captivesofhope

Finding renewal and hope

Category Archives: Christian Living


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Giving Up

“True freedom comes when we abandon the nest and pursue God.” That is the conclusion I came to when I read Joyce Meyer’s account of the eagle as it relates to spiritual experience. The story of the eagle has been used many times as a metaphor of our relationship with God. At the expense of sounding redundant, I had to write about Joyce Meyer’s account in her book Never Give up.

First of all, the book title says a lot. It is a true conqueror who refuses to surrender. I wondered to myself if I had given up on some things a little too quickly. Perhaps I had ceased to take possession of what was supposed to be mine. Nevertheless, I found myself reading this book and seeing into myself at the same time. I found that there is a level of existence that can belong to every Christian. Joyce Meyer described
it like this: Male eagles develop a certain sense of uneasiness around the age of 4. The eagle then leaves his nest in search of a mate. When he finds a suitable mate, he pursues her in a form of courtship. The female tests the male’s devotion through various tests. She drops different things from different heights and watches as the male eagerly dives after them. Last of all, the female dives herself. The male is so set on being with her that he locks talons with her and they fall together. The male does not consider his safety or the results of his actions. He is so determined to pursue his mate that he thinks of nothing else.

I wondered to myself; what would happen if I pursued God like the male eagle pursued his mate? What if I forgot to be afraid? What if I let go and just let God completely take over? Looking at the eagle again, he gained a life partner when he gave everything to get her. I want to pursue God like that. I don’t want to think about my ability to mess up even the simplest of tasks or about my foot-in-mouth syndrome (the sickness where you say one thing but it comes out as something completely different). There are times when I do let go completely, but there are also times when I stop the production of God. I yell “cut” when I am not even directing. I pause to catch my breath instead of pressing forward. I analyze and plan and come up with so many reasons why things can’t happen. So, as I theorize, analyze, synthesize, and strategize, God is probably watching me and yawning and wondering when I am just going to play my part and let Him worry about the rest of the film.


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Selflessness

 

“Why are you doing this” was probably a question Nehemiah heard often. After all, he left his comfortable place beside the king to willingly enter the front line in a war for restoration. Nehemiah heard about the condition of his people and immediately developed a burden for them. He fasted and prayed about the situation and felt compelled to make a difference. Why didn’t he reason to himself that if the thousands of Israelites already there couldn’t do it, why should he bother? After all, he was only one person. Besides, he was comfortable. What if the king got angry at his request? Then his life would be ruined and all because he dreamed too big. Nehemiah didn’t seem to think any of these thoughts. He prayed and then sprang into action. I think the key to Nehemiah’s success was his selflessness. He had no stake in the project. He lived in a palace in safety. He was not gaining anything from the building of the wall. Even so, he risked his life, his relationship with the king, and his own comfort.

Thinking like Nehemiah’s seems to be a little scarce in society today. We get something out of everything we do. Company’s hire certain kinds of people because they get tax breaks. People make large public donations and they end up on the cover of a magazine. Businesses give away money to a few contest winners in exchange for private contact information on thousands of others who entered the contest but will never win. Society today does not seem to advocate selflessness. People are even shocked and maybe a little frightened when someone does something for seemingly no reason.

I want to be a Christian like Nehemiah was. I want to have a burden that would cause me to abandon the comforts of my own life and to do something that gains nothing for me. I want to be so moved by someone else’s need that it causes me to spring into action. I want to show Jesus to somebody through my life. “We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification” (Acts 15: 1,2 NKJV)


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Life Is Like… A Cup Of Tea

Life is like a cup of tea. It can burn you, but it tastes so good.  I don’t believe in reading tea leaves, but some hot tea just taught me a valuable lesson after I spilled it all over myself. I did something dumb that resulted in my hand and leg being burned. Yes, I yelled “OW!!!!!” I cleaned up the tea, then I ran cold water on my wounds. Do you know what I did next? I got another cup of tea. I sat down in the same spot at the same table and drank hot tea. Then, a thought occurred to me. Why didn’t I say to myself, “I’m not drinking anymore tea? I might spill it again. It could be worse next time. I don’t want to experience that pain ever again”? If I quickly got another cup of tea after being painfully burned, why do I avoid other activities after I get wounded from doing them? I have actually denied myself the pleasure of doing what I like to do because of wounds I have sustained. I have actually said to myself after a negative experience, “Well, I’m done with that”, or “I won’t try that again”. Why did I say that? If I can risk burning my leg, I can risk getting my feelings hurt or my heart broken right? On the whole, what is the real difference between life and tea? Nothing!!!! Have another cup. Don’t mind if I do.


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Driver Error

Driver error refers to the driver in the car making a mistake that leads to negative consequences. This was the diagnosis for my car that would not start on Friday. The fact that the car did not start allowed me to minster to a wonderful person about the goodness of God. My car stayed at McDonald’s overnight. When the mechanic looked at the car the next day, he stated that the problem was due to driver error. The car started right up when he switched the gears.  He said that I turned the car off without putting it fully in park. I could believe that, but the only problem is that the One who was driving does not make mistakes. Jesus had the wheel that day. I had been in earnest prayer all day. I even sat in another parking lot seeking God about this blog. I know that God was in control. The fact that my car started right up the next day tells me that God just wanted to use me. I am so privileged and overwhelmed that God would trust me to not panic in a situation like that. I was alone with my one year old in a place I had never been to before and the car would not start. I thank God for trusting me and allowing me to trust Him. So, I say that if you let Jesus drive, there is no such thing as driver error.