March 7, 2006 - Tuesday
Current mood: relieved
I have been struggling a lot lately with "God's will"...That is a term we throw around a lot as Christians, but I don't necessarily buy into the idea that God has one specific, fool-proof plan for your life and you have to figure out exactly what that is or you can't be "in His perfect will." That's too hard, and we're not robots. What about the freedom found in Christ? So, I was straightening shelves at the bookstore the other day...a feat which I hate to tackle, and often avoid until the last possible minute.
Understanding God's will: How to Hack the Equation Without Forumlas, was written by Kyle Lake. You may have heard about Kyle's tragic death. He was in a freak accident at a church service last fall, in which he was electrocuted and died. He left behind a wife and three small children, and a very large church in Texas, full of baffled believers.
That's not really too relevant to the book, though, although it does give kind of a different perspective on some of the things he says in there.
I'm not quite finished with the book yet, but I have learned two very important things...I'll try to explain them the best I can, using the examples I remember from Kyle.
Lesson 1: It's more about the journey than the destination.The first truth Kyle brought out in this book was that Christians get so caught up in "finding God's will for their lives". Well, do you think God's will is for you to have that one specific career? And then what? Then you've already accomplished His will, so you're sitting pretty for the rest of your life? We get way too focused on certain destinations or points in our lives. I've said all of this before. I am always looking forward to the next big step, as to when my life will really start. "Oh, when I move to Nashville, that's when my life will finally make sense." Or, "Once I get married and start a family, then I can really start living." Well, reaching a certain destination is never going to bring fulfillment or any sense of contentment. Know why? We weren't created for any specific destination on this earth. We we will not be perfectly fulfilled until we have reached our ultimate destination, which is being in the eternal presence of God. Life here on earth is more about the journey. We are not supposed to keep our eyes totally focused on whatever destination we are reaching for. If you are constantly looking into tomorrow, you miss everything that is happening in your life today. Just as we shouldn't dwell on the past, we also should not get ourselves so wrapped up in the future, that we neglect the present.
Lesson #2 God is our Father.In the second section of the book, Kyle uses a metaphor of God as our Father. A lot of people have a hard time with this metaphor, because of their family situations. Kyle explains that God our Father is not an absent, workaholic who neglects the children he has brought into this world, nor is he an overprotective father, who will not allow his children to grow up.
He uses an example of his daughter. At the time he was writing, his daughter was two. He explained that he and his wife never allowed little Avery to give her input for any decisions regarding her life. If they left the decisions up to her, she would just whine all the time for junk food and stay up late and run around naked. She was totally reliant upon them for her protection and her providence, to ensure that she would live a full and healthy life. He then said that when Avery was 16, this same parenting tactic would not work. He could not make all of Avery's decisions for her. She would have learned to rationalize and use logic and arguments and reasoning in order to make decisions for herself. He, as her father, would still offer his input, but he would trust that he had raised her in such a way that she would be able to make some decisions by herself by that point in her life. He also used the example of a child in college. The child calls his father and asks, "Father, what is your will for my college major?" The father replies, "Son, my will is for you to make your own decision, based on what you are interested in."
Doesn't it make sense that if God has created us for a journey, he would allow us to experience it, allowing us to make some stupid mistakes, but always being by our side to comfort us when we do? I think there's a lot more freedom in Christ than we realize. I'm not tied down to one specific career path, one specific location, maybe even one certain man I HAVE to marry. Life isn't about finding the next puzzle piece. It's about being on your journey, pleasing God, and learning new things every step along the way.
So that's what I've learned so far...You have to forgive me because my explanations weren't nearly as good as Kyle's...Hey! Maybe you should just go read the book for yourself.
Currently reading : Understanding God's Will: How To Hack The Equation Without Formulas By Kyle Lake Release date: 31 October, 2004
