COMPLACENT

Yesterday's blog brought this comment by Linda who blogs here:

"I'm thinking that the best church I ever experienced was the years when I co-led a Celebrate Recovery program. Loved those people - their honesty, their passion for Jesus, and praise, and recovery, and authenticity.

No masks, just raw, real, encouraging life together, the broken trusting God for every breath in many cases."

The best church she ever experienced was a group of those who have suffered from addictions and all the ravages it can afflict on us and those we love.  The broken and defeated who have learned to turn to Jesus.  Those who came to the group without a mask but instead with the real me on open display.  "The broken trusting God for every breath in many cases."  This comment kept surfacing today as I went about my day to day routine.  Why would this group be the best church she ever experienced?


As I thought this over, it occurred to me I have felt the closest to God when I was in my most desperate moments.  Heart broken, fearful, anxious, desperate, and alone--I cried out to God and He made His presence known to me.  I earnestly sought God when I was the most desperate.  When I had no answers, when all seemed lost, and when I no longer knew my way, I sought Him at a level like never before.  And He was there.  I knew the glory of the Holy Spirit interpreting the prayers I could not verbalize but only groan.  When all seemed lost--God revealed His faithful comfort in a way I had been too busy and too distracted in my comfort to know before.


So when Linda was in a group of those who had known the depths of true despair, she acknowledged their total dependence upon a Sovereign God to get them through the next moment drew them together.  They leaned heavily upon God--sought Him in their waking--trusted Him in their sleeping and knew the glory of true dependence upon Him for their very life.  You do not walk into Celebrate Recovery when all is well with the world---you walk in when you are grasping by one finger your hold on your very life.  The room is filled with desperate people who are crying out to our Great God for help.  AND, He is present--and they have church.



This brought me to this question--

If I knew my knowledge of who God is could grow, 
If I knew that my relationship with God could deepen,
If I knew I could experience faith to the fullest,
If I knew I could understand the only hope comes from Him,
If I knew my love for Him could be even deeper--

what would I be willing to experience?  How much pain, how much heartbreak, how much sorrow would I suffer in order to know God at an even deeper level?  Why in my humanness do I become complacent and satisfied with the depth of my relationship with Him?  Why am I content when it could be so much more?

I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.

Proverbs 8:17

4 comments

  1. "How much pain, how much heartbreak, how much sorrow would I suffer in order to know God at an even deeper level?"

    Good question; which leads me to ask - Does God really wants us to undergo heartbreak, sorrow and suffering so that we might get to know Him?

    I thought - "I have come in order that you might have life — life in all its fullness." John 10:10

    God bless.

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    1. No, is the answer. Unfortunately, we go on our merry way forgetting our deep need for God until the bottom falls out of our carefully constructed lives. THEN we earnestly seek Him. Why am I not striving daily to know Him deeper? My complacency is the barrier to a deeper, richer, fuller relationship with Thr Father. How sad!
      Blessings, Victor!

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  2. I think, in answer to Victor, yes, friend, he does want us to undergo heartbreak, sorrow, suffering just so we can get to know him. Life is a mystery, full of all those things, but also full of plenty of good.

    We were visiting my husbands sister over at the nursing home the other day (she works there) and in came a woman who said she believes right now, this is living in hell. She is a non believer, period. My husband, tried to explain to her the truth, she didn't want to hear it...how sad is that? I simply don't understand folks who cant believe in our Lord and Savior. It saddens me....truly it does.

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    1. It is our task to give the truth and God takes over from there. I immediately thought of the parable of sowing the seeds in different soils. Thankful your husband shared the truth- and you never know that seed might sprout someday.
      Blessings, My Friend!

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Your comments keep my writing and often cause me to think. A written form of a hug or a pat on the back and an occasional slap into reality---I treasure them all!