Real Life Starts Now

Having just written my last blog post, I listened to this podcast by friends in the States, which I think compliments and supports what I have been feeling well.

http://campusamerica.org/assets/178/original/Addressing_the_lie_that_real_life_starts_later.mp3

Being Present

What do you think of when you think of the future? How does it make you feel?

I'm someone who likes to have plans and answers to questions.

I'm more comfortable with things being completed and decisions being made, then open ended situations.

I like it when there is clarity and when there are goals to achieve.

I like order and the ability to clearly communicate what I am internally processing.

So when I think of the future, it causes me to panic slightly.

Why?

There is no definite. I can make plans, but they often change. Basically, I can't control my future.

So, during my unexpected break that was last week, I found myself asking God a lot of questions about the future.

What job will I have? Where will I live? Who will I be living with? etc, etc.

In my search for answers, I just found myself getting more and more worked up and frustrated as the questions branched out to other questions. I started to get down on myself, wondering if I'd wasted my life so far, wondering what I had actually achieved, which lead to the question of whether there is a God after all!

Once I'd finished my little moan, I felt God remind me again of the simplicity and beauty of his calling for each one of us;

John 15:12 - "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you."

This command of Jesus to His disciples reminds us that there is a world around us. A world that gives us the opportunity to love, just as Jesus loves us. In the midst of my despair, I had been focussing solely on myself and was begining to get lost in the future, which I might not even reach.

The command to love others daily calls us to be present in the world around us.

In the midst of my worrying, I had become camped in the future, where people and situations are fictitous and are dictated by my emotions and imagination. Jesus knew this would be a problem and so encouraged His followers by saying;

²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^{b]" style=" line-height: 0.5em; ">[b]}?

²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Each day has enough trouble and opportunities to seek first His kingdom, that we shouldn't be concerned by the future. Of course, it's good to have dreams and goals in life, but hold them lightly. Don't get so lost in them that you neglect those you live with or next to; those you work and socialise with; those that you walk past everyday.

It's made me realise that there are so many opportunities to love each day, but often I miss out because I'm distracted by the fear of tomorrow.

The danger with not being present is that we will never commit to anyone or anywhere in case something better turns up or it doesn't fit with our plans.

But how will we learn and grow if we don't engage in the immediate world around us?

It may be true that you feel led to live in a foreign country in a couple of years, but does that stop you loving your neighbour today? Does that stop you being a voice for the voiceless in your community today? Does that stop you discipling the young people on your streets today?

As always, our great example of being present and loving daily is God Himself in the person of Jesus.

John 1:14 - ¹⁴The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

God chose to limit Himself and put on our skin, so that He could love us in a way that could be reproduced. His mission was ultimately to die for the sins of the world, but that didn't stop Him loving the people He was around everyday, bringing the Kingdom of God to earth.

It doesn't matter if you don't feel 'equipped' or not, because Jesus has left us the Holy Spirit and He lives and works in and through us. Don't let the lie that you are not good enough hold you back from loving well!

The challenge for us is to look around a bit more each day and say to God "Who can I love today? Let your Kingdom come!" and allow each day to become a piece of a jigsaw that God is putting together, without us having to worry about what the picture is!

Note - Learn what the best way to love the people around you are and do them, whether that's washing the dishes or leaving cards. It takes a little bit of effort, but it's worth it! Don't just assume everyone gives and receives love the same way you do, although ultimately it is a heart thing and not a formula!

If God could do that...

I was reminded of and encouraged by this Philip Yancey quote today;

‘There are two ways to look at human history, I have concluded. One way is to focus on the wars and violence, the squalor, the pain and tragedy and death. From such a point of view, Easter seems a fairy-tale exception, a stunning contradiction in the name of God … There is another way to look at the world. If I take Easter as the starting point, the one incontrovertible fact about how God treats those whom we loves, then human history becomes the contradiction and Easter a preview of ultimate reality. Hope then flows like lava beneath the crust of daily life. This, perhaps, describes the change in the disciples’ perspective as they sat in locked rooms discussing the incomprehensible events of Easter Sunday. In one sense nothing had changed: Rome still occupied Palestine … death and evil still reigned outside. Gradually, however, the shock of recognition gave way to a long slow undertow of joy. If God could do that …’

What now?

As the dust cloud continues to cause chaos across Europe, many people's plans for the coming week are looking slightly different and ever more unpredictable then before. For many, I imagine, this is a frustrating time as they need to return to work, meet that friend they haven't seen for a while or just have a shower, but I'd like to think (as the dust settles!), we could see this as a moment of opportunity in our different situations.

In a world that is becoming ever more ordered and predictable, how to we cope with unexpected change?

For me personally, my week looks a lot different as a course I was due to be hosting has been postponed due to half of the attendees being stuck in Ireland. This has left me asking the question 'What now?', which I don't think is a bad thing.

I'm suddenly looking to God for what to do with this free time.

Where does He want me? Who can I be praying for? Who can I serve? Where do I go from here?

The shame is, I should really be asking these questions on a daily basis, but unfortunately I don't, as the diary fills up and my agenda takes over. This is why an enforced 'Sabbath' every so often isn't a bad thing (normally for me it's illness so this makes a nice change!).

I'm not saying God has planned this volcano to go off so that we can all learn a few lessons, but there do seem to be a few we can learn from this situation.

We are not in control, it is God who directs our steps and everyday is an opportunity for us to follow his direction, not just when we feel we need it.

So my challenge for you (whether you have been affected by the ash or not) is to ask 'What now?' of God. What does He want your week to look like? Who can you love and prefer this week? How can His Kingdom come in your situation?

Be prepared for a little adventure!

(I would love to hear of any stories that do come out of this!)

Do you trust me?

Do you trust me?

Do you trust me when the future seems unsure?

Do you trust me when you don't have the answers?

Do you trust me when your own thoughts and feelings conflict?

Do you trust me when nothing seems to be going right?

Do you trust me when life seems to have hit a dead end?

Do you trust me that I have your best intentions in mind?

Do you trust me that I know you better then you know yourself?

Do you trust me enough to let go, instead of taking control?

Do you trust me?