It was on the Denver Mission Trip. This older gentleman was to be our guide for a prayer walk down the infamous Colfax street. We would stop at places like Planned Parenthood (got yelled at by a passerby on that one), a gay bar, some nude dance bar, adult stores, and finally, Denver's capitol, in order to pray. We stopped at a couple dumpsters, and the man told us of his former life as a dumpster diver. Doing whatever he could to get by. Oh! That's what he said!
"It's not abow choo."
Translation: the world is not revolving around us. Louie Giglio said it well in a video we watched this morning of his sermon about hope--God's got a huge mosaic story going on here. It would be unfair to focus on a single square piece.
Funny. Just this morning I was thinking about why we like the early stages of a romantic relationship. In the midst of them, we get deceived into thinking that it IS all about you and me. About the story of how we met; about the cute things we are doing for each other. Etc. We talk about, think about, and dream about the relationship and all it can be or is.
I started to wonder if the reason we, or to get personal, I, like the beginnings of a relationship brewing is because it is the moment that I finally feel like God is paying attention to me. Hard to confess, but I must say I can believe this lie. At that moment, grace is turned on it's head and I become that stupid Pharisee who feels like she's deserved the "gift" of relationship; so thankful she is not like that sinner in the back beating his chest and declaring, "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner!"
Which makes me think about how next time can be different. Or to be content, to be truly satisfied, if there is no next time.
Ha! Suddenly reminded of a snippet I saw of Star Wars: Episode 1 where Qui-Gon Jinn tells Obi-Wan to not be caught up in the future at the expense of fully living the present moment. Those jedis always have wise things to say!
In all seriousness, I have been personally challenged to remember others more than myself. To look up, as it were, instead of looking in. Because it's not about choo, or me, for that matter. It's about how truly incredible God is, and how He has this good, pleasing, and perfect plan for our lives.
To think of when God tells Abraham to look to the heavens. Or the countless times David does so in the Psalms. How in their moments of confusion or pain, when they looked to the Creator, peace came.
To remember that Abraham and David were just regular people that allowed God to work through them so that they weren't just successful, but significant. To see how the choices they made, particularly the ones where they choose to obey God, have a lasting impact on our world today. Can I get an amen?
The man leading the prayer walk was encouraging us to pray more for others. I'm reading a book about how it's not important just to be good, but to do good. I'm challenged to let my prayer and my actions walk hand in hand for the sake of the gospel. The good news:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim
freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.
(taken from Isaiah, but used in Luke 4:18-19)
I apologize for the horrible grammar, as always, included in this post. I will not apologize if any of these words made you think, or to live differently. Or even if they made you angry.
No comments:
Post a Comment