Lesson 4: If dependence is the goal, weakness is the advantage.
I had no grand event in which the Lord revealed this concept to me. He revealed it in little doses, in several instances, several situations. I believe I am really just scratching the surface on this idea and will be learning depths more about this later; I can’t wait! So here we go.
Humans, certain cultures and individuals more than others, have a tendency toward self-reliance. To current American culture, independence is viewed as strong, fierce, and successful, while dependence is viewed as weak, inadequate, and incomplete. However in the Kingdom of God, the Word says that being in a place of dependence and weakness is actually the best place you can be. How is this?
Growing up as a financially secure, sociable, athletic, sound-minded, middleclass American, I didn’t really need God. My parents provided me with food, shelter, clothes, social skills, discipline, and most of what I needed. My school provided me with education and opportunities for leadership and success. My friends provided me encouragement, comfort, and companionship. My volleyball teams provided me with a sense of belonging, purpose, and achievement. My church provided me with a sense of spiritual security, giving me a worldview that made me feel good and answered the “big questions.” I had all that I needed, and so much of what I wanted. There were few or no times growing up when I actually needed God’s power, presence or intervention. Sure I needed Him to get ace the final exam, break through a big block in a pivotal game, have patience with my siblings, have enough time to do everything I was expected to at work, and to make the “right” decision about which college to go to. Maybe I needed His help a little bit, but life would still continue on and continue to be pretty swell whether He helped me or not. [I don’t want to diminish or negate the Lord’s power and purposes in these events because I fully believe God is a God of details and that He worked in many of those things even when I didn’t see Him or invite Him in, but bear with me as I form this point.]
Greater dependence leads to greater intimacy. Think about any team building exercises you have done. They all involve having to depend on the others on your team. Chemistry, dynamics, and trust develop when you practice dependence on one another. Why is it in our greatest trials, our greatest times of need, that we grow closest to God? It is because in those times we rely on Him and fully depend on Him, often because we have to.
If we believe that intimacy grows and life becomes more as God intended it to when we have to depend on God, why wait until we are in a dire situation to get blessed in such a way!? I believe that if we want to proactively grow in intimacy with the Father, we have to practice dependence, seek it out, ask for weakness (or really gain an awareness of our weaknesses so we can invite His strength), and put ourselves in positions of need. I don’t have to be on the World Race stranded in Western Africa with no means of communication for God to show up radically in my life. I can create opportunities to invite God to show up right here today.
Assess your life for a moment with me as I assess mine: how often do I really need Him, do I really trust Him with something more than a good grade, getting to work on time, or not blowing up on that person who gets under my skin? Why don’t I need God that often? Are my prayers, dreams, and life goals too small to need God’s help? Where is my independence an idol? Where does pride prevent me from depending on God or another?
The story of Jesus and the rich, young ruler is one of my favorites. In it, I don’t think Jesus is condemning wealth so much as saying, if you want to follow him, you have to depend on him. Jesus didn’t tell the man, “You will be better at following me if you sell all your possessions,” or, “It will be more exciting to follow me if you have to depend on me to provide.” Jesus gave an ultimatum: “Sell all you have and give it to the poor, then you can come and follow me.” It says the man walked away disheartened and sorrowful because he had great possessions. Jesus then says to his disciples, “How difficult is it for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
In Matthew 5, Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” The poor are those in need, so in other words, blessed are those in need of God – the one who satisfies our spirit – for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” – to hunger and thirst means to be in lack. You cannot need God and therefore receive God if you lack nothing.
While the world tells us the highest quality life is one in pre-established safety, security, and sufficiency, Jesus says truly abundant life, the kind of quality of life we were designed for, comes through full, daily, and complete dependence on the One who gave us life itself.
I urge you, embrace lack; choose weakness; depend on your Heavenly Father – don’t just wait until you have to. When we live lives of self-reliance, we miss out on so much of not just what God has for us, but on God Himself, the real treasure we need and want.
We can’t truly know God the Father as Yahweh-jireh, the God who provides, if we never need Him to provide for us. We can’t truly know Him as Moshia, our Deliverer, if we never need Him to deliver us. We can’t truly know Him as Yahweh-rapha, the God who heals, if we never need Him to heal us. You receive the fullness of God when you need the fullness of God. Until then, you’re really, really missing out.
The story ends with Jesus letting the young man walk away. He didn’t even chase after him and try to convince him that it would be worth it. Yes, God pursues us, but He also respects our “no” and honors our decisions. Don’t be the man walking away from Jesus, from Love Incarnate, because you are too self-reliant. He will let you, and you will miss out on the whole point of our existence – to be known by God and to know Him, to be loved by God and to love Him, to be with Him as He is with us, and to walk with Him as He walks with us.
If you want to be inspired to radically depend on God, read this short, incredible story of George Mueller and the miraculous ways God showed up for him when he allowed himself to be in great need.
Father, thanks for the gift of the choice to depend on you. Would you shift our perspectives from “dependence is weak” to “dependence is opportunity for communion with our Father”? Would you shift our inclinations from avoiding dependence to seeking dependence on you? Would you increase our hunger and thirst for you? Oh God, don’t let a life of self-sufficiency be okay with us! Thank you, Jesus, that you don’t call us to lives of dependence because your Dad gets some sick kick out of us needing Him, but because we actually do need Him and because He loves to provide, and provide in abundance, for His kids. Thanks for the example you’ve given us. Holy Spirit, empower us to live in the same way. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
