Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)
You may have heard it said that God has a calling and a purpose for our lives and He hopes to make use of them. Whether you're a student, a husband, a wife, a pastor, a 9-5 secretary, or a waiter, God has a further destination for you. Despite how this looks for you specifically, we often find that getting there is a lot harder than we ever think it is going to be. Although we may be able to muster up the excitement to talk about going we can't ever seem to be on our way. Why is it that getting where God wants us to be becomes so hard when He's called us there?
I've never been on a plane before (although it's on my bucket-list) but when talking to recent or frequent flyers one thing often gets brought up and thats pricing. One particular fee came to mind when writing this blog, "Excess baggage fees." Basically, if you bring more than a Zip-loc bag worth of belongings onto the plane you pay an arm and a leg, not exactly but you get the point. I guess it's reasonable if you're trying to transport some 200 people. Although this fee may seem excessive when we've already paid so much to board the plane in the first place, it may be something we can apply to our lives and learn from.
"With the bad consequences from places we shouldn't have gone to also came the satisfaction of selfish desires that got us there."
At church we are often told there is a new distinction between us and our past but what does that even mean? Many people may take this to mean that just because I am not physically there anymore we are free from our past but that is not necessarily the case. Sometimes no matter how much we hated being stuck in our past, we still seem to carry it with us. Why? Because although my past may be associated with hurt, pain, or abuse it also holds comfort for many. What I mean by that is that although it wasn't always good we knew what to expect and there were times when it was desirable. With the bad consequences from places we shouldn't have gone to also came the satisfaction of selfish desires that got us there. We sometimes hold the past as a pass to excuse us from moving on and that's just the sad truth.
I currently work at an elementary school, which I love! The kids, the work experience, the impact I get to make, it all is pretty cool. I work at a school where the children are deprived in many aspects; academically, financially, of love, family, etc. and because of the situations many of our kids come from we deal with a lot of behavior problems. On several occasions I've had conversations with children who misbehave and when asked why they respond with things along the line of "My mom is in jail, I don't have a dad, there's no food at home, etc." When I hear these statements from the children my heart breaks but at an instant I came to a question, "Do I allow them to get away with not following directions because of their past?" Emotionally I felt that to put more restriction or discomfort on them would just be unfair because life was already unfair but would this really help them?
The answer soon came to be no because no matter how sorry I felt that a child would have to endure such hardship, I was not doing them any favors by handicapping them into thinking that they couldn't live past their past. Although it may have seemed as a privilege or a benefit to them momentarily, in reality they were subliminally being told it was okay to remain a prisoner of what had happened to them. I could see them growing up thinking that because life was hard they were exempt from working hard and things should just be handed to them. Now being released from our past may sound like a good thing, and it is, but sometimes there are comforts we have established there. Maybe for you it was being in an abusive relationship that even though there was pain, there was also a temporary fix for lust, loneliness, and a low self-esteem. People who may have heard how much pain you've gone through feel for you but then I've seen people go back to hurtful situations they so longed to come away from; it's the place we can't seem to get away from.
"The person in the middle sees both behind him and in front of him but never fully experiences either one."
I too know that place of hesitance and although I hated that place I also, in a very self-driven way, desired it. But I also desired the new place God had for me. This is that sickening and wasteful moment of our lives where we want two things and due to lack of decision we don't obtain either one. So how do we get past this? Back to my mentioning of the "Excess Baggage Fees," when we long to bring things we don't need, things of our past, along with us to our new destination there is a fee to pay. That fee is never seeing the new destination! The key comes down to one thing, making a (singular) decision and sticking to it.
Simple but oh-so profound. Simple but not easy. But here's the thing, that no matter what you choose to do, there is a price to pay! Some of us think that if I stay in the middle (the place I can't seem to leave) than I'll get the best of both worlds; in reality we find ourselves never really obtaining anything completely or fully. The person in the middle sees both behind him and in front of him but never fully experiences either one. We have to realize that in any effective decision made sacrifice comes with it. So which do I choose? Two questions come to mind, "What if I do and what If I don't?" After having counted the cost (Luke 14:28) what thing are you willing to go after no matter what? Once you have answered this and have acted on it you will be on your way! My advice is to follow the thing God has called you to do but you must also be willing to do so. Are you? Will you remain in the miserable middle, in a pitiful past, or walk into the famed future? You decide.
You may have heard it said that God has a calling and a purpose for our lives and He hopes to make use of them. Whether you're a student, a husband, a wife, a pastor, a 9-5 secretary, or a waiter, God has a further destination for you. Despite how this looks for you specifically, we often find that getting there is a lot harder than we ever think it is going to be. Although we may be able to muster up the excitement to talk about going we can't ever seem to be on our way. Why is it that getting where God wants us to be becomes so hard when He's called us there?
I've never been on a plane before (although it's on my bucket-list) but when talking to recent or frequent flyers one thing often gets brought up and thats pricing. One particular fee came to mind when writing this blog, "Excess baggage fees." Basically, if you bring more than a Zip-loc bag worth of belongings onto the plane you pay an arm and a leg, not exactly but you get the point. I guess it's reasonable if you're trying to transport some 200 people. Although this fee may seem excessive when we've already paid so much to board the plane in the first place, it may be something we can apply to our lives and learn from.
"With the bad consequences from places we shouldn't have gone to also came the satisfaction of selfish desires that got us there."
At church we are often told there is a new distinction between us and our past but what does that even mean? Many people may take this to mean that just because I am not physically there anymore we are free from our past but that is not necessarily the case. Sometimes no matter how much we hated being stuck in our past, we still seem to carry it with us. Why? Because although my past may be associated with hurt, pain, or abuse it also holds comfort for many. What I mean by that is that although it wasn't always good we knew what to expect and there were times when it was desirable. With the bad consequences from places we shouldn't have gone to also came the satisfaction of selfish desires that got us there. We sometimes hold the past as a pass to excuse us from moving on and that's just the sad truth.
I currently work at an elementary school, which I love! The kids, the work experience, the impact I get to make, it all is pretty cool. I work at a school where the children are deprived in many aspects; academically, financially, of love, family, etc. and because of the situations many of our kids come from we deal with a lot of behavior problems. On several occasions I've had conversations with children who misbehave and when asked why they respond with things along the line of "My mom is in jail, I don't have a dad, there's no food at home, etc." When I hear these statements from the children my heart breaks but at an instant I came to a question, "Do I allow them to get away with not following directions because of their past?" Emotionally I felt that to put more restriction or discomfort on them would just be unfair because life was already unfair but would this really help them?
The answer soon came to be no because no matter how sorry I felt that a child would have to endure such hardship, I was not doing them any favors by handicapping them into thinking that they couldn't live past their past. Although it may have seemed as a privilege or a benefit to them momentarily, in reality they were subliminally being told it was okay to remain a prisoner of what had happened to them. I could see them growing up thinking that because life was hard they were exempt from working hard and things should just be handed to them. Now being released from our past may sound like a good thing, and it is, but sometimes there are comforts we have established there. Maybe for you it was being in an abusive relationship that even though there was pain, there was also a temporary fix for lust, loneliness, and a low self-esteem. People who may have heard how much pain you've gone through feel for you but then I've seen people go back to hurtful situations they so longed to come away from; it's the place we can't seem to get away from.
"The person in the middle sees both behind him and in front of him but never fully experiences either one."
I too know that place of hesitance and although I hated that place I also, in a very self-driven way, desired it. But I also desired the new place God had for me. This is that sickening and wasteful moment of our lives where we want two things and due to lack of decision we don't obtain either one. So how do we get past this? Back to my mentioning of the "Excess Baggage Fees," when we long to bring things we don't need, things of our past, along with us to our new destination there is a fee to pay. That fee is never seeing the new destination! The key comes down to one thing, making a (singular) decision and sticking to it.
Simple but oh-so profound. Simple but not easy. But here's the thing, that no matter what you choose to do, there is a price to pay! Some of us think that if I stay in the middle (the place I can't seem to leave) than I'll get the best of both worlds; in reality we find ourselves never really obtaining anything completely or fully. The person in the middle sees both behind him and in front of him but never fully experiences either one. We have to realize that in any effective decision made sacrifice comes with it. So which do I choose? Two questions come to mind, "What if I do and what If I don't?" After having counted the cost (Luke 14:28) what thing are you willing to go after no matter what? Once you have answered this and have acted on it you will be on your way! My advice is to follow the thing God has called you to do but you must also be willing to do so. Are you? Will you remain in the miserable middle, in a pitiful past, or walk into the famed future? You decide.