While praying this morning, my husband got a little tongue-tied (as sometimes happens in the early morning), and thanked the Lord for His "merthy" instead of mercy. My mind immediately thought, "Oh, yes, Lord - I would love to share mirth with You today!"
As I imagined Jesus and I sharing a chuckle over something silly, my heart truly longed for that. The kind of relationship we have with good friends that is easy and comfortable and pleasant. I reflected that those moments are possible because of the depth of the underlying relationship. We cannot be light and easy if things are difficult. A married couple with a troubled relationship has few instances of play and laughter. If there is a history of disloyalty, betrayal, constant criticism, infidelity or even abuse, those things weigh down a relationship, and there are very few opportunities for giggles.
In thinking those thoughts (in a flash--much faster than it takes to write them down), it came to me that God has taken care of all the big heavy things in our relationship. The betrayal and unfaithfulness are all on my side, as well as my indifference and neglect toward Him. Yet He has covered all that--no, He has removed it all with the blood of His Son, so that our friendship has a clean slate. He doesn't remember each slight I have shown Him, every time I chose lesser things over Him, or even the willful wickedness of my dark and depraved heart. The Bible says He delights in me. That brings images of laughter and smiles and "inside jokes" and easiness in each other's presence.
I remember times when my Father and I shared a good laugh over something, or when I would "catch His eye" over private thoughts that only He knew, but understood perfectly. I wish I had those times more often, and I can, if I pursue a genuine relationship that doesn't allow sin and neglect to weigh it down.
The joy of the Gospel is that God took care of all the Big Things--salvation, redemption, justification, sanctification, etc.--so that I can share a chuckle and a cup of tea with Him. The deep things of God lay the foundation for those light moments when He and I can just enjoy one another's presence. And when that's good, frankly, there's no one's company I prefer to keep.
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Godly Assumptions
"Doubt eats away the old relationship with God, but only so a new one may be born."
--John Powell
Thinking about this, I pictured a branch being pruned. It is not cut off at the trunk, but rather the dead, dry tips are cut off so that the living, fruitful interior branches will grow fuller.
Often, my doubts come from unfulfilled expectations, or disappointments with God. I have found that if I allow the Holy Spirit to provide insight into the situation, sometimes it is my expectation that is misguided. Of course, God usually has His own reasons for not "coming through" according to my hopes and prayers, but sometimes it has opened my eyes to a bigger picture.
Let me return to the tree branch. Great truths about God sometimes develop in my mind into assumptions that may or may not be true.
God is good > He will do good things in my life > He wants me to be happy and healthy > He will make my life easy and comfortable
Now, the beginning premise is a foundational truth about the very nature of God. If I do not see the final conclusion as reality in my life, it makes me doubt the truthfulness of the original idea, and I am tempted to lop off the whole limb and think that God isn't really good after all, but a mean despot who can bring me good or evil on a whim.
But if we recognize that perhaps there is room for new growth in our thinking, we can allow our assumptions (selfish and immature as they often are) to be pruned away to see a deeper, fuller, more fruitful truth that is waiting to develop. At what point in our "branch" of thought did we become infested with the blight of our own fleshly "wishful thinking" and disconnected from the True Vine? Just because my life is not easy and comfortable, does that mean God is not good?
I love truth. It is solid, dependable, unchanging. I don't want to tie my tire swing to a branch that will break under the weight of use, but rather one that will support the back-and-forth of my daily life.
Upon further reflection, and the revelation of the Spirit, my "branch" might now look like this:
God is good > He will do good things in my life > He wants me to be strong and faithful > He will use circumstances to bring about a Christ-like character in me > He is faithful even when life is hard
Pruning back my dead assumptions and expectations allows me to see God more clearly, and deepen my relationship with Him. He is far more complex than my formulaic thinking would like, yet so much better than my surface and shallow preferences. I have found a God who is not an ATM, dispensing blessings when I put in the correct PIN, but a loving Father who will stop at nothing to bring me back to Him and to lovingly cultivate a Christ-like character in me. To assume He will give me everything I want is just going out on a limb.
--John Powell
Thinking about this, I pictured a branch being pruned. It is not cut off at the trunk, but rather the dead, dry tips are cut off so that the living, fruitful interior branches will grow fuller.
Often, my doubts come from unfulfilled expectations, or disappointments with God. I have found that if I allow the Holy Spirit to provide insight into the situation, sometimes it is my expectation that is misguided. Of course, God usually has His own reasons for not "coming through" according to my hopes and prayers, but sometimes it has opened my eyes to a bigger picture.
Let me return to the tree branch. Great truths about God sometimes develop in my mind into assumptions that may or may not be true.
God is good > He will do good things in my life > He wants me to be happy and healthy > He will make my life easy and comfortable
Now, the beginning premise is a foundational truth about the very nature of God. If I do not see the final conclusion as reality in my life, it makes me doubt the truthfulness of the original idea, and I am tempted to lop off the whole limb and think that God isn't really good after all, but a mean despot who can bring me good or evil on a whim.
But if we recognize that perhaps there is room for new growth in our thinking, we can allow our assumptions (selfish and immature as they often are) to be pruned away to see a deeper, fuller, more fruitful truth that is waiting to develop. At what point in our "branch" of thought did we become infested with the blight of our own fleshly "wishful thinking" and disconnected from the True Vine? Just because my life is not easy and comfortable, does that mean God is not good?
I love truth. It is solid, dependable, unchanging. I don't want to tie my tire swing to a branch that will break under the weight of use, but rather one that will support the back-and-forth of my daily life.
Upon further reflection, and the revelation of the Spirit, my "branch" might now look like this:
God is good > He will do good things in my life > He wants me to be strong and faithful > He will use circumstances to bring about a Christ-like character in me > He is faithful even when life is hard
Pruning back my dead assumptions and expectations allows me to see God more clearly, and deepen my relationship with Him. He is far more complex than my formulaic thinking would like, yet so much better than my surface and shallow preferences. I have found a God who is not an ATM, dispensing blessings when I put in the correct PIN, but a loving Father who will stop at nothing to bring me back to Him and to lovingly cultivate a Christ-like character in me. To assume He will give me everything I want is just going out on a limb.
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