Wednesday, April 17, 2013

O is for...


Even When It's Rough

‘Everyone entrusted with a mission is an angel.’ Moses Maimonides

I try to heed God’s call, and though I am far from being an angel, I never doubt God. I doubt me. I trust God, I don’t trust me. I’m sinful, after all. Fallible. God might be sending me roadmaps to follow and in my unwitting ignorance, I might be passing them right by…

Have you ever seen the movie Bruce Almighty? Bruce, bless his misguided heart, tries desperately to connect with God. He longs to be an angel…on his terms, of course. So, as he’s driving along, praying in abject frustration, he basically says, “God, I’ll do what you want, but I need your guidance! I need to know what you want so I can see it through.’ The poor guy longs to obey God’s call, but what happens? While he prays, God sends literal blockades to slow him down and make him pay attention. Bruce simply becomes irritated by slow moving traffic. Next, God sends directional arrows in the form of blaring street signs:  “Warning!” “Proceed with Caution” “Slippery Road Ahead” “Wrong Way.”

Naturally, Bruce ignores the messages and God’s truest mission. I think, at his deepest core, he’s unreceptive to being obedient because his will doesn’t match God’s.

I can so relate.

I long to be obedient to God’s will in my life, but my stubbornness, a sense that I know what’s best for me, tends to interfere. It’s then, like Bruce, that I miss the signs and a troublesome learning curve tends to happen. But, once God carries me through—as he always does—I look back, sigh at my own folly, and find myself thinking, “God, thank you for tolerating me and loving me in spite of myself!”

Have you ever been there?


8 comments:

  1. I think I'm the queen of missing signs--or worse, ignoring them if they don't lead where I want to go!

    Great post, Marianne.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL! I can completely relate, Liz! Me, too!!! I'm so grateful we serve a God who welcomes us and cherishes us despite our sometimes misguided attempts at obedience! Thanks for visiting!!

      Delete
  2. I think you've hit on the true "Big O," Marianne. :) Obedience is rarely easy but always pays big dividend when God is the One giving the orders. We humans always have to learn the hard way, it seems...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ain't it the truth, Delia?? What gets to me sometimes is the fact that, for the most part, and like most people, I'm TRYING to do what's right, and WANT to do Him honor and service...but then...smack. In comes a roadblock that might cause a bit of pain, but ultimately leads me to where I need to go. :-)

      Delete
  3. I agree. Free will leads us into so many kinds of traps and cages of our own making!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Traps and cages of our own making....Absolutely spot-on, and an incredible choice of words, Miss Tanya!! AGREE! xo

      Delete
  4. I remember warning signs I ignored. When I mentioned them to others, they replied to me, "You are just being negative. You are doing something for the Lord, finish it." Well, sometimes, God says no to a project. Obedience reqires faith and a willingness to listen. Thanks for the post.

    ReplyDelete
  5. That is SO TRUE, Gay! It's hard to admit something we've thrown our hearts into is over, because God says it is. It takes an ear that truly hears the Spirit when it speaks to recognize the STOP sign and actually stop at God's command.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking time to leave a comment!