He is Waiting...

Danielle Joyner Kelley

April 1, 2009

"Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." James 4:8.

Everyday ordinary people tend to get extremely defensive of the word "sin". That word makes people face the reality of who they are, and it may be harsh. Also that word sounds condemning, and causes a person to think they are doomed to a horrible afterlife because of it. For many people the word has a different meaning, and they react differently. However, it is safe to say that the word "sin" rarely, if ever, gains a favorable reaction. "Sin" denotes something intentional, and people become defensive over whether or not they have done anything intentionally wrong.

Getting defensive is a waste of time. The Greek word for "sin" out of the New Testmaent, translated into English, means "to miss the target". Does that definition sound like intentional conduct to you? So all you have to do to "sin" is to "miss the target" or by some definitions "miss the mark". Ouch!! What does that mean? That means you did not handle something or do something in the correct manner. Therefore, "sin" does not just encompass intentional wrongdoing. Put simply - all you have to do is mess something up.

Now consider that the Bible tells us that "sin" separates us from God. God is perfect, and He cannot sin. Not only that because of His perfection He cannot have anything to do with sin. And the Bible also tells us that ALL of us are sinners. What to do now?

Throughout the Old Testament, this is seen over and over, and towards the end of it you feel that God is about to do something huge in order to save those who follow Him but that because of "sin" He can't have anything to do with. Then comes Jesus.

The way I was taught was that God came in human form, Jesus, and took on the sins of the entire world in order to bring salvation to sinners. Many scholoars will tell you that because God cannot be around sin, He only left Jesus's body at the moment all the sins of the world entered Jesus's body. And that is why we can understand Jesus's cry heard from the Cross, ""Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Mark 15:34; Matthew 27:46. Jesus felt God leave at that moment and made that cry. This is a key sticking point between many denominations, but again, it is what I was taught and the way it makes sense to me, and everyone is free and encouraged to write about their own interpretation of the events. At least you will be having a conversation about God.

In any event, once Jesus died the slate was wiped clean. But we are all still sinners regardless. So you have some work to do on your own. Small price to pay for someone who died for you. I struggled for months to watch the movie "Passion of the Christ", and although it was brutal, I recommend it to everyone. Watching what He went through definitely puts our own troubles into perspective. And with Jesus He was bearing that brutality not because He did anything wrong, He was bearing it because you and I did. However, when something goes wrong in our own lives, we usually only have ourselves to blame.

So many of us will miss out on God's blessings because of our own relationship with Him. Unlike what our Savior Jesus went through, He is asking much less of you, and we are the ones fighting it. Talk about shameful! So what can you do in order to walk the right way with God? There are so many different answers to that question, but as one who lives and feels Him working, this is my answer.

First of all, have faith. I have talked about that SO much, but it is the absolute key to your relationship with Him. And it needs to be child-like faith I have discussed in a previous note. Don't ask - just believe it and know it. "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Matthew 6:33.

Second of all, you have to be willing to ask Him for his help. Many of us have so much pride we can't, and many who do only ask with a selfish answer in mind. For example, if you want to get a new job, but God is telling you to stay in your old one, what do you usually do in that situation? You pray to Him for Him to allow you to get the new job. WRONG. The reason this is wrong is because of the third thing you must be willing to do: accept His answer. Remember it is His answer that matters, not your own. It is about what He wants, not you. He can see your entire future right now, including your death and afterlife. Your knowledge of the situation then is the equivalent to a high school diploma and His is a Ph.D. If His answer is something you didn't want then you still have to accept it and remember that He can see everything. When you call upon Him for something, and give your own desires up and are willing to accept whatever He gives you, you are giving yourself completely over and allowing Him to truly work. You are calling upon Him in truth with no selfish motives. "The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them." Psalm 145:18-19.

Fourth, don't just go to Him when things go wrong. Would you rather put out a forest fire that only covers 1/2 a mile or one that is covering 50,000+ acres? Start going to Him NOW. You can help prevent those vents in your life that can get really bad from ever getting bad at all. Trust Him with every little thing. Don't just run to Him if you are getting divorced. Instead, go to Him with everything. Everytime you go anywhere trust Him with your travels. Before you talk to anyone trust Him with your speech. Make Him the #1 thought when your feet hit the floor in the morning and the last thing you think of before you fall asleep.

Fifth, and finally, when He gives you an answer be obedient. Don't fight Him, take the problem back, and try to fix it yourself. If you do, you will only prolong a horrible situation and make it MUCH worse. Remember what He wants will prevail. "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." Proverbs 19:21.

Often you will feel like you don't hear what He is telling you to do. When that happens we tend to get angry and think He is ignoring us, and that is exactly when we do mess everything up by handling it ourselves. If you feel like you don't hear Him, pray about it. Look within yourself and ask yourself what you are doing faith-wise that is preventing it. You always have room for improvement and He will remain silent at times to teach you that because He is trying to make you as strong in faith as possible. Ask for His forgiveness and for Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will be the voice that tells you what to do and not to do. It is a nagging feeling like "don't do this" or "that is wrong". When you start to listen to that voice you will start to see things change because you are being obedient. And God is watching. He knows whether you do something thinking you are doing it for Him, but it happens to be the wrong thing because you weren't listening to Him properly. He sees you trying at least, and when He sees that He will help you learn to listen better. "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19.

All of this is important because it helps you develop a better relationship with God, which in turn saves you from your own trouble. You learn to give yourself up to something much greater and there is no reward bigger than that. He has laid the groundwork and is waiting for you. The amount of work you will have to do will pale in comparison to what He has done. He did it because His love is unconditional, unfailing, and everlasting. We accept invitations here on Earth frequently, but no invitation is better than the party that is being held for you specifically is it? Admit to yourself that going to a friends birthday party is not half as great as going to a birthday party being thrown for you. We want someone to recognize us, to think we are important, and to show their love for us to everyone.

So why ignore the most important invitation you will ever receive in your life that has to do with you specifically? Why turn your back on your own party? You wouldn't because you would be so worried about hurting those who loved you enough to throw it for you, so won't you do the same for God?

My best advice? Thank God for the fact that it is not to late to accept the invitation, and then get on your hands and knees and send in your RSVP right away.