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Have you ever been in a meeting or situation where you swore you were going to keep your thoughts to yourself, then someone said something to push your buttons and you opened your mouth before you knew it. You might have rehearsed your cool, calm, and collected demeanor in your head a thousand times. You imagined how proud you would feel after having remained composed while everyone else bickered back and forth. “I’m not going to feed into that mess…” you think “...and there’s nothing anyone can say or do to cause me to lose it.” But you DO lose it. To your surprise, you go off because of something that you never suspected would affect you.
Your intention to stay calm in a heated situation indicates that you were challenging yourself to be better, and even if you didn’t succeed, your intention to remain level-headed is a really good thing. You wanted to exude confidence, because as Christians, that’s part of the package. We are supposed to remain anchored in the goodness of our Heavenly Father amidst any raging storm. We also must be mindful that sometimes the storm rages a little too hard and takes us to a place we haven’t been before. If you’re faced with a situation like this, and you lose your bearings, don’t miss an opportunity to learn something new about yourself. All of us have our tipping point. The thing to remember is that any time we venture past this point, we have a chance to explore what’s at the core of who we are.
For some this is a scary place. It reminds us that becoming born again didn’t wipe away the dark spots on our souls; they have to be dealt with, not pushed further down. The world hasn’t strayed so far from its rockers that it doesn’t appreciate such Godly virtues as kindness, patience, and respect. These qualities still have a place in our society, a diminishing one mind you, but a place none the less. Christians have long been admired as models of virtue, and most of us think it automatically comes with the territory. We want people to respect and honor us simply because we wear the title. We want the glory, but don’t want to do the work.
Through the Apostle Paul, God tells us in Philippians 2:12(NKJV), “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Salvation isn’t where our work ends, it is where it begins. We are admonished by our Heavenly Father to take notice of those things that we are accustomed to doing out of habit and pay attention with a keen eye to those things that cause hiccups in the flow of life, and to work them out so that we end up on the other side better than we were; we must measure up to the great gift we have been given through our blessed Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
This is particularly important when it comes to receiving answers to prayers. A negative attitude in certain areas, a habit pattern that takes us away from self-control, and giving ourselves permission to let loose on someone if they cross a certain line; sometimes these things indicate we’re not yet ready to handle blessings with care. Our Heavenly Father loves to bless us, but He’s a God of order, and everything He does travels in the direction of order, including His blessings. So, if we’re acting out of order, we’re stepping out of the flow of His blessings.
The Sadducees often tried to accuse Jesus Christ of violating Jewish law by asking questions they thought would trip him up. They did this in Matthew 22:29(KJV), and he replied, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God.” As he did so masterfully, Jesus put them on blast…he threw the high beams on them but did it ever so simply. He said “You don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t know the scriptures, but you think you do. You’ve missed the meaning entirely, and because of that you are making some errors.” The Sadducees were entrenched in their way of believing, and sometimes we are too. We become so settled on a thing in our minds that we don’t allow ourselves to grow.
None of us ever know ourselves as well as we think we do. God has purposed that we discover new things as we grow in Him. He wants us to challenge ourselves to be better by confronting the ungodly things we see, and then ask His forgiveness for them. Repentance will always put us back in good order! If we’ll ask Him, and if we’ll give ourselves permission to change, through His Spirit, God will come into our hearts and help us become more anchored in His love.
Everything happens for a reason, and we can use our mistakes and missteps to gain wisdom and be better. Although life can feel very uncomfortable at times, it may even feel like a wilderness experience, know that nothing about your life is random. Everything can be employed as an instrument to lift you higher. So, don’t resist an opportunity to challenge yourself and spiritually grow when discomfort arises. Recognize that God is always preparing us and teaching us so that we’re able to handle the next level of blessings that are sure to come our way.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Challenging Yourself Is a Good Thing”, written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2019. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.
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