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Okay, that was meant a little harshly to get your attention. Did I get it? Too often in life we care about what everyone else thinks, so much so that we will not do what God wants because we're afraid of what everyone else thinks. How messed up is that?!!
If you attend The Journey, I want you to know that we care about you and we want God's best for you, but we are called to listen to God. To do what He tells us, no matter what. The vision God has given for The Journey is a clear one. It has not wavered in our 5 1/2 years and it won't change now.
By the way, this post is not in regards to any specific criticism we've received, so don't read into this a reactionary blog post. Simply put, I wanted to talk today about how I ALWAYS want God's vision in my life to trump anyone else's input. We need to be people that listen to wise advice, that seek the counsel of others. But, too often in my own life, I have not done what I knew God wanted me to out of fear of what others would think.
I believe now more than ever in the vision that God gave us for The Journey. He burned it in our hearts and caused us to be driven by it, willing to leave security and paychecks to chase after this dream. It is thrilling and humbling to see this dream become a reality. And, I don't ever want to dishonor God by refusing to stay true to His calling in my life, or to hold firmly to His dream for this community.
I'm reminded of Acts 5, where the disciples were being persecuted and the religious leaders were threatening them. A pharisee named Gamaliel said this to his fellow religious leaders (v. 39) "But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God". That's pretty powerful! Standing against a God-ordained vision is like fighting against God. I'm choosing to not fight God. To read the whole story, check out Acts 5:27-40 .
Where or how have you not listened to God and fought against Him?
Simple does not always equal Easy. And when it doesn't, we often stand at a fork in the road. If you want to go in a certain direction, you need to set yourself on that path. It's pretty simple. You want to get straight A's, you need to learn to study, set aside the time, and focus. Simple. You know what you need to do, but it isn't always easy.
I want to lose some weight. It's a pretty simple formula. I need to eat better by getting rid of things like pop (soda), eating late, etc. and I need to exercise - consistently. I need to mix up my exercise routine, and I need to get up early every day. But, just because it's simple, doesn't mean it's easy! Which is why I still haven't lost the weight I want.
So, what simple, but not easy area in your life do you need to set your focus on, and set your feet in a right direction? What complex issue are you facing, that if you really dig down, is fairly simple - but the thing that makes it complex is that it isn't easy?
I think a lot of people have great intentions for what they want to do and how they want to live - they have a simple formula, they even know the direction they should head, but they never get there because it isn't easy. How sad is that?! Let's resolve to do what we know we should, whether it's easy or not.
By the way, I can't believe I've been using the toilet wrong all these years - how embarrassing!
