All of us take risks in our lives, some are big and some are so small I doubt if we even realize we are taking them.
We might risk lending a hand to a stranger not knowing if it will be appreciated or offend them… We might send our money to a ‘cause’ and not know if it ever got into the right hands.
But we know that each time we ‘step out there’ God knows too and it is always worth the risk if your heart was in the right place.
Always.
Life in general is a risk- because if we fail- if we fall, there will be pain. And sometimes the fear of that pain keeps us stranded- afraid to move. But as I look back over my life and all of the risks we have taken- some ended up working out and some ended us up in a place we never wanted to be… Yet through it all God was there by our side, holding us through it, knowing that we knew He was always worth the risk.
God doesn’t always promise us a happy ending, but He promises that He will never leave us. And when we are finally able to stand again we can look back and see how we have grown and changed and slowly, ever so slowly we begin to heal…
One of my dearest friends wrote the segment above. It is such a deep truth that so few of us even want to understand. It's a truth I fought for years. It's a truth I still struggle to embrace.
We want God to make sense to us- He doesn't.
We want a life serving God to be easy- it isn't...
God is so much more than what we want Him to be in our frailness.
A God we would create would never suffice. When we live the way God truly calls us to live I can GUARANTEE it will NOT be comfortable.
If you are too comfortable in your life then I would beg you to take a second look... God calls us to live beyond ourselves in a way that the world deems crazy.
When I start getting the "people-think-I'm-crazy" vibe I figure I am probably on the right track.
What we want to hear is that we will take the big risk for God and it will all end with a "happily ever after." Maybe it will. Maybe it won't. The trick is knowing deep in our souls that whatever the outcome- it is ok.
Our lives just aren't about us anymore. If we are truly Christians then our lives are about becoming like Christ-about bringing glory to God. That doesn't always involve our comfort. The Christian life brings profound joy, peace beyond understanding, love beyond our humanness, deep relationship...but it does not bring a road map or a warranty or always a happy ending.
God does not promise a comfortable road but He promises that as we walk it we will never be alone. Though we may not understand, may never get it..though we may feel powerless and incapable...we are never alone. We are always immeasurably loved and always held.