Did you PLAN your bear hunt in the wilderness?

Walking with God does not mean walking with him when it's convenient, through a problem-free life that we have all planned out.

You may want to re-read that. I’ll give you a second. Ready? Good. The above statement is something that has, at times, been hard for me to accept. I’ve never actually heard this statement anywhere, but I came up with it in an attempt to encompass three common misconceptions about walking with God that have been hindering my own spiritual journey.

First, walking with God means walking with Him through life and all that comes with it. It does not mean you walk with Him around the problems, or above the tragedies, or somehow pray your way out of hardships and trials. I remember in preschool or kindergarten, when we would sing the song about going on a bear hunt. I don’t remember it exactly, but it involved running into several obstacles along the way. One was a river. And what choices were we faced with when we came to the river? “Can’t go over it, can’t go under it, can’t go around it, gotta go through it.”

That’s how the Christian life works. You gotta go through it. But no worries, God is right there with you. In Hebrews 13:5 He promises us “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”

Secondly, just because we’re walking with God doesn’t mean we get to make the plans. We can’t come up with a great plan, pray about it, and expect God to jump on board and bless it just because we ask Him to. That’s a little bit backwards. First you should pray about it then ask Him to show you how to follow His plan. So when something interrupts your plans, the question you’re faced with is this: Will I go with God on this journey, even though it’s not what I had planned? Will I go with Him anyway?

“In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” - Proverbs 16:9

Thirdly, walking with God does not mean walking with Him when it’s convenient, or when it serves our purposes, or when we think we will get something out of it. Basically, we need to either decide to walk with God 100%, or get out of the way. The decision to walk with God, and stay with Him, is not always going to look like the most exciting choice. Suppose someone gave you these two options:

1. Walk with God down this path and receive tons of blessings, or

2. Walk your own path, follow your own plans, and end up misguided and frustrated.

Obviously, this would be an easy choice. Now suppose someone gave you these options:

1. Walk with God down this path and lose your sense of worldly security (financial, social, etc), and face trials that will ultimately serve to make you grow, but will be painful. Or,

2. Walk your own path and live a relatively comfortable life with no intrusive obstacles along the way.

A slightly more difficult decision, right? I am not trying to over-simplify what it means to choose God’s ways over our own. I’m just trying to make the point that choosing the path God wants doesn't mean we’re choosing a painless, obstacle-free journey. But it does mean we have Him right beside us all along the way.

Right now I’m doing a Bible study that centers on the Israelites’ deliverance from Egypt, their journey to the Promised Land, and all the wandering they do in the meantime. The study invites each person to be willing to follow God into the “wilderness”, whatever that may be for him/her.

Everyone does not face the same wilderness. It may be something tragic that happens in your life. You lose a loved one, or lose a job, or a marriage that you thought would last forever begins to fall apart. It could simply be a situation that is frustrating you, because it’s not “what you had planned.” It could be something more voluntary, where you have to make the choice between journeying into the wilderness or staying safely where you are. However your individual wilderness manifests itself, the basic principles are the same.

Often when God allows a wilderness opportunity into our lives, it’s because He sees potential in us to be more and do more in our walk with Him. He’s not letting things into our lives because He’s mad at us, or because we haven’t passed some unwritten test. He does it so we will grow.

Don’t expect a short journey through the wilderness. You may get a short one, but don’t expect one. God will allow you to remain in your wilderness, face-to-face with it, until He has used it to fully develop your potential and cause you to grow. Remember that when you’re facing something in your life, before you attach any type of negative label to it, remember that God can use it for something positive. God’s ways are not our ways. There are no mistakes in His plan. The only mistake would be to not trust Him to lead you through that plan.

“‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord.” - Isaiah 55:8

Leaving

For the last five or six years I have been interested in joining the Air Force. Up until this year, I had talked myself into thinking that it was a crazy dream that I shouldn’t try to pursue… that I wouldn’t have what it takes, and that the desire would pass in time. But it did not go away, and after lots and lots and lots of praying, I’ve realized that it truly is part of God’s plan for my life. I also have always been interested in medicine, and have had an overwhelming desire to help others. Which is what led me to the desire to pursue nursing. I just wasn’t sure how to go about getting through nursing school while holding down a full time job.

Now I am being given the chance to go for both dreams – the Air Force and nursing. I am so grateful and thankful, and I should be so full of faith. And I am, about 95% of the time. The remaining 5% of the time I spend wondering if I have what it takes. Not physically or even mentally… I know I can handle what’s coming once I get to Texas. It’s what has to happen before that. I don’t know how in the world I am ever going to say goodbye to my family and my friends. I have known no other life than the one I have here. I have gone to the same church my whole life, lived in the same city (or at least within a 20 mile radius of it) my entire life. Some of my friends have been with me from the beginning. We were in the nursery together, played on the playground together as kids, struggled through the awkward teenage years, and learned how to be adults together.

The concept of leaving is not a new one to me. What is new to me is being on this end of the goodbye. I have always been the one being left. Since I was a kid, I have grown attached to friends, only to have them move away and force me to say goodbye, and eventually (in most cases), lose touch. I have had people comment to me, “Gosh, everybody you get attached to really does pack up and move away, don’t they?” ha. So I am certainly no stranger to getting attached and having to let go. Again, what’s brand new to me is the whole experience of being the one leaving.

So please pray for me over the next few days, weeks, and months. I really am so grateful for this opportunity, and I am so thankful that God didn’t take this chance from me in spite of the fact that I took my sweet time to finally make the decision. But despite how obvious God’s calling on my life has become, it is still not easy to say goodbye.

Good Idea, Bad Idea

For those of you unfortunate enough to not recognize the title of this blog, “Good Idea, Bad Idea” is from the television cartoon show “Animaniacs.” During each cartoon, there would be a section called “Good Idea, Bad Idea” in which an animated figure illustrates a “good” idea – something harmless and socially acceptable. The figure then immediately illustrates a “bad” idea – something completely illogical or dangerously stupid. I was reminded of these delightfully cultivating cartoon snippets as I was contemplating the subject of this next blog.

How do you know if an opportunity is from Satan or God? Or anything, for that matter – a thought, a lifestyle, a decision, etc. How do you know the difference between a GOOD idea and a BAD idea? This may seem like a no-brainer, but in some cases it really isn’t. Trust me.

Sure, it wouldn’t be that difficult, if God only offered us obvious “GOOD idea” type of opportunities (e.g., “Go on this mission trip and let me be a blessing to others through you”), and Satan only offered up opportunities that are very obviously BAD ideas (e.g., “ Go stick your finger in that electrical outlet for a beautiful, do it yourself, at-home perm!”).
Most of us know, however, that this is not how life works. Sometimes we are faced with decisions, or we are given opportunities, that are a little more ambiguous. Sometimes it’s a bit more tricky to decide if something is a good or bad idea. When you find that opportunity is knocking at your door, how do you know if it’s the gentle tapping of the Holy Spirit, or the persistent, misleading knock of Satan with his bag of tricks? That’s my million dollar question for the day, and now here’s my final answer.

First, I think you have to take a step back and consider a few things:

Peace. Do you feel peace about the situation? I use the word “feel” here carefully, because we cannot trust our feelings. But we can trust the peace that passes all understanding. The peace that comes from the Holy Spirit when we are headed in the right direction. We are told to “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts” (Colossians 3:15). God has given us peace and the Holy Spirit to be the umpire in our lives, telling us what should be in (“safe”) and what should be out (well… “out”).

God’s character. Before you make the decision you’re thinking of making, or the opportunity you’re thinking of taking, ask yourself if it is in line with God’s character, and with his word. Some of his character traits include faithfulness, honesty, loyalty, truthfulness, patience, and selflessness. If you look closely enough, you can see what fits in with God’s character, and what doesn’t. If you sense a calling to become a highly motivated and successful thief, you can be pretty certain it’s not a calling from God, because stealing from others is not in line with God’s honest, selfless character. That’s an obvious one, I know. You should not only look at God’s character, but take a look at your own as well. Consider yourself and how God made you – your interests, talents, abilities. More often than not God leads us into things that fit in with how we were made and what we’re good at.

God’s voice. This one takes some practice. Get to know God’s voice so well that you immediately distinguish it from any other. As sheep, we ought to recognize our Shepherd’s voice. We should develop such a sensitive ear to it that, even when we’re cruising along the path we think we’re supposed to be on, we are able to slam on the brakes and make a U-turn if that’s what we’re told to do. There is nothing wrong with coming up with a plan, but be ready to ditch that plan if God tells you to. Proverbs 16:9 says “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”

Finally, you just have to take a step. Sometimes the only way to know if something is the right choice is to just start moving. Take a step in that direction, and see what happens. A door may be slammed in your face. You may lose your peace. Or you may find that your peace increases exponentially, and doors open for you in ways you never thought possible. You can’t drive a parked car. Think about how hard it is to steer the wheel of a car that’s sitting still, compared to when it’s moving. Get up and get going. Give it a shot and find out . There’s no point sitting around wondering about something when you could just give it a try and know for yourself. And I’m mostly talking to myself with this one…

What will I be when I "grow up"?

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11

Sometimes I wonder if I would be happier if I had less. Fewer of certain things that are not inherently bad, but can get in the way of life nonetheless. I’m not talking about the obviously bad things in life such as grief, doubt, fear, health problems, traffic, or bad coffee. I believe most, if not all, people would want less of those things.

Rather, things such as talent, potential, ability, insightfulness, efficiency, productivity, well-roundedness. At what point does the possession of these qualities become more of a burden than a privilege? At what measure does the scale tip from advantage to responsibility and inconvenience?

At times I wish there were only one or two things that I had a talent for, or an interest in. Then at least I’d know what I’m good at, and that would give me some type of direction in life, when it comes to career choices. I try very hard not to compare myself to anyone, because I know that is a nasty trap to fall into. But sometimes I cannot help but envy those people who, with unwavering assurance, know exactly what they were made to do in life, and are able to pursue it whole-heartedly. Many know from childhood what they want to be – doctor, firefighter, lawyer, teacher, architect, mother, nurse, businessman. They have a talent and a passion for that line of work, and they strive virtually unhindered toward their goal. I don’t envy their passion or their determination – I have plenty of both. What I envy is the fact that they are able to narrow their interests and passions down to one thing (or even two or three), and create some sort of tunnel vision that keeps their focus on that goal.

I can’t imagine what life is like for people who are on one end of the spectrum. Those who have no passions, dreams, or goals to strive for. But I know that the same feelings of frustration, loneliness, and discontentment can result from having too many passions and goals. Too many interests and too much potential. Too many options. Knowing that you could create an entire list of career paths that you could pursue, randomly pick any one of those, and do just as well in it as you would in any of the others on the list. That is torture to me. I want to know that I’d be a much better nurse than a teacher. A better doctor than a lawyer. I want to know the one thing that I would be best at, and happiest doing. The field that would be lacking if I did not end up in it. Is there something that, if I didn’t invest my time and energy going after it, would result in someone’s life not being touched?

Maybe that’s a selfish way of thinking. But how haunting would it be to spend 30 years on one career path, and constantly wonder if I should have traveled a different path? I suppose that’s when we have to kick our faith into high gear and trust that God will put us on the path He wants us to be on. As long as we keep our focus on Him and trust Him to take control of every part of our lives, He will take care of the details. But sometimes trusting and focusing are very difficult things to do.