I had the pleasure of meeting some new people this week and our discussions have spawned some thoughts in me that I would like to share. Our discussions about life in general, getting married, finding a job, having children, establishing in a community, have led me to question the status quo. Have you ever felt like there was a certain thing you were supposed to do by a certain age? For example, you have to graduate from college by age 22 and get married by age 25? Or maybe even you have to start your family by age 30 or you might be too old for children and career?
Who makes up these rules and why do we keep badgering ourselves and others with these figures? I came to the startling realization this morning that life does progress in stages, but our uniqueness and our path for life is not easily compartmentalized. God created us to be beings created for worshipping Him, loving on others, and to serve the world. How did we come to create this formula for life that strays so far from God's intended purpose with us?
Well, I have decided that I am going to continue challenging the status quo and I am not going to live up to these societal trends of compartmentalizing my life. I want to enjoy my life, my marriage, my ministry, my (future) career, and my (future) children. No longer do I want to be enslaved by someone else's idea of what my life should look like and how I should progress on this journey. God has given me big dreams and promises that I want to see come to pass. So just because it doesn't fit the mold, doesn't mean it isn't right or beautiful.
Are there things in your life that challenge the status quo? Are there society imposed goals that you have been holding on to rather than the dreams God has for you? Please be encouraged today that God's dreams and plans for you are far greater than a societal formula for life. So dream big, love deep, and believe God for an awesome journey.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
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The older I get the more that I realize that life is tight rope. The problem I believe is not walking it, the problem comes when we stand still on it. There are a lot of issues that seem to be rolling around in my soul right now that I wrestle with.
Can you really love without an agenda and serve without motive. Is that possible? Is that Biblical? Didn't Jesus have an agenda and motive? Can you change the world without an agenda and motive? I believe the question should be can I love without pushing my personal agenda and can I serve without it benefiting my selfish motives? The key is who is at the center of everything that I am doing. What is my driving force?
Would I rather be formed or found? I heard this statement a month ago and it is really haunting me. That question has caused me to check myself, check my motives and my agenda. It has cause me to take a long look at not only what I do but why I do it.
I am finding that life is and will always be a tight rope. Life is a balancing act. You will know when it gets out of balance. The neat thing about the tight rope of our lives is that there is a safety net. You can make mistakes. No one requires you to be perfect.
What are you trying to balance?
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Monday, November 3, 2008
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Let me start off by saying that insecurity is something that I wrestle with on a daily basis. I worry about what I look like, I worry about what people are thinking about me or saying about me. I worry if I am doing a good enough job or not. Insecurity has been an issue in my life just about all of my life. God is speaking to me lately about this issue. The problem with me is where I find my security. If I only find my security in myself, then I have every right to be insecure, but if my security is found in Him then insecurity is not an issue.
Here are some issues with insecurity...
It will keep you from doing what God has called you to do. You will have yourself convinced that you are not able to fulfill the call that is on your life. You will talk yourself out of every situation that God has called you to because you feel you are not worthy. Listen, the old saying is still true, "God does not called the equipped, He equips the called." If we could do it on our own, He would not get any of the glory.
It will keep you from having meaningful relationships. If you are constantly worried about what everyone around you thinks, you will not be able to build any authentic relationships in your life. If you are only worried about pleasing other people, then you will keep putting on different masks and acting different according to who you are hanging out with. The issue with trying to please people all the time is they become bigger than God in your life and sometimes even become God.
You loose the sense of uniqueness that God created in you. God wired each one of us as individuals. That is the neat thing about your life. When we start living as a crowd and like the crowd to please the crowd, we get away from God's plan and purpose for our lives.
You will not help facilitate other's dreams around you. You will constantly be worried about if they are going to be more popular than you, make a bigger impact than you, be more liked than you. You will never help other people reach their full potential.
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It will keep you from doing what God has called you to do. You will have yourself convinced that you are not able to fulfill the call that is on your life. You will talk yourself out of every situation that God has called you to because you feel you are not worthy. Listen, the old saying is still true, "God does not called the equipped, He equips the called." If we could do it on our own, He would not get any of the glory.
It will keep you from having meaningful relationships. If you are constantly worried about what everyone around you thinks, you will not be able to build any authentic relationships in your life. If you are only worried about pleasing other people, then you will keep putting on different masks and acting different according to who you are hanging out with. The issue with trying to please people all the time is they become bigger than God in your life and sometimes even become God.
You loose the sense of uniqueness that God created in you. God wired each one of us as individuals. That is the neat thing about your life. When we start living as a crowd and like the crowd to please the crowd, we get away from God's plan and purpose for our lives.
You will not help facilitate other's dreams around you. You will constantly be worried about if they are going to be more popular than you, make a bigger impact than you, be more liked than you. You will never help other people reach their full potential.
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