Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Josh 1:9
”No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” 1 Cor 10:13 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:5-7
That’s it. You’ve begun by taking the first step on your journey. You didn’t choose to begin? Nope. God chose for you to first be aware and then to begin your new journey. Today you can interact with God and you can most certainly interact with others. You know the answer. What you choose to do with it is up to you.
Chapter 4: It’s Not About You
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
The notion that our purpose is love and that we need to be loving in every interaction, every day can seem daunting. God gave us free will. In the beginning we exercised that will by eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The moment we did that we created a separation between ourselves and God and between ourselves and each other. Knowing became a separate action from being. In other words, we don’t always do what we know is right.
We know how we should eat to be healthy but our actions don’t always reflect that. We know how we need to manage our finances or that we should be taking care of the less fortunate but our knowing isn’t always reflected in our actions. We have a choice.
We can choose to practice being in God’s presence and getting out of His way so that he can use us fully. When we practice this in every interaction we have, then everyone we meet can experience God’s love. How awesome is that? Even better, while we can practice, we never will be nor do we need to be perfect at it! God will make it into perfection. How great is it to know that we can take on a new way of being in the world and we cannot fail? Though we shouldn’t fear failure, it is also true that we cannot do this alone.
“But I’m good with people.” You cannot do this alone.
“But I volunteer my time to good causes.” You cannot do this alone.
“But I’m strong and smart.” You cannot do this alone.
Only with God’s strength can we fulfill our purpose.
“But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth.” 2 Timothy 4:17 “So do not fear for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10
Your ability to love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength and your neighbor as yourself is not about you. Your strengths and weaknesses, intelligence, past accomplishments or willpower are inconsequential. God will use you as He sees fit. Our choice is whether or not we want to cooperate with Him. Do we want to participate in the process? Do we want to experience the fullness of God’s love through the work of the Holy Spirit? When we choose to engage with God, we participate in God’s ability to work through us. As your relationship with Him grows you will inevitably begin to recognize His love for you and those around you. As you get to know Him more and more, it won’t be hard work. You will look forward to the opportunity to love your neighbor. Why? Because He does.
Maybe you’re thinking: “How could God use me? I’m too quiet or shy. I could never reach out to others.” No matter how introverted or extroverted you are, no matter what your skill set, how many people you interact with, your physical condition—God wants to work through you exactly as you are. He made you the way you are to serve a purpose. His purpose.
We are like a garden of wildflowers. Each is unique, each is special and each is deliberately created by God for a unique purpose. Each is dependent upon the other and God to fulfill their purpose.
Relax. It’s not about you, your strengths or weaknesses. To surrender yourself to Him is the beginning of purpose. It is His work and he has merely invited you along for the ride.
When we experience worry or fear about the future is when we are betting on our own skills rather than God’s. If we trust that His strength is enough, that He is constantly available to us, that He loves us more than we can imagine and wants to help us, then there is no fear, no worry. He will carry us through. Trust that God loves you. Trust that He is working through you and see what happens.
“However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him’—but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 2: 9-10
Chapter 5: It’s All About You
“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love.” Ephesians 1:4
“But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.” 2 Thessalonians 2:13
This whole thing is about you. Before the creation, before time, God knew you and loved you. He loves you now and He will never leave you. You are the apple of his eye, created in His image and destined for eternal, joyful, peaceful, loving relationship with Him.
Here is a mystery. When He thinks of you He thinks only of you. He is fully present with you and loving toward you. Your concerns, fears and joys are His as well. There are no secrets. He knows the whole you and He loves you. You may ask, “Well, then what about everyone else?” The mystery is that He is the same with every person. How does He do that? I don’t know. It’s a mystery.
You are the reason He willingly paid the ultimate price to make a way for you to live with Him forever. The only remaining obstacle you face is your own choice. He will not force himself upon you. You must choose freely to love Him. That’s how much God loves you. How much do you love yourself?
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Think about that second commandment for a moment: He said, love your neighbor AS YOURSELF. Why would he put it like that? He could have just left it at “Love your neighbor” or “Love your neighbor as I love you” but he didn’t. It’s almost as if he sneaked a third commandment in there: Love yourself.
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