“Slowly, I began to see that Jesus doesn’t call us to a life of ascent where we move further and further away from the things of this world. Rather, I believe he calls us to a life of descent, of downward mobility, where we move down into the trenches of real life, real pain, real hope in our own lives and in the lives of others.”
Friends, I’m coming to you after a long while.
And, I’m sorry that it’s been so long.
Our sweet, sweet Father has been walking me through some difficult things.
He’s been doing some stretching and shaping of my heart.
He’s continuously been bringing me to places of surrender, growth, and dependence.
And, to be completely honest, these things aren’t generally easy things to write about.
These things are painful, and unruly-
It’s not particularly easy to find the words to make them sound pretty or less messy.
I’ve found that it’s easy to write about God, it’s easy to want to run after God, when that looks pretty, easy, and effortless.
It’s easy to write about God when He looks like chai lattes, well-lit coffee shops, a bible, and a beautiful journal filled with the perfect curves and swirls of pretty words written in pretty calligraphy- all contained within the 4×4 walls of an aesthetic Instagram post.
It’s easy to want God when we’re able to remain, comfortably, within the boundaries of our comfort zones, grasping tightly to the things we’ve always carried with us- never having to surrender, never having to let go.
But, friends, Our God has not called us to a life of easy, half-hearted dependence.
And, He will take us to hard places and do what He has to do in order to bring us to places of complete and utter dependence, and surrender.
And, don’t get me wrong- I love and adore chai lattes, cozy coffee shops, rooftops, and sunrises just as much as the next person. And, I’m thankful for each time that I’m able to meet my Father in those spaces.
But, friends, when our Father calls us deeper, when He calls us into the trenches of raw, unfiltered mess- when He asks that we blindly follow Him into a season of unknowns, we must pick ourselves up, leave our spaces of comfortability, and follow Him there.
We must learn to accept our lack of understanding, our lack of preparedness, and our inadequacy- we must acknowledge our fear and uncertainty, and run head-first into scary, difficult things regardless.
And through it, our Father will bring us deeper in our trust and dependence on Him.
Hosea 6:3 “…. Let us press on to know Him”
May we be people who press on through difficult things, through uncomfortable things, and through painful things- for the sake of knowing our Father’s heart more completely.
May we be people who walk in utter obedience- in utter willingness to lie down parts of ourselves, and to follow our Father where He asks us to go in order to do beautiful things through us.
May we be people who, instead of reacting out of sheer circumstance, choose to abide in our Father’s steadfast joy, and peace in each and every moment.
Our Father is calling me higher, calling me deeper, and drawing me nearer.
And, frankly, I don’t know that surrender, or growth for that matter, ever gets easier.
But, it is increasingly beautiful to grasp closely to our Father, and to walk in more fullness and more wholeness with each step.
