Momentum
"Momentum: force or speed of movement. Momentum is an object moving forward at a fast pace because of the force or the momentum creating speed. Momentum speeds up progress and propels you forward into blessing. It is a friend to every Christ follower who is consumed with the cause of Christ and His church. A lack of momentum is a catalyst for great frustration and duress, it often produces striving or disillusionment." (RB Thieme)
Question- what has life thrown at you that has either put out your flame or sparked a tiny ember that grew, and is still growing into an all consuming fire?
Momentum. It's a funny thing. If I roll the ball down the hill the ball will pick up speed and roll faster and faster until it either hits something or finally loses speed and stops. In my own life I have been on the mountain tops and I have been in the valleys. I am learning to stay on my knees even on the mountain tops because I will certainly need God just the same in both locations. Truth is, I need to need Him in times of rest and in times of struggle. I am training myself to call upon Him when things are good so that I can see exactly what I am supposed to see, and when things are tough and trials are pressing in on me.
I recently had a devotion that rang out so loud in my life. Coming from a past mentality of someone who struggled with insecurity, self doubt, and the mentality that people were always against me- I realized that I lived a season of my life in bondage to the idol of what I like to call "giving a care about what people think of me." Such a southernly, charming little title.
"The major problem with letting others define you is that it borders on idolatry. Other's opinion of you is subject to their spiritual, physical, and emotional condition. God's grace is steady: He desires to love me with an untainted love. And so, He does." (Jesus Calling)
Wow. That summed it up for me. For so long I walked in to a room confident by appearance, but inside I just knew everyone was talking about me, everyone thought bad things about me. I had divorced reality- everything was not about me! I had made worry a big component in my life. I had allowed what other people thought of me to become an idol. Decisions I had made for Christ, convictions I held dear, things in life I knew were black and white all got cloudy because I allowed another person to interject what they thought about the matter into my thinking- the problem is the people I was most uncomfortable around were people who were supposed to be on the same journey I was on. That does not make sense. How can Christians play the comparison game?
The part of the devotion that mentions others opinions being based on their own spiritual, physical, and emotional condition was what I failed to take into account. God is steady. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever! He is not emotional. He is not critical of earthly status or fad. He loves me just like I am. I am learning this the hard way. I am raising a little misses in my own home and it is imperative for me that she never hear the voice of others louder than she hears the voice of her Heavenly Father. Hear me mamas. Kid drama will come. Body shapes and sizes will change. Personalities will develop. It is our job to make sure that the voice of God and His heart toward His little princess is so loud in her life that she only hears His cheering from the stands. I am raising my little one to seek His approval. If she seeks His approval and has compared it against scripture, then daddy and I will be able to breathe a sigh of relief.
We cannot control the mental, physical, emotional, or spiritual wellness of another individual. We can only know the source and take things for what they are. We certainly cannot play a comparison game and want what our neighbor has or desire for our situation to look and feel like someone else's does. You may see green grass over there, but did you see the spray paint they used to color it? It will fade, just give it time.
Idolatry plagues American Christianity. We have been lulled to sleep by the devil. We have. It is time to wake up! It is time to accept that we are supposed to be strangers in this land. I am not supposed to be in the latest fashion or trends. I am supposed to walk differently than what this world sees. We are supposed to turn off the phones, TVs, radios, and look into each others eyes and use our words to communicate. In our house we like to sit down and eat together. It does not always happen, but we purpose to make it a priority in our home. We use dinner as a time to talk abut the day, laugh, smile, and enjoy each others presence. By presence I mean all in- deliberate- no distractions. I say this often, but I found myself looking a little harder these past few weeks. I stare longer at my tribe. I notice the little things. I breathe in the smell of their big and tiny clothes when we embrace each other. But when I look at them, I see Gods hand and His greatest blessings living and moving within my grasp. I have a husband who is fierce in His pursuit of Christ and His desire for our family to strive for being in passionate pursuit of Christ as well. We have a saying in our home. You have heard parents say they raised their children in church and they don't know why they have strayed from the truth in their adult age. In our home we say we are raising our children in Christ, not in church. We are the church. The facility that the church meets in is made with hands and will fade away. If we raise our children in Christ we will be living out every day knowing that our life is about Christ, not just Wednesday and Sunday when the church congregates.
Momentum. Momentum gained is a great thing in the life of a Christian. Fact: God can use other Christians to spur momentum in our lives- in good and bad ways. Not all Christians are in the mindset of servitude. Many Christians like the idea of salvation, but their life reflects that of just another person. They have not purposed to be set apart, as they were called to be. I have had some trials in the most recent season that spurred momentum and the catalyst was another "Christian" who said and did something that could have totally caused me to fall apart. To that catalyst let me say- thank you. Thank you for being a part of the Master plan that has forged growth and love and willingness to go to a different place in my walk with Christ. Because of this I have been able to face trials head on and say, you know what?- this is not about me. This trial has everything to do with choices made that are not in my realm of control and it has everything to do with another person and God needing to work the thing out. It almost feels weird to look at a situation where someone is directly trying to hurt you and then talk with your Heavenly Father and be able to rationalize what reality really is. Reality is that this person, or these people,or this boss, or this sister is doing something that is uncomfortable and it is intentionally directed at me- but its not. When you can get with God and claim His promises your soul settles and reality is that the person and God are at odds and they will have to work it out. My motto- it's not about me. It's not going to cause pain in my life. I am not going to succumb to negative thinking over this situation because God is not surprised by it and it's not about me. I have found that this mentality is such a healthy practice.
Nonetheless, momentum will be gained from situations like these. If you will allow it. And believe me, it will change your life- truly!
What about when the momentum dies down and you feel you have slipped into a mundane day to day to day hustle of same ole same...start praying for God to give you some momentum, some quickening, some opportunities to grow deeper. That is a righteous thing to ask for and you can be certain He will produce a catalyst to get some momentum going. Momentum is the thing in which moves the object. I pray we are moved today by something in our lives. Satan intends things for harm, but God uses those time for good. Those yucky, uncomfortable times can be your defining moment if you so choose to look at every situation through the lens of scripture. Know God's characteristics and what He desires to be in your life. Then, identify the person or thing God is allowing in your life to serve as a catalyst to spark a tiny flame....then stay hunkered down in battle and let your momentum grow into an all consuming blaze.
It's not about me, it's not about you.
Isn't that comforting?
"Momentum is the fruit of grace and favour. Momentum has to be piloted through ebbs and flows. Momentum is not about the church's aesthetics or the pastor's talents and efforts; Momentum happens as a result of grace. God's grace allows momentum to happen as believers seek Christ and seek to follow." (RB Thieme)
