Would, Coulda, Shoulda
Often we find ourselves increasingly pressed for time, running a race that is 24 hours long and circles back every morning. For most, a typical day means managing multiple schedules and going multiple places which require multiple preparations for multiple activities. Hours are filled juggling priorities; do I go to the gym, put gas in the car, pay bills, shop for groceries or start dinner? At the end of the day, we take a breath, strive to keep balance and prepare for a new day before the sun rises. Sounds exhausting, doesn’t it?
So where does God come in? How do I fit Jesus into my life?
If I’m honest with you, I struggle with this every day.
In Romans 12 we are told to; “Take your every day, ordinary life, your sleeping, eating, going to work, and walk around life and place it before God as an offering.”
Seems so simple right?
Most of us do something else entirely, we put it off or just ignore it. It’s not that we would choose to live without the presence of Jesus in our lives. But where is the time? How do we make time?
We have grocery shopping , a trip to the hardware store to get what needs fixed, kids to feed, helping with homework or folding laundry. Sometimes we simply want to get a cup of < insert your favorite drink here> sit and enjoy an hour of quiet without obligations, priorities and responsibilities.
Take your life and place it before God as an offering... would that I could. Know I should.
What does it mean to take to place your life before God as an offering? First, we need to slow down long enough to realize that we are missing something, like His immeasurable love for us. If we are caught up in the chaos, how are we supposed to organize our spiritual life? Honestly, I’m not sure I have the answers.
Take your life and place it before God as an offering... would that I could. Know I should.
Most of us agree that we live in an ever changing world that only seems to loom larger. We live our lives “on the fly” taking in and consuming what we need to do to get the work done around us. Because God is always present, always around us working within us, we do have something to offer, because our lives are the offering. It’s not about doing more or working harder. It’s about living our lives in the present.
In Romans, Paul reminds us, that although we may feel we haven’t developed into a mature Christian, God uses who we are and brings out the best in us. He uses us right now in the stage of life we are in. It’s not about taking on more responsibility, it’s about making our life an offering right now, our crazy lives are the canvas in which He works his masterpiece! Because of this we can resist being sucked into the fast-paced draft of always saying Yes. He offers us a better way: the way of presence.
Take your life and place it before God as an offering... would that I could. Know I should.
We are his work in progress. He wants us with all our busyness, imperfections and hesitations and even with our lack of faith. We are his offering and with this new compelling vision we can experience an entirely new way to live: soaked in grace, rest, silence, prayer, and simplicity. We can leave behind the pressure to be perfect or too busy and begin a life-changing practice of simply being present, in the middle of the mess and the ordinariness of life.
So, take your life and place it before God as an offering. Know that I will. Pray that you will too.