I’ve spent a good part of my life striving. Striving for success, striving for acceptance, striving to be in God’s will, striving to live a life worthy of the calling, striving to be like Jesus.
While hiking up to a village in the foothills of the Himalayas, I discovered something about myself…
I’m tired of striving.
Jesus didn’t call me to strive to be like Him. He simply commanded me to follow Him.
This living in community thing has shown me what it looks like when you spend every walking moment with someone. Over the course of the last two months, a curious thing has been happening with my team–we’re starting to sound like each other; we’re even starting to act like each other. Little quirks and phrases that were once unique to a teammate, have become common, everyday language for the seven of us.
This is exactly what I’m called to do with Christ. As I simply sit in His presence, as I walk with Him and talk with Him in my daily life then I will pick up His mannerisms, His words and I will begin to look like Him, talk like Him, be like Him–no striving necessary.
At times like these, I am reminded of my simple, yet profound birth scripture:
“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
Matthew 6:33
And as I seek Him first, then all these things I’ve been striving for–success, acceptance, being in His will, living a life worthy of the calling, being like Jesus–will follow, but they will no longer be my definitions of those words. Instead, they will be my Father’s definitions.
