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Be All He Wants You To Be |
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Article by Tom Gilbert — © December, 2002
Have you ever seen someone really wild looking? Long disheveled
hair, scraggly beard and really intense eyes? If you did,
like most people your reaction would probably be to steer
away.
What if the guy started proclaiming in a loud voice to
straighten up your life, get your priorities right and
get on the path to God! Now you’d really want to
avoid him. Right? Be honest. I know it would disturb me.
The wild man was John the Baptist. Not everyone came on
as strong as He did. But, he had a special assignment.
Make straight the way of the Lord!
Others have proclaimed God’s message in different
ways. I find it fascinating how throughout history God
has used all kinds of people to get our attention. Some
are rich, some are poor. Some are strong, some are weak.
Bold, meek; sophisticated, simple, even sinners.
One thing common in all those who’ve really committed
themselves to the Lord is that they have truly let go
to God. The abandonment is complete. And that is why they
are able to do so much. They are anointed with power and
they are doing things most of us ordinary folk don’t
believe is even possible.
Do you realize that you, too, can be one of these anointed?
George Eliot, pseudonym of the Victorian writer Mary Ann
Evans, said “It is never too late to be what you
might have been.”
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No Time Like The Present
Every New Year we typically resolve to do some things in the
coming year. The big ones are health, finance and relationships.
The trick bag we all get caught in is the faddishness
of New Year resolutions. Most of us won’t keep them
past a month or two. We haven’t really resolved
anything.
True commitment has nothing to do with once a year resolutions.
It is a daily walk and every morning when we rise we can
renew our minds and our hearts. Sure, the New Year can
be a time of re-commitment. Just don’t let the fire
of your initial resolve fade.
Back to the wild man. God wants us to be truly and completely
committed. Of course, he recognizes our weakness. In fact,
He’s ready as soon as we let go, to step in and
work with us in our powerlessness. He’s a mighty
God. A BIG God! He wants to demonstrate his power through
us.
Do you have a wild heart? Are you ready for the holy,
wild call of a mighty God?
That Scary Feeling
I have this scary little feeling in the pit of my stomach
sometimes. It’s a feeling that if I’d really…I
mean really…let go of my boundaries of control and
just abandon with complete faith to God that incredible
and miraculous events would happen. I’m scared by
this, I guess, because there is still some doubt in my
mind. Or, maybe I’m afraid of what my life would
be like if suddenly God did start doing miracles through
me. I’m not sure I want that burden. Bottom line:
I’m not accepting that holy, wild call.
Jesus said over and over again that just the tiniest bit
of faith could bring amazing results. He also declared
that those who believe in Him and the Father would do
greater things than even he did while here on Earth.
Greater things than Jesus did? Well, let’s see…what
would that be? Blind people seeing, deaf people hearing,
lame people walking…dead people rising! Greater
than this?!
This is a holy…wild…call.
This makes my annual resolutions (exercise more, read
more, get out of debt) seem lame by comparison. How about
resolving to answer that holy call?
Baby Steps
Maybe we try to do too much, too soon, too fast. It’s
not a good idea to hold back on our potential. Yet, we
all surely recognize that if we don’t start moving
we aren’t going anywhere.
“The longest journey begins with the first step”
and all that. Sure, that gets us moving. There’s
another advantage to starting with small steps. It allows
us the time to really commit. Start with baby steps. These
seemingly small movements forward become profound parts
of our journey
This year, instead of making a long list of resolutions,
you might try taking one word and finding a way for that
word to transform you for the entire year. Words like
patience, simplicity, humility, service. Or abundance,
fullness, forgiveness, faith and compassion.
If one word for the whole year doesn’t seem significant
enough, try one word each month. Think what an entire
month concentrating on having more patience might do for
you.
Above All
The best word of all is love. Resolving…committing…putting
your whole dedication and being into loving more is what
Paul was telling the struggling new Christian community
in Corinth was the highest calling. Priority numero uno.
You can change. You can be a better person. You can positively
impact others. You can be a beacon of light that shines
God’s goodness. You can be all He wants you to be.
You don’t have to wait for New Year’s Day
to make that resolution.
That’s wild. That’s holy. That’s God
calling.
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Scripture taken from the
Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.Copyright ©
1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights
reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International
Bible Society.
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered
trademarks of International Bible Society. Use of either
trademark for the offering of goods or services requires
the prior written consent of International Bible Society.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy
Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996. Used
by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton,
IL 60189, USA. All rights reserved.
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JOHN 15:11 |
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"I have told you this so that my joy may be in
you and that your joy may be complete."
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(NIV) |
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