HUMBLED AND NOT HINDERED

I was recently asked the question of where I find Jesus on a daily basis. I found it difficult to answer.

In short, I think it depends. There are times when I see Him everywhere and also those that I find him nowhere at all.  There is rarely much in between for me because it all starts with my attitude.  Humility is absolutely essential for me.  Greg Slayton defines humility by saying "it [humility] is having an accurate view of your strengths and weaknesses and a true understanding of your place in God's universe."  Often times I drift into this false reality that the world and everything in it revolves around me.  If you've been in an airplane that climbed to a few hundred feet and seen the thousands of houses splayed out below, you've experienced the humbling reality of how small you and I truly are.  A hike to the beautiful mountains or a trip to the pounding surf of the ocean has the same effect on me and I am reminded of how powerless I really am.  

This humility coupled with the constant awareness of my shortcomings leads to a healthy brokenness in my life.  Have this appreciation for my brokenness only comes through time in God's word.  The pages of scripture echo the resounding theme of God's unfailing love for me despite the fact that I constantly fall short of His holiness. This understanding helps us to realize our need for him all the more and keeps us humble.  Humility like this sets off a domino reaction of thankfulness, worship and praise in my life.   The result is that I begin to see Jesus in everything I do.  In the conversation with the greeter on the way to work, in the normal everyday delivery, in the heartbeat that you get to hear in that patient, etc.

In the same way that we must implement habits into our life that help us draw near to the Lord, we also must recognize and remove those things that deter us from Him.

Hebrews 12:1 reads, "...let us throw off everything that hinders us and the sin that so easily entangles us, and let us you with perseverance the race marked out."

Hindrances and sins are two difference things, but both will keep us for the Lord.  Sins are obvious to most people; they are usually easy to identify and hard to deal with.  Hindrances though, are much subtler.  These are often morally neutral things, that have grown to play an unhealthy role in our life.  Hindrances are things that distract, detract or distance us from the chief goal of bringing honor and glory to our savior and Lord. These are often both hard to identify and to deal with.

Only when we set aside these things, and do so consistently, will we find the freedom to run the race that God has set out for us.

last edited: ddb 11/17/12