Dare to look up to God, and say, "Make use of me for the future as Thou wilt. I am of the same mind; I am one with Thee. I refuse nothing which seems good to Thee. Lead me whither Thou wilt, clothe me in whatever dress Thou wilt. Is it Thy will that I should be in a public or a private condition, dwell here, or be banished, be poor or rich? Under all these circumstances, I will testify unto Thee before men."
Epictetus, 4th century Bishop of Centumcellæ*
How many Christians sincerely, consistently, fervently pray that God's would do WHATEVER He deems best in our individual lives. Not the collective "we", but the individual "me". Whatever job. Whatever financial level. Whatever ministry. Whomever for a spouse? I would guess a small percentage of Believers pray whatever-is-Your-will prayers and are sincere in that prayer.
If not, then why not? I would postulate it is out of fear of what God might require. What if He asks me to remain single? What if He asks me to change jobs AND take a pay cut? What if He asks me to (fill in your greatest God-request fear)?
(Muddle Warning: This next section is clear in my head, but might not be so much when put in writing.)
If you believe that:
A. God is a personal God that hears your individual prayers.
AND
B. God is willing to provide unique, personal answers to your prayers.
THEN
C. Why don't we believe He will only require what is ultimately best for us?
AND
D. Why don't we believe He is in control of all aspects of our individual lives and the world around us?
It is as if we believe in a personal, loving Heavenly Father when it comes to His willingness to listen to and respond to our prayers, but we have a lack of belief in so many of His other attributes.
Let's not pick and choose what we believe about God. Either He is all the Bible purports Him to be, or He possesses none of those attributes.
"Lord I do believe. Help me overcome my unbelief." Mark 9:24 (NIV)
No comments:
Post a Comment