Just Do It

I can think of a million and one reasons why I shouldn't write this post. Maybe no one will read it. Maybe people actually will read it. Maybe it won't be interesting. My blog doesn't have a consistent brand, or audience, or look, or name. Maybe it will be too personal....the list goes on and on. In fact, I can really only think of one reason to write this post.

A good friend of mine "resuscitated" her blog today, after more than a four month hiatus. In her post, titled "31 Days of Responding to Him,"she talked about having similar reservations, to which her husband had replied, "If God is asking you to do something, you just do it!" Many of you who are believers may have had an experience where God spoke directly to you, typically stopping you in your tracks. This phrase did just that to me. If God is asking me to do something, why would I wonder if I should do it?


Lately, I've been wrestling a lot with exactly what God is asking me to do. I think there's an idea that's developed in our culture that "God's will" is an X on a treasure map and we are just treasure hunters searching blindly to find it. We assume that when we do, we will find something akin to nirvana - a life of perfect contentment, all pieces will fall into place. This idea is perpetuated by things like "searching for the perfect job" or "finding one's soul mate" or being "destined to live in a certain place." But I'm humbly reminded that God's will was for His one and only son to suffer and be executed. So why do we assume that His will in our lives will be a protected heaven on earth? He's already promised us an eternity of perfect living, in Heaven, with Him.

What if there are a million different earthly paths and places God could use you in? A mentor of mine told me recently, "God wants you to know His will for your life so much more than you want to know it. " I just can't believe our God is elusive or tricky. God is loving, all-knowing, fatherly, and generous. He has already  given us His will so clearly, if we would just open up His word and reveal it.

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing, and perfect will. (Romans 12:2)

In the Lord's prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), Christ taught us to pray..."thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." While we may pray this prayer on autopilot, what if we really dissect those words - how clear they are! God's will is for His work, modeled for us by Jesus Christ, to be done on earth, as it is being done in Heaven...as it was modeled for us on earth by his Heavenly Son. God's will has been done by missionaries, fisherman, carpenters, shepherds, kings, harlots, and more. Who's to argue that there is only one profession where we can truly fulfill His will for our life? What if instead of always seeking "God's will" as though it were some magical answer we just have to uncover, we would spend our time and energy seeking God's wisdom. 

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. (James 1:5)

God, give me wisdom. Instead of me seeking your will, which you have already generously given, let me seek your wisdom with my whole heart. Let me walk each step rooted in your presence so that my light in this world would be yours, and that through every thought, word, and action, I would bring you glory. Amen.

Be Still

I've been thinking a lot about success lately. Okay...truth be told, I'm an achiever (down to my core), so I think about success all the time. But lately, my mind's been consumed with how exactly I define success in my own life. For my college girls, I know you wrestle with, or soon will, the same questions, and I struggle in coming up with how I would guide you on this subject.

In March of last year, Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, drew worldwide attention with her narrative, Lean In. The premise of the book (that I'm only about 1/4 of the way into), which followed the 2010 TED Talk you can view below, is that "women unintentionally hold themselves back in their careers and so it encourages women to “sit at the table, seek challenges, take risks, and pursue their goals with gusto" (amazon.com). 

Naturally, Sandberg's message has drawn both enthusiastic praise and sharp criticism. (When I've finished the book, more than likely next summer, after I finish my masters, I'll follow up and let you know which side I land on!) It was actually a letter from the editor in Real Simple in April 2013, however, that caught my eye. Editor Kristin van Ogtrop rebutted,

Here's the thing: I don't want to be striving for bigger/better/higher/more every minute of every day. I don't always want to have a larger goal. That just sounds exhausting and, worst of all, completely joyless. I want to enjoy my days: past, present, and future. I take great pleasure in my professional success, but I can tell you with certainty that, when I'm lying on my deathbed, I'm not going to be thinking about career wins. I'm going to be thinking about my parents and two sisters who greeted every new life situation like it was another chapter in a long, hilarious narrative; my steadfast husband, who gave me love and a true north; and finally, the three children who made me take life both more and less seriously, and whose faces are the only thing I see when I close my eyes...I don't really want to lean back for long. But I don't want to lean in, either. I know I'm most comfortable standing up straight.

I suppose my struggle as an achiever/woman/wife/Christian stems from my inability to define success in my own life. Is it leaning in - charging ahead in a business career, chasing after opportunities that others would envy, earning more, putting more hours in, and being recognized for more? Or is it leaning back and settling into life as a Pinterest-perfect mama with crunchy kids that eat organic snacks and speak three languages? Or, is it tirelessly volunteering to raise money, plan galas, and clock volunteer hours that others find impressive? Often, this achiever feels like she has multiple personalities, and in all honesty, I don't always know which one to appease.

This past Wednesday, the world lost an incredible poet and a wildly successful woman when Maya Angelou passed away. Scanning through Facebook statuses and Instagram posts, I was touched by many incredible words Ms. Angelou shared with her audiences. It was one quote in particular, however, that caught my eye.

  

I think Angelou was on to something when she insinuated that, perhaps, true success is only experienced when we are operating out of the inherent strengths and gifts God blessed us with. This is why success looks differently for each of God's children. For some, it is living amongst orphans in a third-world country. For others, it accepting a coveted position and proceeding to make your first million before age 30. Maybe success is reaching 100K followers on your blog, or, healing a friend with a quiet listening ear in private, but desperately needed, counseling sessions. The world has A LOT to say about what success looks like, and I know that I often find it hard to quiet all those opinionated voices in my own head.

"But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?' Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?" (Romans 9:20-21)

I write A LOT of blog posts. Now, I know what you're thinking...this girl is the most inconsistent blogger ever! She hasn't written a post in weeks. You're right. I write A LOT of blog posts in my head...posts that never make it to the internet. As an achiever, my biggest barrier to success is the fear of my own failure - the fear that I will be unsuccessful. So, while I think and reflect and write countless paragraphs in my thoughts, most never make it to the page because I see two options - be a wildly successful, 100% dedicated, regular blogger or just don't bother. I only see two ends of a continuum, no spectrum in between. I'm my own worst opposition. In too many areas of life, I see two options: instant success or instant failure. But through the lens of God's word, I can start to see how resting in the promises of the Lord, the promises that He has equipped me and made me to carry out a specific purpose in this life, will reveal a spectrum of success I don't have to be afraid of.

So, if asked by my college girls, in the peak of the planning stage of your lives, as you define your own success, "just what does success look like", what would I say? Would I tell you to lean in, lean back, or stand up straight? "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, 'The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him." (Lamentations 3:22) I think I would tell you (and tell myself) to just be still.

Overwhelmed by Easter

I've been thinking for weeks now about an Easter post. Yet, it isn't until now that I've been able to put thoughts into words. Even now, I am overwhelmed by Easter.

This may seem like a strange observation. As a Christian, Easter should fill me with joy, hope, and faith. Holy Week should focus my thoughts, prayers, and energy. But overwhelm me? That doesn't sound quite right. Allow me to explain.

About 10 years ago, I was standing and singing praise songs at youth group, when all of a sudden, the lyrics I was singing hit me like a ton of bricks. "I'll never know how much it cost to see my sin upon that cross." In that moment, by faith took on new depth. My eyes were opened and I realized (as much as I can in my own human brokenness) that Easter was for me. Christ endured the pain and the suffering and the humiliation and the betrayal for every one of my sins, even those I don't feel sorry for in my sinful pride. How does one process, especially at age 16, that brutal truth? More than a decade later, I'm still working on that, but Easter has taken on totally new meaning.

I think there's a cultural emphasis on Christmas. Beyond it's faith-filled meaning, the world has turned December 25 into "the" holiday. We count down to it, we sing about it, we send cards for it, we take off work for it...and I'm not saying that Christmas isn't an incredibly meaningful celebration. However, without Easter, the Christian faith means nothing. Our hope would be gone. Eternal life, not an option.

Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer at sin’s every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ’s sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That’s what Jesus did. (Romans 6:6-11, The Message)

But what about people who proclaim to be Christians, yet make one visit to church per year, on Easter? Are they missing part of the story? A 2013 survey conducted by LifeWay research reports this. "Easter and Christmas are the most revered worship observances of the Christian faith," McConnell said. "The crux of the gospel is not just that Jesus came to earth in human form which we celebrate at Christmas, but that He lived a sinless life and was crucified in the place of mankind. God's acceptance of this payment for sin is seen in Him raising Jesus from the dead. This is what makes Easter so significant. Yet, surprisingly, many who call themselves Christian have no intentions of going to Easter services."

Easter is the happy ending, but a daily walk with God promises meaning and significance to Christ's death in a very personal way. For three days, Christ's followers waited, feared, doubted, and wrestled with the fact that the very man they had trusted as Savior was buried in a tomb. Those believers didn't have the happy ending yet. We do, and still people doubt in disbelief that Christ's death was for them and offers eternal life.

My words aren't perfect, because I am so filled with emotion and passion that I can hardly communicate what this week means to my faith. Fortunately, many of my favorite Christian authors and bloggers have put in to words what I can't.

Words or no words - my challenge to you (and to myself) is to ponder and meditate on what Christ's death and resurrection mean to your faith and to your life. And not just today, or this weekend, but every day. God is ALIVE - and because He lives, so may we.

In His love,
CK