he said "help me overcome my unbelief".
Yes, that's right, though his focus was temporarily upon his problem, he recognised that, in Jesus, was the potential for healing and not even for himself!
Yes, that's right, though his focus was temporarily upon his problem, he recognised that, in Jesus, was the potential for healing and not even for himself!
So there's your first act; you need to make sure you are focusing on Jesus and not your problem.
I Lay It All Down, At Your Feet
Next up, you need to put it down at the foot of the cross, because only when it's truly been relinquished, will God likely intervene.
Yes, He can intervene sooner, but oftentimes He will allow us to try it under our own weight if only to teach us that apart from Him we can do nothing, as found in John 15:5.
I know all about that because whilst I've been dealing with my crush, I have been, for the most, trying to burden the weight of it alone, until God taught me that some burdens we are not meant to bear alone.
God promises us that His burden is easy and yoke light, so I had to (ED - and he still does!) lay it down repeatedly because it was causing me to burn up from the inside out under the weight of it.
Don't Tell Me to Let Go of Her, Because I WON'T!
The biggest challenge came for me when people tried to tell me to do nothing, or worse still, to let her go.
I am not going to do nothing because how is she supposed to know I like her unless I make it obvious (ED - which he keeps laughing at today because boy has he made it obvious!).
As for letting her go, I told God that I did not want to do anything that would risk scaring her away because I barely know her yet. So whilst I give over to Him every day the burn, the fire from my crush, I take a hold of the promise of a partner to share life with and never, ever let it go because God gave it to me!
In this case, whilst I'm aware of the burn of my crush every day to the point where I tell my friend, Peter, that it feels like my head and my heart are hurting in unison, it's a truly heavenly, blissful kind of pain (ED - is that even possible, TLP?!), I know that God is clearly up to something!
Final Thought
Whether this is the final look I'll take at unbelief, I do not know, all I can say is that from here on out, I know that there is the potential for an amazing relationship heading its way for me.
How will it land and what will it look like? I don't know.
Only God knows, only God knows!
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