Choosing God Above Everything

Do you ever feel stuck, like you have nowhere else to go or you have no other options? Like you just don't know what to do anymore, like you're drowning in uncertainty? I guess what I’m trying to get at here is: do you ever just feel lost?

I have been there too, ladies.

Despite all this, we do have somewhere to turn, even when we feel like we don't. We do have an option, and that option is God. When we turn to God, the only one that can erase these feelings of lostness in our lives, it means that we then have to surrender ourselves to His will and His timing. And if we choose to completely pursue God, we cannot try to go back to how we did things when we were doing things by ourselves.

But how do we pursue God in this way that we completely disregard our own desires and needs, and focus solely on His will for us and His perfect timing? What does this look like? The first step is simple: just be patient with God and for the fulfillment of His plan. A verse in Ecclesiastes illustrates this point well:

"He has made everything beautiful in its time."

Ecclesiastes 3:11a (ESV)

If you've ever seen the classic 80's hit Footloose, you'll know this passage as the one Ren references in order to legalize dancing in the town of Beaumont. (Bit off topic, but it's a great movie). Basically it tells us that there is a time and a purpose for everything, "a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance..." and that everything happens according to when and how God wants it to. It's saying quite frankly that nothing is up to us.

Wow that sounds scary, doesn't it? That no matter what you do in life, it's ultimately not up to you at all where your life goes? Ladies, this isn't a scary concept at all; in fact, it should give us peace that we don't have to worry about big or small decisions, or anything at all, because God has it handled already. He already has it all figured out, and is just waiting for you to trust in Him so He can complete His wonderful plan for your life.

So then there is no need for us to overthink and overanalyze things, right? It's easier said than done. If you're an avid worrier like me, this will be a challenge, but it's a very rewarding challenge that you should be willing to take. If you simply put God's wants for you first and get out of your own head, God will grant you peace like you've never known before. In Philippians 4 it talks about this kind of peace:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 4:6-7 (ESV)

Secondly, don't focus on the things that God doesn't want you to do, but on what he wants you to do. God has given many commands for us as followers, for example He has called us to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:18-20), to love others (Mark 12:31), to be a light to all (Matt. 5:16), and many others that can be found in His word. These commands are a guide to life, if we just take the time to apply them, and don't take so much time worrying about what we're doing wrong.

And finally, since your life would be surrendered to God's will, you cannot then try to force things to go your way, because when you attempt to do that, your efforts will most likely fail. I know that may sound harsh, but it's true because God has a better plan for you than the one you may already have conceived for yourself, and when we try to override His plan for us, nine out of ten times, our plan fails in the process. When we surrender to God's plan however, things may not necessarily go our way, but we will be so much more satisfied at the end of it because our true satisfaction and joy comes from God. We have to give up everything we've ever wanted in order for His plan to be made complete. Just take Jesus' word for it:

"Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?"

Luke 9:23-25 (NIV)

So, dear sisters, are you going to choose to pursue God with all you've got because you want more than what this sinful world has to offer you? Or are you going to play it safe and only pursue Him halfheartedly? The choice is yours; will you choose the right one?

Love, Em