I am so honored to be guest posting on Krista’s blog today. It’s been weeks since I planned on writing something instructive on ‘Always Run For Your Life’, and today something finally comes to Life.
The most amazing thing I have discovered on this blog; is the variety of topics that can rise from ‘Running’ as an activity, as a hobby, as a passion.
Most of us already know that Christian Life is similar to a Race where there is a beginning and an end. And most Christian attempt day and night to reach the finish line in order to receive their rewards. To this day, several Christians had received God’s plans for their lives while foreseeing the end. This might have happened through a vision, a prophecy, a dream or any other method that God could have used to communicate His Vision.
Unfortunately, some people who have received God’s plan still find it very hard to achieve results in their race. How long has it been since you have received God’s visions in your Life? Have you achieved any decent results? Have reached the foreseen end? Are you constantly both’ so close and so far’ in the same time? Do you feel as if you are running without moving forward? Yes! It is very possible to run without moving forward.
All those questions sum themselves into one big question:
‘Why does the promised Will of God for my Life never come to realization in spite of all my efforts?
In your quest to find answers, you might find a lot of responses and even judgmental opinions.
This post is only dedicated to all those people who have accepted to do the will of God and are trying so hard to realize it but with no results…
There are two categories of underachievers in God’s Kingdom: ‘those who discover God’s plans and decide to do nothing and those who receive the plan, try hard to achieve it but barely see results.
The first category bears little interests to today’s topic, however; the second is very interesting to me because they constitute a group of honest people who passionately wants to see God’s will in their lives but who will NEVER see any results.
Why?
‘Because as much as the end matters, so does the Way’. To achieve God’s will, you need to reach the end of the race (or stage race) His way. As long as you constantly attempt to achieve God’s vision through your own means, you will fail for sure.
The formula goes like this: GOD’S VISION + MY WAY= 0.
On the opposite we have this: GOD’S VISION+ HIS WAY= RESULTS
Romans 12:2 teaches us to renew our human mind into God’s mind standard. In simpler words, it’s not enough to know the will of God. But you should also think like him.
When God transmitted His Plan to your Mind, He has shown you the end result. But some steps needed to be taken to reach the end. The reason why you are struggling is because you have been selective towards those steps: ‘choosing the most preferable ones and leaving out the undesirable ones by replacing them with your own steps’.
It’s not going to work.
Suppose that you go shopping in a supermarket, and buy a beautiful flat screen TV. At your way back home, when opening the box, you found the instruction manual (representing the mind of the inventor sharing tips to use your TV in a good manner) teaching you steps on how to use your TV. You really like your TV but for some reasons, you decide to use it following instructions contradicting the mind on the inventor. Eventually, you will not be able to use it at your own pleasure the right way. Something will go wrong.
There is a principle of wisdom I have constantly shared that goes like this: ‘the only way to profit from an invention created by someone else than you, is to follow his/her instruction on how to use it.’
This principle is true and applies to every single invention, including God’s Visions and Plans that are invented (not by you) but by God.
One crucial element in respecting God’s steps is what I call: ‘Blind obedience’.
Blind obedience will make you do God’s will anytime, even when you can’t figure the ‘why’. Blind Obedience will stretch your faith when the why will be discovered; that’s how the steps (or race stages) work. Blind obedience will be your best friends while following steps (or race stages) because in many cases, God will NOT explain Himself to you. Do you want to know why?
Because He is the King and therefore, He is not accountable to you. He wants your Faith to please Him. In due time (whether you choose to obey or not) you will know and understand the why.
You now understand that in your struggle, there is (or there was) a reason why God wants (or wanted) you to: marry that specific person (even if he/she is poor),
enroll for those specific studies,
relocate in that that specific town,
apply for that specific job,
ect….
Every time you choose not to follow His Steps, you are disobeying. James 4:7 says this:
‘Therefore, Submit yourselves to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you’
This verse sounds like pure mathematics; if you submit to God’ steps, you automatically resist the devil who in turns flies away from you. On the opposite it would also mean that if you refuse to submit (disobey) to God’ steps, you automatically invite the devil’s presence in your Life.
Did you understand anything?
‘A refusal to submit to God’s steps has opened doors to the devil in your race (which is bad luck and it makes you slow). You are in love with God’s vision, you heartily wants to achieve it, but the non submissive spirit makes you run within Satan’s presence which grows bigger as your disobedience carries on.’
That’s why things are tough on your road, even while hoping to see God’s will in your life.
It’s time to embrace God’s way of doing things even if they don’t look attractive.
Run in God’s presence through obedience.
Maurice Kande.