Obedience

I was thinking yesterday of how people often say, "I just wasn't happy" when they want to go off and do things their own way. Usually this is said because of a way of thinking in which we believe that we deserve to be happy, or that God certainly wants us to be happy. While I'm sure God rejoices with us when we rejoice, our happiness is absolutely not his top concern. Our character, who we are and become in Him, is more of a priority.

We are supposed to consider it joy when we face trials (James 1:2) because that is how we develop character. Note that it also says WHEN, not if. As in, the trials will come whether we want them to or not. The people in the bible that earned favor from God: David (who really wrecked things up with Bathsheba), Job (who lost just about everything), Samson (who told Delilah at least one thing he shouldn't have), Paul (persecuted and put in prison). There is many more, but my point is this: these people may have had moments of happiness, but that was never the main theme of their testimony. They experienced heartbreak, frustration, and loss. Yet they were obedient to the Lord.

David in particular tried to cover up one sin with another. First he committed adultery with Bathsheba, then, to cover it up, had her husband killed. Like God wouldn't notice. Pay attention, here, so that you can prevent some of the heartache of making a bad situation worse: OUR WAY DOESN'T WORK. When things aren't working out right, and we decide that instead of following His plan, we are going to do our own thing, it leads to nothing good!

The sports part is this: think of a quarterback. He has a difficult job, but one that is made easier by the fact that he answers to the coach. The coach knows each player's abilities and weaknesses. He can see from a different perspective how things will play out on the field, and what the outcome will be. The coach takes all the information and makes a call for a certain play, and the quarterback is obedient to that and follows through.

If the quarterback says, "Gosh...I don't think that's gonna work out so good. I think coach isn't really paying attention today. I'm gonna do it my way" will that work out very well? My thought is no, because he doesn't have the same perspective and info that the coach does. Every amazing quarterback (yes, ladies, Tim Tebow! lol) is good at what he does because he has skill, but even more importantly obedience and faith in the decisions his coach makes.

That's what we do, as followers of Christ. Get the signal and follow through. Be obedient to what He tells us to do. Jesus Himself gave an example of obedience: He humbled himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross! Phil. 2:8

If He could do that, what is there that we could not be obedient to? It's not easy: one look at toddlers and you realize we come out of the womb defying the very thought of obedience. But over time, this practice of obedience becomes habit, and brings peace. The peace and joy that He gives as a reward of your obedience to Him, in my opinion FAR outweigh temporal happiness. I don't want simply to be happy here. This isn't my home. I want to be filled with His fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Amen?