Hebrews 9:11-12
But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.
I find myself so focused on things that, in the long run, probably don’t matter. John Wesley writes:
“For what purpose do you undertake and follow your worldly business? ‘To provide things necessary for myself and my family.’ A good enough answer as far as it goes, but does not go far enough for a Christian. We must go abundantly farther. Our purpose in all things is to please God. To do, not our own will, but the will of God on earth as the angels do in heaven. We work for that which endures to everlasting life.”
I’m obsessive. I know I am. And in these days of labels, I guess I could just embrace my obsessions and be proud of who I am. But the fact is, my obsessiveness gets in the way of my trusting the Lord. I have to know, to predict, to control and that often gets in the way of simply serving the Lord today and trusting Him for tomorrow. Frankly, my predictions of the future are so often wrong, I don’t know why I think I should have my way at all! Usually God “taking” something from me is actually protecting me. You’d think by now I’d get that. But instead I find myself arguing with Him, insisting that having my way is best for, oh, so many reasons.
Solomon, in the Proverbs, wrote:
Proverbs 3:1-2, 5-6: “My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands; length of days and long life and peace they will add to you. …Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”
It’s more than just not leaning on my own understanding, though I think that’s the crux of the matter. It’s if I don’t lean on my own understanding, then I will have peace because God will direct my paths. In other words, the only way to find peace is to allow God to direct my paths.
I can’t tell you how much I’ve argued with Him, that the way that seems to be coming in my path can’t possibly be a good way; it can’t possibly be the way that will give me peace. I’ve cried tears, been angry, argued. (Imagine arguing with God.) And what I need to do is let go and trust. It’s out of my hands anyway, so it’s so foolish for me to try to change God’s mind. Instead, what happens when I fight with God is I lose my peace.
Father God has promised to take care of me, to work all things for my good. What I need to do is release tomorrow and focus on serving Him today through worship, prayer, and a humble life. That I can do, I think: serve Him today and release the problems of tomorrow completely to Him.