God REALLY Is Enough!
God has been giving me some very real lessons in faith lately...Like waking me up in the middle of the night to pray for a troubled soul, and then prompting me to txt that soul that He cares for so much. Later on that day receiving a heartfelt "Thank You for Praying" txt from said soul, along with a message telling me what had been going on, and I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt how real God is and how much He cares. I realized again that God doesn't need us to accomplish His work, but He invites us to join Him in His kingdom, to join in His work, to be His hands and feet to reach the hurting, the broken. I am honored to be on this journey with Jesus.On Tuesday night I ran something down my garbage disposal that I shouldn't have and it clogged my kitchen drain. I knew what the problem was but I wasn't sure about the solution. First instinct would be to call a plumber, but I honestly didn't have a couple hundred extra lying around just waiting to pay a plumber. I let it go and waited till the morning. I purchased myself a 25 foot "snake" and some liquid plumber, and was determined I was gonna beat this thing! I didn't take time to pray, although it felt like it was a test. I took the pipes apart beneath my kitchen sink and began the process of feeding the snake down the pipe. Only problem was I didn't get too far before it hit a deep elbow. I tried for a while, then gave up. That night when I got home I saw the water in the pipe had gone down some so this is where the liquid plumber came in. Only thing was, I couldn't put much in before it backed up again. So I once again went to bed and waited till morning. And so it became a morning and evening ritual for the next few days, liquid plumber morning and evening, surely eventually it would break down the clogged area! All this time I was worried, stressed, and only half-heartedly asking God what I should do. This morning (Saturday) I decided to try the snake one more time, and of course it failed. I started crying and telling God that He and I both knew I didn't have the money for a plumber, and I asked Him brokenly if He could please just show me how to fix it. I was finally where God wanted me to be; broken, and asking Him to help because I couldn't. He took me downstairs with a flashlight and a small ladder. There were two places where the main pipe could be easily taken apart. I tried the obvious one first and because the water and the muck gushed from that area I knew the problem was down further. I ended up taking the pipe apart where it went directly into the main pipe. That's where the clog was. I easily took the stuff out that was clogging it and put it back together and it worked! I stood there with tears in my eyes thanking God for giving me the courage to fix it. I had almost given up, and even called my brother only to find he was not around today, and God whispered tenderly. "You can do it, cause I'm gonna help you!" The enemy wanted me to give up and in doing so tried to make me believe that God wasn't really interested in messed up drains! God was whispering to not give up on Him. He gave me the courage to push through, even when I got drenced with liquid chemicals I had dumped in and food particals and all other kinds of yucky stuff that came gushing out of that pipe! After I was done, and back upstairs, I picked up my Jesus Calling Devotional and read today's page. What I read brought me to tears and made me laugh as well; "When you are determined to get your own way, you blot Me out of your consciousness. Instead of single-mindedly pursuing some goal, talk with Me about it. Let the Light of My Presence shine on this pursuit, so that you can see it from My perspective. If the goal fits into My plans for you, I will help you reach it."
I share this, because there is a much deeper meaning in this for me; God needs us to get to the very heart of the matter when there is something in our life that He wants to heal. When we do that we get dirty and covered in our own muck. As we start digging the muck rises up and tries to smother us. If it is an addiction we are dealing with we try to fix it with a self help program to "quit" it. When we are discouraged, depressed, hurt, lonely (the list could go on forever) we self-medicate with food, alcohol, media, books...anything that dulls the pain. We are only looking to fix the symptoms, not the root of the problem. We are trying to fill the God-sized void and ache that only Jesus can fill. We pursue things, we fill up, we keep busy, we run, we hide; anything to keep us from facing reality. Digging deep into the center of our heart is painful. It is messy. It stinks! Sometimes we need to find help to lead us through it. Sometimes God tells us to trust Him to lead us through it without bringing someone else into it. God created us for relationship. To live in community. To help each other. To learn to trust others. To ask for help. But sometimes He just wants to be able to help us all alone. To show us that He doesn't need someone else to be involved. That no matter what He is all powerful. He is the only one that can fully satisfy the ache, the hunger, the void. That He wants to come into my mess and fix it. That He needs me to trust Him, and Him alone! That when He tells me He's got the situation in control, I need to let go and trust that what He says is true!
Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! 1 Chron. 16:11
