Responsive Faith
There has been a common theme amongst my friends as of late, where they are finding themselves having a challenging time being able to bask in the presence of God, unconditionally. They go forth with the expectation of an obligatory task to be completed by them prior to enjoying the gift that is the presence of Jesus. They look for things within themselves that they believe they have to fix first or come up with an impossible to maintain daily checklist or routine, in order to “set the mood right”, like God can only be experienced when the room is dimly lit, soft instrumental worship is playing in the background, our bibles are open with pens, post-its, highlighters and stickers nearby and a craftly made cup of coffee to our right. Now these are not bad things in and of themselves, however they are not what draws God in, our hearts for Him does. Sometimes we can get so caught up in the ritualistic practice of a task that we lose sight on our purpose of seeking Him.
God let me in on a not-so little secret about our role as His followers. He told me, “I already did all the work, so just respond.”
God wants all the glory, so He has already put in all the work. Jesus is the way to The Lord and He already died for our sin, so all we have to do is follow. Our only response is to seek Him wholeheartedly and first (Jeremiah 29:13, Matthew 6:33). Seeking Him first in our day, does not only prepare us for the day but it is meant to help condition our minds to seek Him first in all things. Letting the Spirit of God lead us into how we are to seek Him, albeit in prayer, worship, journaling, or reading (that’s usually for me). For others it may be painting or drawing, or like the psalmists, writing songs. Or maybe it is just simply being still and meditating on His word with reverence. One time, the Spirit of God led me into developing a list of scriptures for a friend and this was my quiet time with Him- I was still in His word and His presence was very much all around me as He led me to encouraging a sister in Christ, His daughter. As for me, I see it as I am in this life-long dance with Jesus, where He leads and I am learning to follow. Sometimes I sway with Him with ease, sometimes the tempo may change causing me to miss a step and step on His foot. But with a simple count, we pick back up and keep dancing.
Yes, there are moments everyday where there is a need for us to obey His word, daily keep our heads down to plow the work of His kingdom here on earth, and honor Him through our surrender, but even this is a response to His prompting and whisper to our hearts. And if we believe He isn’t speaking, then I believe one of three things are happening: either He spoke and we did not recognize His voice, or He spoke but we did not like what He said so we kept asking and then get discouraged when He doesn’t change His response and/or He eventually goes silent, or we asked but not with a pure heart so He did not respond at all.
With every task He instructs us to do is another opportunity of Him drawing us near to Him. With every act of obedience, is our response and us becoming more and more like Jesus so that we may be holy as He is holy (Leviticus 11:44) and with Him (John 14:6, 1 John 2:5-6).
Will you respond to Him today? Will you seek Him today with your spiritual ears and eyes open to recognize His presence wooing you into Him? A heart fully surrendered to God, a mind renewed by His word and a spirit willed to His plan, may cause havoc on your sense of identity (you know, the one that the world gave you or you built for yourself) but He will surely provide you with the one that is bold in Him, sacrificial to His commands and yet filled with joy and peace. It is truly amazing how ours is a faith of response because we serve a God who has already done it all and through His Son, paid it all.
So bask! Bask in the goodness of the Lord. Look for Him in your day and rejoice when He reveals Himself, whether through prayer, worship, an unexpected answered prayer, or a beautiful scenery, keep your eyes open and bask. Through our response comes our clean hearts, new desires, transformed lives and reckless obedience where we will be imitators of Christ. Be moved by His initial movement in your life and simply respond.
