It had been a long day at work and my 20 minute drive home seemed even longer. My mind began to wander as I cruised in the middle lane around every curve on the freeway. Of course, when my ADD brain is tired or bored, it creates stories… which is a little bit embarrassing, but it happens. Often.
This time was no different, as I created this scenario where I was talking to someone about the qualities I look for in guys, the first being God has to be LORD of his life. In my scenario, the person asked me what exactly that looked like.
I was a bit stumped at first. I had stumped myself! Who does that? What exactly does it look like when God is LORD of your life?
Well first, what does Lord mean? Lord: someone or something having power, authority, or influence; a master or ruler.
Most of us, the Lords of our lives include: phones, computers, jobs, relationships, sex, money, reputation, status, Facebook, fear, anxiety, and quite a few others. Technology is everywhere. We’re taunted with money often. We live in a world full of many substitutes trying to get our attention and rule over our lives. No matter where we turn, one of them is in our way.
It took me a couple minutes, but the answer to this made-up person’s question dawned on me: what if God asked you to set aside what you desire most and follow Him? It could be either money, status, women, men… you name it.
Would you be able to leave those behind and obey Him?
If the answer is no, then God isn’t Lord of your life. If the answer is yes, then He is.
You know, Abraham was faced with this same decision. God has promised a son to him through Sarah and He finally received him, at an old age after years of waiting. And then when Isaac was older, God asked him to take him up to a mountain to sacrifice him (Genesis 22). When I got home, I went and looked up this story. God told Abraham one day to do this, and the very next morning, early morning, Abraham collected everyone and everything for the journey to the mountain so he could obey God. He had to have wrestled. He had to have gotten very little sleep that night. But he had had enough experience with God to know that God had a plan through this. God had promised Abraham this son. In fact, when Isaac questioned Abraham about not having a lamb for the sacrifice, Abraham responded saying the LORD would provide.
I believe God gives us desires and promises for our lives, but they should not be our focus in life. They should not be #1. God should be. The awesome thing about God is when He asks us to give up our desires and promises, it’s because He has an even greater plan than we imagined. It could be that when we leave these desires behind to follow Him, He may provide a way for us to keep those desires and promises, or even increase them, as well as strengthen our faith (imagine the faith Abraham had after that moment on the mountain). OR, He has a desire to place in our life that we never would have found if we didn’t let go of what we believe to be our true desires. We may have desires that are not of Him, but if we delight ourselves in the LORD, we will discover the true desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4).
This I pray Lord, to be like Abraham
Ready to give it all, my only son as the lamb
Ready to sacrifice, everything if You ask
Because nothing is mine, not this life that I have
Everything I own, oh Lord is a gift
So who am I, to hold it with a firm grip
I give You my talent, I give You my time
I give You my eyes, I give You my mindTonight (All of Me) by Flame, feat. J.R.
In my make-belief scenario in the car, I had told this person that, for example, if God had called my future guy to be single the rest of his life, if God was truly Lord of his life, he would be okay with that. He would follow what God told him to do, no matter how hard, difficult, or uncertain it may be. God obviously has better plans than us, so even if this possible future guy of mine never got to experience a relationship, if He was following God’s calling, he would have a more fulfilled life than the one he would try and create on his own.
What are the desires of your heart? Are they Lord of your life, or is God? And if God isn’t, what needs to change so He can be?
Hope you have a blessed week.
Woman of Purity~
Tonight (All of Me) by Flame: https://youtu.be/ghjG5d1UWBc
Woman of Purity 