3/11/10
Ebb and Flow
God is such a God of beautiful order. He created our world with consistent movement. First, there is the daily visit from the sun that brings precious light and heat. The gravitational pull of the moon creates tides that change 4 times a day every day and is predictable down to the minute. Finally, we have 4 seasons that move through out the year that allow the earth to replenish itself and they allow us a refreshing anticipation of the next season. When you step back and look, God is a God of balance. God designed ebb and flow.
Now, what does that mean to me in my life? Spiritually, I want to LIVE in the spring and fall. I love it when everything in my life comes alive, “Spring Time”! I also love it when I can see FRUIT, the harvest of time invested in the lives of others. It’s the summer heat and winter cold that I would love to avoid. I struggle just like many Christians in our western culture who believe God blesses us by making our life free of pain, difficulty, hardship, persecution and disappointment. (Maybe that is why Patti and I secretly long to live in the Caribbean, where the low is 70 degrees and the high is 90 degrees with a consistent trade wind. Lets not mention hurricanes right now, okay!)
Right now, I am living in a summer of intense HEAT. In Georgia, often we will arise from a night of rest and walk outside into 90 degree tempature @ 9:00am. YUK! It is hot when we wake and hot when we go to bed, it feels hot all the time; you know what I mean? That is where I feel I am now, weary of the heat and tired of the season. I am ready spiritually for a fall wind to blow!
PERSPECTIVE, this word has become so real to me of late. I just finished a book I strongly recommend, “The Noticer” by Andy Andrews. In this book, the author uses captivating stories to show the reader the value of perspective. Life is largely “how you look it”. You problem is not your problem, but how we digest difficulty is our problem. So many people experience a storm and they ride it out with little loss. The storm is real, the winds blow and the waves beat against their house. Yet, their house stands. Others experience the same storm but the storm STAYS for weeks, months and even years. They become “storm carriers” and everywhere they go they carry the storm into every relationship and into other areas of life. I DO not want to be a “Storm Carrier”!
So, will this heat, this storm, this season ever end? Sometimes it feels like it won’t, but deep down I know the truth……. God will send another season, a season of refreshing, a season where the heat wave relents, a season when the autumn breeze will blow. How do I know this? Because God is a good God and God is a God of order!
Maybe you are like me and are very tired of this season, well hang on a little longer, don’t quit walking, and tear up that resignation letter. The best is on the way! Don’t grow weary in well doing; for if you endure, you WILL and I WILL reap a harvest!
Hanging On,
andy
PS: “I KNOW something WILL break through in just a little while”