Today as I was on my way home from lunch with 2 dear friends I'm driving the usual way by the intramural fields to Greek housing, only to my delight to find a dear friend, Mr. Biker man. You see..upon the usual drive-by at the intramural fields you find many types of people: people who are looking for a date..these are girls who are usually running with their hair down or guys just leaning against the fence stretching. People who are gearing up for a triathlon..these are your people who are sprinting and timing themselves or using every possible jog/walker to lap them while timing themselves. People who are social walkers..walking and talking ninety to nothing with words that are barely recognizable. But much to my surprise I came across something I've never seen. There was a sweet older man (you guessed it..Mr. Biker man) who was on his bike with gear that would make Lance Armstrong cry in jealousy. On his shiny blue helmet there was a black bar that came out horizontally and then straight down vertically with a circular mirror attached right at eye level. Yup..you guessed it! Mr. Biker man had a rear view mirror on his helmet so he could see what was behind him. I noticed this because it's blinding light pelted my eyes, as I drove by, with my clear not even the slightest bit tinted windows. In the second that I was blinded I thought about the verse in Philippians 3:12-13 Paul says "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead," This is one thing that I struggle with big time and also something that the Lord has been gently but firmly squeezing out of my life lately. I like to think that I have forgotten the past, whether things that have happened to me or things that I've chosen to do but in some way or another I keep one string attached, I hold myself to it. In reality..it's not just one string..it's straight up bondage which robs me of the joy and life altering truth of knowing Christ and who He says I am because of Him and His son. If you know me at all it's no secret that I am really hard on myself, I hold myself to ridiculous standards, the ramifications of this and holding myself to the past have sent shock waves in my walk with Jesus this semester, it's been extremely tough but such a joy. (2 Corinthians 5:21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.) The Lord took hold of me while I was in a crave driven lifestyle which only left me dissatisfied and mangled. Paul said "I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me" Pressing in it's greek root definition means "to make every effort, pursue, go running off after, to strive for a goal intensely". Which means it's going to be a heck of a fight, not something that in my natural self will want to come easy. For 20 years I lived a life built on lies that were affirmed by billboards, TV ads, movies, music, and peers. 20 years.. that’s 7,300 days! I’m 23 now and these past 3 years since the Lord has completely changed me have been characterized like a bull in a china shop. Lies have been smashed with God's word and replaced with utter truth. One song that really characterizes it is one we sang this morning “Amazing love, how can it be? That you my King would die for me. Amazing love I know it’s true and it’s my joy to honor You, in all I do.”
" He never gives a thorn without this added grace, He takes the thorn to pin aside the veil which hides His face." -John Piper
"God created us to live with a single passion to joyfully display his supreme excellence in all spheres of life. The wasted life is a life without this passion. God calls us to pray and think and dream and plan and work, not to be made much of, but to make much of him in every part of our lives." -John Piper
-Brittany
