Monday is often the “preacher’s day off” and it’s my day to
catch up on yard work, have a late breakfast with Bev, and try to practice a
bit of “Sabbath” rest. Yesterday, I did not do so well at that. Even while Bev
and I enjoyed a cup of coffee at the diner, my mind was churning. “What should
I do? How can I make that work? What if that person does not respond as I had
hoped?” I was not supposed to be working, but I could not turn it off.
I went off to bed with a headache from the tension. What makes your
muscles tense, steals sleep from you in the middle of night, and causes you to
sigh under a burden that weighs heavily on your mind?
The late Dr. Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ,
a ministry that has been a major force in the work of the Lord around the world
for the last 50 years, had many reasons to be stressed. He
was head of an organization that was huge, that was always in need of funds,
and that had thousands of associates on hundreds of campuses around the
world. But, Dr. Bright was consistently a man of cheerful
temperament, relaxed, and apparently beyond worry. His son reports on the
moment when he came to understand why his Dad was this way, even under
pressure. It was an interview with a reporter from a
Christian magazine.
"Dr. Bright," the reporter asked, "share with us a problem from your life that the average Christian could relate to."
"I don't have any problems" Bright replied.
The reporter pressed, "Don't over-spiritualize this. We all have problems."
"Young man," Bright replied, "you need to
understand that I
understand that I am a slave of Jesus. A slave doesn't have any
problems. The only thing a slave has to do is what his master tells him
to do. He doesn't have to be successful. When you really
understand that, all the of the sudden, you don't have any problems
anymore. All you have are opportunities to see God
work." - quoted in REV. Magazine, July/August,
2007
This morning I had to repent for my lack of faith
yesterday. My worry was rooted deeply in my own ego, in my sense that I am
'in charge.' But,
I am not, nor are you. Oh yes, there are decisions we must make. We have work
to do. However, I needed to remember that familiar Psalm that declares:
"Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted.
Unless the Lord protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good. It
is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night,
anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones."
(Psalm 127:1-3, NLT) James asks us to remember that we " do not
even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that
appears for a little while and then vanishes." (James 4:14, NIV)
That is not a statement of resignation. It is a profound faith
declaration.
Faith like that helps us to surrender those illusions of
mastery and to live at peace in the Presence of God. Now, we must be
consistent in that faith. If
we run ahead of the Lord and make decisions in our own wisdom: creating debt,
taking on too much responsibility, etc. - it is immature and
irresponsible to decide, only after the fact, to throw it all on the Lord and
expect that He should painlessly lead us out of the problems that we created
for ourselves! The kind of faith that allowed Dr. Bright to live
with serenity started before
he made decisions. He let God lead - from the beginning.
Does that mean we can't ask the Lord to help us with
situations we created in ignorance or through willful expression of
ego? No, of course not. He loves us even when we're willfully
trusting our own wisdom, when we have made stupidly short-sighted choices, and
even when we are sinful. But, He seldom keeps on blessing us with the
peace of His Presence until we start to acknowledge our presumptuous egotism.
Are you anxious? Let’s change perspective right
now. Say this out loud - "Lord God, I am your servant. I
exist to do Your will, to fulfill your expectations, to carry out your
purposes." Take all those things that are making you
impatient, that are keeping you awake at night, that make you weary - write
the list down. Now make the Hezekiah choice. Take your list and present it
to the Lord with this faith-filled prayer: "Lord, I thought these
were my concerns. I am your slave. Forgive me for the messes I have
created. Help me to be quickly responsive to Your direction. Today I will trust
You, serve You, and let peace flourish while I wait. You know all my tomorrows, and
You know what is best for me in the light of eternity."
Here's a word from the Word. It comes from a time when King
Hezekiah was threatened with annihilation by the Assyrians. He had no
resources in himself to meet the threat, so look at what he did. Make it a
model for your worry today. May the same humility fill us with faith.
"Hezekiah received the
letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the
Lord and spread it out before the Lord.
And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: “O Lord, God of Israel,
enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the
earth. You have made heaven and earth. Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open your
eyes, O Lord, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the
living God. “It is true, O Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste these
nations and their lands. They have thrown their gods into the fire and
destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by
men’s hands. Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all
kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God.” (2 Kings
19:14-19, NIV)
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