Awake, Arise, and Follow

Acts 20:24-“But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”

This statement is made by Paul to the Ephesus leaders as he explains that he must go to Jerusalem where he knows that afflictions and imprisonment awaits. He was obeying the Spirit no matter what the cost or what he would suffer for the sake of the Gospel.

What a counter-cultural statement. We live in a nation that is all about making something of ourselves, about getting an education to get a great job so that we can live in a nice house and drive a nice car. Or even messages that we were plagued with in school like, “You’re a great person. Have confidence in yourself. The sky is the limit for you.” And I fear that in a lot of ways we, sons and daughters of God the Father, have fallen into this American Dream. But, how do we return to this conviction that Paul had? What does it look like to account my life of no value?

My friend and I have been praying this verse for our hearts. I so earnestly pray that the Lord would give me this conviction and attitude no matter where He has me. I pray that no matter what the cost, even if it requires my life, I would joyfully finish the assignment the Lord has given me.

                Then we move onto passages like Philippians 3:7-8 that states, “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” Everything- that word entails, well, everything. My job, my money, my friends, my family, and even such things as my education, my pride, my outward appearance, my ministry, my failures, my security, my comfort, my pleasure, my reputation, people’s approval of me, my logical reasoning and understanding, my thoughts, my expectations, my worries, my fears, my self-life, etc. This ten-letter word can entail my entire life.

These past 9 months have been a humbling time for me. A time when things didn’t go as expected. My plans changed. God exposed a lot of my sin, pride, failures and mess ups. A lot of things just didn’t make much sense to me. It was more a time defined by seeming “defeats” rather than “successes.” But as I reflect on these past months, I am overwhelmed to see God’s purposeful working in the midst of it all. Through the hard times and confusing times, I have seen Him allow me to go through it to ultimately see the disappointment and lack of fulfillment of my “everythings” and to set my mind on Him, who has captured my love and my devotion. Through these circumstances, He has separated me from my “everythings”, to see the emptiness and nothingness they offer in comparison to Him. And each time as I forsake those “everythings” and allow them to take the proper place in my life  and instead choose Him, I get a sweet, addicting taste of my eternal Father which far exceeds anything, I mean ANYTHING, this world has to offer.

What is my life other than to know Jesus Christ my Lord? Though following Him and obeying Him may require a painful ripping from earthly treasures, those struggles cannot even begin to compare to the surpassing worth in knowing Jesus Christ. Although the battle between my flesh and the Spirit is a very very real battle, ultimately, I know that no matter what, obeying Him is always, and forever will be the very best option. And I’m finding the more I obey Him even when it doesn’t make sense, the more I see His faithfulness and the more I deeply trust Him. What an overwhelming, divine peace He offers when we rest and trust in Him.

I recently read Shadow of the Almighty by Elizabeth Elliot. It is the testament of Jim Elliot’s life. After reading Jim’s journal entries in the book, one can see glimpses of Jim’s thirst and hunger for the God of the Universe. He was willing to forsake anything, even the love of his life, to joyfully obey and submit to the Lord. Although his struggles were real and following Him meant a brutal martyrdom, an observer and reader of his life cannot miss the loving, unmistakable faithfulness of the Lord God in his life. It is absolutely incredible to see the way in which the Lord weaved the small details of Jim’s life together into something beautiful. It was nothing that Jim conjured up or planned. All Jim did was joyfully submit to the Master Planner, no matter what the cost, and God bore beautiful and fragrant fruit with his life.

And so, I choose to follow the Master-Planner, for thus says the Lord, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, do not lean on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)” As I obey God and follow His leading, I cannot deny the beautiful details He is orchestrating in my own life. Though the journey can be difficult, the Master Planner has a beautiful journey for each of us. When we rest and trust in Him, how wonderful it can be when HE is the one planning in HIS timing and in HIS way. And even though we try to control everything and plan what WE think is best, when we instead obey Him, we look back and realize how much greater HIS plans are for our life than the ones we conjure up.  He is omniscient, sovereign, and faithful in all things, so our natural response in light of these facts is to TRUST Him. Even when things don’t make sense. Even when we are confused by the results. Even if we find ourselves at a Red Sea where we see no way out. God is in control.

 I pray that we, brother and sisters of Christ, would see Christ as our one pursuit, our one passion, and our first love. May we account our lives as nothing, leave behind our “everythings” and with love, joyfully fulfill the purpose for which He has called us. May we, out of our deep love and devotion to our Lord, obey Him in everything. Let us trust the Master-Planner who works all things together for the good of those who love Him. We are not called to be “conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind. (Romans 12:2)” We are to be a people of love, faith, and hope (1 Cor. 13:13). We are citizens of a Heavenly Kingdom that is invading this dark and broken world. Dear citizens, let our concerns be on the heavenly and eternal, rather than the earthly and temporary. (Col. 3:2) Church, let us awake, arise, and follow in the footsteps of our Beloved.

 “Lord, how excellent are Thy ways, and how devious and dark are the ways of man. Show us how to die, that we may rise again to newness of life. Rend the veil of our self-life from the top down as Thou didst rend the veil of the Temple. We would draw near in full assurance of faith. We would dwell with Thee in daily experience here on this earth so that we may be accustomed to the glory when we enter Thy heaven to dwell with Thee there. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

-The Pursuit of God, A.W. Tozer