Level Up

It is amazing to me that I have no way with words and yet, God sends the Holy Spirit to work through me for the sake of life. These ladies and men need life breathed into them. They need to feel something that lets them know they are the prodigal son or daughter. They need to really know, not just pay it lip service, that Christ died on the cross for THEM.

Right now, I am having to isolate in our bus, The Bus of Hope, due to the dreaded Covid 19. My worry was that my students, those I am responsible for discipling, have felt alone and abandoned in the past, when I am not there to talk with them in person. When I am not there, we talk once a week by phone. They tell me how much they need me and miss me being there for them. And I understand the look, the personal nature, the love that is shared in person is far better than by phone. But I discovered something that I needed as much as they do.

This is a wonderful test of their dependence on God and not on man. It has proven to be a lesson, for me as well as for them, in who do they rely on… me or God? I have learned that I am not the answer. They will not live or die because of me. They must… hear this… they MUST turn to Him in all things for their strength and endurance or they may quite simply fail again in life. It isn’t my wisdom that leads them. It is and always will be HIS.

As I said, it is difficult to disciple by phone. I chuckle at the thought of the disciples having to make that work. When the phone rings or when I call them, the turmoil and frustration is very high for them. We are a discipleship to be clear, but we are all of the flesh and none are perfect. There are all of the same struggles one would have in the world living with so many people in a small space except we are all trying to be Christian about it. Trust me, there are no secrets when we struggle in such a close quarter with one another. Our humanness is evident.

But I digress. I sometimes think to myself in those first moments on the phone… “What on earth can I say to make it better?!” But as I listen, God never fails to present me with words that are not my own. From out of the recesses of my forgetful mind, He pulls His words and wisdom and analogies and weaves them into His fabric of wisdom and love to nourish and challenge those who have stumbled in faith. Including me.

You see, we can forget, in this journey to help save His people, that WE are not saving them. We can forget how to live our lives in service to Him, and by ‘to Him’, I mean, to serve others unwaveringly. We can grow tired and weary. We can seek out alliances who mimic our own behavior instead of striving to be like Christ. We can find comfort in others at our level and, in turn, make others feel ‘less than.’ We can wear our titles like badges of privilege and forget what we stay for. We can begin to rely on our own wisdom and show it off for all to see, instead of humbly thanking God for the right words in the right time and for the right purpose.  We are and always will be of the flesh and fallible.

But God. Amid the struggle and distance of Covid, He brings His wisdom and revelation. He is still with me despite myself and He will always be there for those who seek Him. In His wisdom He reminds them that they are relying on man, not on God. They need to rise above the humanness and seek their own perfection through the imperfection. They need to ‘level up’ as He so wisely discipled my student the other day.

It was a tough conversation. Everything she said was accurate. She knew exactly what was not working and why. She had every reason to feel the way she did. I had no idea how to keep her from justifying not leaving. But God. I had been playing a game on my tablet during my downtime. When you accomplish the task at hand, you get to move to the next level. It is never over. There is always something more to strive for… and isn’t that the way with our lives? So, He challenged her to ‘level up’. She asked what that meant.

1 Peter 3:14: “But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled,”

I want to challenge you to level up too. Yes. You may be right in your assessment of those around you. Yes, you may be frustrated with the cards you are dealt. Yes… you think your new position or place in life means you made it… or you are in line with something even better. Tell me this... are you in it for the right reasons? Are you serving God or yourself? Are you putting His wounded before yourself? Are you only eating with the rich and powerful instead of sitting with the broken and lost? That isn’t what Christ did and it isn’t what you should do.

I challenge you, like my student, to level up. Don’t look at where you are in comparison to others but where should you be. Where does God want you to be? Can you elevate yourself above those around you who would drag you to their level and make you feel less than? If you see what they are doing wrong, why would you follow them? Be righteous like your heavenly Father is righteous. You can rest assured in your righteousness that you have the ability to forgive.

1 John 2:29: “If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.”

In response to adversity, I can smile. I describe it as looking to Heaven and smiling with that, “Can you believe this, Lord?” look. If I know that I am doing what is right and I know those around me are not, why would I be angry and defiant? I can smile and be at peace regardless because I have a peace that surpasses all understanding. I need to rise above it and ‘level up’ by challenging myself to do better. Don’t judge, just do better.

Romans 5:1-5: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

We are to lovingly shepherd one another. To come along side one another in love to help others learn there way and to be teachable to His ways. Level up my friends. Level up.

Galatians 6:1: “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”