Revealing the Real Me
How often have I said, and heard, that if I only knew what God wanted me to do in this situation or that situation, it would make me feel so much better. I don’t want to guess or throw ideas up against the wall to see which one worked. I just want the ease and comfort of knowing that what I would do was the God-thing, not the Diane-thing.
I just want him to reveal his direction, his wisdom.
As I started down my most recent spiritual adventure of learning the Bible as I have never learned it before, I found this little golden nugget.
‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him.’ But God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things even the deep things of God. ‘Who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ. ~1 Corinthians 2. 9-10, 16
It’s one of those truths snuggled in between teachings about division in the church, some verses of which I remember so well.
You are still worldly because you have jealousy and quarreling among you (ouch!).
The message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing (sadness!).
Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s spirit lives within you? (yikes!)
All gems in and of themselves, right?
I am learning to sit just a bit longer with each Scripture verse, so much longer than just getting through my ‘daily Bible reading,’ trying to make God’s word a love letter to me, personally. (Trust me, this takes a heck of a lot longer than the goal to read it cover to cover.)
So as I sat with the Corinthians ruminating on Paul’s words, this phrase jumped off the page: ‘no mind has conceived.’
Wait, what? MY mind can’t conceive what God is thinking? I can’t figure it out on my own? Wassup with that? I am an independent, smart woman of God. I am a warrior. Of course I can figure it out if I just put enough effort in, if I just think really, really hard about it.
Sometimes I guess right. But mostly I don’t. Or at least, it feels less whole than I sense it could.
I am learning, no one – not even my oh-so-wise self – can instruct me as well, as deeply, as thoroughly, as wonderfully as the Spirit can. With the Spirit, Paul clearly states, we have the mind of Christ. We can know what he is thinking, what he plans, what he wants for us.
The wisdom of God’s reveal hasn’t come easy for me. It requires more than just sitting still. It requires waiting and trusting and being OK with the non-instantaneous.
More importantly for me is the awareness that letting loose the mind of Christ reveals something about me.
Am I willing to trust that God will indeed do what the Word teaches?
Am I willing to let his reveal of himself reveal what gets in my way of absorbing him fully?
Each day, I try to deal with these questions. Sometimes painfully, sometimes peacefully. What I have found to be true is that the more I deal honestly and humbly with those 2 questions, the nearer I am to the mind of Christ.
His peace is just that unmistakable.
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Isaiah 55:8-9 says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” I have to remember this often when I think I might know more than I actually do or question God’s motives. Love your questions.
“The wisdom of God’s reveal hasn’t come easy for me. It requires more than just sitting still. It requires waiting and trusting and being OK with the non-instantaneous.”
I’ll pray for you, because it’s so easy for me. LOL. Not.
Love what you touched on here, Diane. It’s so hard to not *really* know what God is telling us to do. He instructs in the Spirit, and there are some (thank you, Jesus) actual written instructions in His Word. But so much of what I see is that I need to surrender, listen, and trust what I know to be true. And then? Take a step forward in faith. I tell this to my young adult group all the time. “Take a step. God is faithful to show you when you’ve stepped out of bounds.” Wayyyy easier said than done. Your post also reminds me of Job – mos’ def’ a righteous man, but he kinda thought he knew how God thought, enough so to be angry/upset when his life went to crap. BUT…God was right there saying (essentially), “Who do you think you are?!” Because we can’t possibly conceive notions in the way our Father does. Awfully hard to take sometimes in our me, me, me, instant gratification society. Thanks for your words!
Thanks, Gretchen. It’s also a pride issue for me sometimes – thinking that I know, so I don’t ask, I don’t wait to sit still with Him – I just don’t even think to include Him sometimes…oh, this free will thing…
Oh, gracious! I too have been searching for years to figure out how to know the will of God, Diane! You’re not alone. I can’t say I’ve found the way but I’m pretty sure God is happy that I’m looking:)
Diane – amen to that – I do think we bring Him joy when we are seeking His. Thx for the encouragement!
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