Have you ever been pulled around like the last skater on a line? The person in the middle just has to do small steps…not even actually skating. As the line of skaters radiates out, the further a skater is from the center the more quickly she has to skate. Sometimes in life we find ourselves close to the beginning where our skating (and therefore life) is not even difficult.
At other times something happens where we end up at the end of the line through no fault of our own struggling to keep up. These are times of challenge that we all face. Occasionally we seem to put ourselves towards the outside of the line where keeping up is difficult or even seems hopeless. These are the trials of life that we all face. It is the human condition that we all face. The good news is that we do not face these situations alone. We have a constant Companion with us Who is always ready to give us solace and guidance in such times. All we have to do is ask.
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God,
who gives generously to all without finding fault,
and it will be given to you.
James 1:5(NIV)
The problem is that we sometimes try to go on our own strength…to do it our way. In Celebrate Recovery…a Christian version of AA…people are reminded to give their lives to God. These teachings tell that the difficult things that the attendees are trying to overcome cannot be handled alone. It is just too daunting for a person in recovery to rely on themselves. I know a woman who told God, “Lord, please make this change in my life easy. You know I am not very strong.” She found that changing her dependence on alcohol was easier for her than she had ever dreamed. She went to God at the very beginning and He listened and answered her prayer.
To fully depend on God for help is not a new concept for us. It is just that sometimes we don’t remember to call on Him. This happens when we are in crisis mode. It also happens when we are faced with choosing what we should do that are not crisis but just to select one option out of several we are considering. None of the alternative choices are bad. However, one of the options is the one God would have us do. The thing is that we must seek His counsel.
I once knew a very old man who had served God throughout his entire life. We were at a church meeting where we had broken into small groups. The topic was relying on God. This old pastor said that when he got up in the morning he actually asked God to help him choose his clothes for the day. At the time I remember that I thought it was a bit over the top, and maybe it was an extreme. However, it illustrated the point that our lives are not our own, and that depending on God was a foundation stone to our behavior and choices.
All we need to do is to call on God, who is fully present to us anyway, to reveal to us His aspirations for us and how we must act or choose to be in line with His holy will. Then we have to sit back and listen for His voice and be willing to bend our own will to His.
Heavenly Father, I praise you that you are always present and available to me when I need to make choices about what to choose in my life. Please help me to remain mindful of this and to always ask for Your guidance in all my moments of choice that life presents to me.
Amen.Written by
Corinne Mustafa
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