“…that I may know Him…”
(Philippians 3:10)
A saint is not to take the initiative towards self-realization, but toward knowing Jesus Christ. A spiritually vigorous saint never believes that his circumstances simply happen at random, nor does he ever think of his life as being divided into the secular and the sacred. He sees every situation in which he finds himself as the means to obtaining a greater knowledge of Jesus Christ, and he has an attitude of unrestrained abandon and total surrender about him.
– Oswald Chambers
How many times has something gone crazy in our lives and we immediately start taking a self-inventory of the things we may have done wrong; the sins we may have committed to bring such pain, torment, and suffering upon ourselves? How much time do we spend sitting around thinking about what it is that ‘we’ can do to overcome the circumstances and the situations our lives are in? Each process is simply a step towards self-realization and a step away from a vigorous life of abandon to the cause of Christ.
So did that situation or that issue just happen at random in your life? Is that how we look at our present state of affairs? If you are like me, you start questioning the steps you took to get to where you currently are: ‘If I only would have ignored that email.’ ‘If I only would have turned right instead of left.’ ‘If I only would have…” Issue by issue we act as if it all happens by random chance. I am not speaking as if God brings every situation in our path. I truly believe that we do lead ourselves in many of the directions that our lives take. My thoughts are focusing on when we face these issues and circumstances whether God delivered or self caused is how do we view our journey while in the midst and what is our viewpoint on the backside when we have come through it.
Oswald Chambers proposes that a spiritually vigorous Christ Follower looks at the issues in his life not as a random occurrence, but as an opportunity to grow in our knowledge of the One we say we follow, Jesus Christ. This is a step away from self-realization and a step towards total reliance on Christ. This is not easy, in fact it is very difficult. However, any situation (whether self caused or God led) can serve as an opportunity to know Christ more.
“Lord, I was just lied to, betrayed, stabbed in the back, and wounded…reveal yourself to me!”
“Lord, my parents are going through a messy divorce…reveal yourself to me!”
“Lord, I lost my job and cannot pay my bills…reveal yourself to me!”
“Lord, my child has has abandoned you for the world…reveal yourself to me!”
Oh, how this is easier said than done. If it were up to us, we would remove every circumstance and issue that required faith on our part, we would settle for everything we could handle on our own and only for the things that we could provide an answer for. Christianity is a faith life and that faith leads us to rely on someone who is greater than we are when life is not the way we like it. This faith life is not for the prideful; surrender requires humility to understand that we are weak when standing on our own, but through the life of Christ that indwells us, we can make it to the other side. In the end, do we strive to make it on the other side to say ‘I beat an illness?’ Or to say ‘my marriage was restored?’ Or is our motive to say ‘Now I know Jesus a little more.’
I have recently experienced some things in my life that are rather confusing and I am asking Jesus, ‘how can I know you more through this?’ But also, with a new baby on the way and uncertainty in my ministry and career path, I want to get to the other side and be able to say, ‘I know my Jesus a little more now!’
Join the Conversation: What are you facing right now, that in the end will lead you to know Jesus even more?
Great question, Nick.
I’ve got a handful of things going on right now that have had me asking these questions. A few people keep saying things to me like “Everything happens for a reason” which can mean a million things. Or they might say that God is ultimately responsible for the things going on in my life, and he’s doing all of these things to teach me something. But I think that we have a lot more control than we think. God might be sovereign, but I don’t think he’s a puppet master. I still ask the question “What are you trying to teach me through this” though.
I’m not a big fan of a God who isn’t creative enough to teach us about life without bringing tragedy or pain. But I AM a big fan of a God that can leverage any tragedy for his glory and for our good.
@ Ryan – I agree. I know there are times that the Lord does lead us through difficulties for a purpose and a reason, and I definitely know that we lead ourselves down a path of difficulty as well, but in all of those situations, God can and will use it to bring us closer to him and to know him more! Great comment, thanks for stopping by.
Nick,
Great Post!! At the risk of sounding too spiritual, I hope that I can use everything that God puts in front of me to lead me closer to Him. Even meeting the lead guitarist for Poison. 🙂
BA
@BA – Not too spiritual at all. I hope the same, even the day I get to meet the official Elder to Poison. 🙂
I think every new trial I face, every setback, every dream I thought would come true that hasn’t is an opportunity to run to Christ and deepen my walk with Him. It’s so easy to forget about where we’ve come from when things are going well. It’s during the hardships and trials that we’re reminded of God’s love and mercy.
Great post.