I’ll be real with you. Sometimes God asks us to do things before we understand the full reasoning behind it. We are invited to adventure with him, but giving him our “yes” often requires laying down things that we define as “good”.
So the case with my electronics. I heard God speak. He invited me to do away with them for the next 8 months, in order to experience more of him. When you truly experience God’s presence, you don’t want anything else. In that moment, he was there, and I gave him my yes. It wasn’t a strict command. It was simply an invitation. An invitation to journey into greater faith, let go of things I use for comfort, and an opportunity to trust more in the transformational power of His presence. I was with my team and I spoke it out so I wouldn’t turn back on it the next day. Later that month I spoke it out in front of my squad/squad leaders (about 50 other people).
The doubts have been creeping in. I’ve spent a lot of November clinging to my Ipad and all the resources I have available at my fingertips. What about photos? I won’t be able to capture the incredible sights and fun memories. I won’t be able to share my experience and stay connected through Instagram and Facebook. What about an alarm? How am I going to blog?? (Getting posts up is challenging enough already.) How will I listen to sermons? What about getting rejuvenated through worship music?
Am I going to miss out on things? Probably. Will it frustrate me at times? I’m sure it will. But God promises that if we are willing to lose what we’ve been holding so tightly, that’s when we truly find life.
A friend once challenged me with this thought: “Think of what it would be like to have faith 500 years ago.” As wonderful as it has been to connect to God through inspiring sermons, experiential worship music, and Ash Fran’s reading list on my kindle, I’ve been incredibly overfed. I don’t need more information, I need Him. And the cool thing is, my team has said they are happy to share their computers with me so I can write blogs, respond to emails, and do the necessary things. Since I struggle with feeling like a burden to others, this will be a great growth opportunity in willingness to ask for help when I need it. I’m dropping “the stuff” during my layover in Los Angeles on December 6th. Don’t feel like you can’t email me anymore or connect with me through the internet. I’ll still be checking in.
