A picture is worth a thousand words they say:
Shift. Control. Function. What?!
I took this picture by accident actually. I was trying to take an “artistic” break during my hard core struggle to set up my website blog. I may not have mentioned it before … I am not the most tech savvy person in the universe. Sometimes technical things can stress me out. Often actually!
As soon as I saw this pic on my phone’s screen I realized that God was
having an intervention with me so to speak (Haha! He’s pretty creative in how He starts a conversation with me!)
I was a bit ramped up a couple of weeks ago, about how long it was taking me to figure out how to create my website, how to go live and be a real blogger. And I needed a breather …
I’m sure you’ve never had one of those moments – or maybe you have?
You push hard. You walk away from your work to breathe for a minute and you wonder when the dream will ever come true. Maybe you’ve carried a dream in your heart for a long time and wondered when will it all come together?
I know that place.
Perfect set up for an unexpected moment of hope breaking through.
So, I had looked out my patio door to give my brain a break in that moment, and a flock of robins were returning from the south – more like a swarm of robins! There were literally two dozen robins in my neighbour’s tree!!!
(If you live in southern Ontario, Canada, you know what I mean when I say my first thought was: spring might be just around the corner. Hopeful!)
I savoured the beautiful
moment of sound and sight … nothing feels better
than the hit of immediate success: a couple of great shots on my camera of
unexpected beauty… and I sit down and start to unravel the story of this
moment.
And here’s where maybe you’re a bit like me. I realize in this moment as I
take an unintended shot of my computer keyboard’s shift, control and function keys, that I am driving myself into anxious tension – trying to make my dream come to life.
I forgot for a bit, that my life and this dream of mine – it’s from God.
Striving kills me. Resting refreshes me.
Well, I am in process. God is ok with that. And I am learning to be ok with process within myself. That’s why He’s full of so many great promises to help me move forward in life! He loves to share His deep love and kindness.
A few of these bible promises begin to fill my mind as I shift my focus off of my frustrations and onto how God sees it. Just like the robins returning for the start of a new season. These promises from God help to launch me into this new season.
Just like my shift,
control, and function pic, reminding me that in order to function
as God created me to, I need to shift my focus off of myself
and remind myself that I don’t really need to strive to be in control of
my destiny unfolding- or anything else in my life for that matter. That’s God’s
job. He even said so – in Psalm 57:2 it says: I cry out to God most High, to
God who fulfills His purposes for me.
Yes. And I need to keep my eyes on Jesus, reminding myself that He persevered and ran the race and purposes marked out for Him – He endured opposition did not grow weary or lose heart (Hebrews 12:1-3). That encourages me!
Jesus actually said that apart from Him we can do nothing – nothing of eternal value for sure. Jesus said He was the vine and we are the branches.
A branch that isn’t
attached to the vine really can’t bear fruit because it
isn’t attached. It makes a lot of sense. Not only in a natural sense but also
spiritually speaking.
So being fully attached to Jesus helps me make the shift into better functionality: listening to and following His instructions on doing life, making the choice daily to receive His love. (John 6:33)
Somehow my Type A Personality
needs the reminder that striving is not the
necessary thing – the scurry and hurry of
working hard to achieve isn’t the
best way – but the listening to Jesus’ words, and mulling over His thoughts
and deepness is the best choice.
This is what Mary discovered when her sister Martha was “worried and upset about many things, but only one thing was needed.” (Luke 10:38-42)
So where’s the balance between needing to work on my life goals and dreams, and just letting God steer my ship, float my boat, bring in the fulfillment of dreams? This is 2019, and life seems to leave you in the dust if you don’t strive a little…..
Then I remember this
promise, “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has
entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who
love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9) And I am reminded that God has good
motives in His heart – He’s got even better things planned for me that I can
imagine for my life!
His promise is that if I
take delight in the Lord, He will give me the
desires of my heart (Psalms 37:4). And if I seek Him first, above all
things, all this goodness will be released into my life (Matt 6:33).
And He has even promised
me that I can rely on His strength
(Philippians
4:13) and that as a result I can do all things that He has purposed me to do.
That by His power HE will fulfill every good purpose and every act prompted by
my faith (2 Thessalonians 1:11).
He will lead me in triumph through Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14).
Whatever I do will prosper (Psalm 1:3).
Suddenly the pressure of
needing to strive and stress is relieved, and the
option of being filled to overflowing with joy and peace seems like the obvious
choice.
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13
I’m feeling the shift. I’m learning to release the tight grip of control – wanting to iron out all the how’s and why’s and must’s of life.
It’s not just about trying to be tech savvy and diffusing the stress of achieving life goals, the shift/control/function picture is the entry point of God’s hope breaking through into all the tight, stressful areas of life.
It’s an ongoing process:
letting go of the need to strive to co-ordinate
and control the outcomes of my efforts, and make it happen. Always
learning to function deeper in the niche of trust, leaning into God’s strength
and wisdom, allowing my spirit to be fed and revived by Jesus (like Mary did).
Maybe you know this place too: the perfect set up for unexpected moments of hope breaking through. Have a look at your computer keyboard, and see if there’s a message there for you too. Shift. Control. Function. I guarantee you, you will never be the same again when you invite His shift in your life!
Copyright (c) 2019 Jennifer Bryant-Choong. All Rights Reserved.
