The other day I was leading worship at a church in Woodstock.... the pastor was talking about how, when she was a kid, she had to take Home Economics and they had to make a skirt. At the end of the semester, they had to wear to skirt to school. Over the weeks as she made the skirt, there were times when we sewed things incorrectly and thought - well, it's not that bad, I'll just fix it in the end. The problem was, she never got around to it. The last day of class came and the skirt that looked 'pretty good' didn't fit her at all... the seams were sewn wrong, the zipper was messed up and the skirt kept riding up in the back! She was so embarrassed but had to wear it anyway.
The pastor said she was reminded of Medea when she says "RIP IT! Just RIP IT!". She should have just ripped out the mistakes in the beginning when she knew what was up and just fixed it. But because of her own pride and procrastination, she chose not to. In the end, she was forced to wear the dress in embarrassment.
How many times have I done that in my own life... i hear the Lord saying "RIP IT" and yet, I just keep on going like nothing's wrong. Just like there's a pattern for a dress, there's a pattern in the Kingdom and we're called to pattern ourself after the pattern of heaven. If we want signs and wonders, victorious living and the presence of God in our lives, there are going to be some things that we just have to rip out... get violent about and just rip out!
For me, it's the continuous battle to trust God's love for me and being willing to lay down my pride. Instead of feeling taken advantage of, or feeling like I'm the victim, I'm choosing to ask the Lord "What are you doing in this situation?" "What are you trying to teach me here Lord?" In that posture I grow in Him. Otherwise, I walk in my own strength, my own wisdom, my own good ideas, which typically get me into trouble.
I'm just learning to listen, trust Him and when I need to, rip it.
No comments:
Post a Comment