Be Greater
Nothing worth doing is simple. My professor and mentor Thomas Plate used to say this often. I used to think that easy was good. It enabled me to get work done quickly, leaving excess time for other tasks and things I actually wanted to do. But do we really want easy? The word sounds appealing, for sure. The connotation brings to mind something that isn’t stressful. A task requiring little energy, for instance. Perhaps something you could do with “your eyes closed.”
This is why I find it fascinating that people are often drawn to stories of adventure. Being a huge geek myself, I often daydream about embarking on an epic quest filled with danger, intrigue, and daring feats. It’s funny because, in reality, I work a desk job where not much changes on a day-to-day basis. I’ve become comfortable with routine, which is not exactly the basis of a great tale of excitement. I’m slowly coming to realize that maybe, just maybe, easy isn’t synonymous with good.
Not too long ago, I read a book called Dangerous Prayers: Because Following Jesus Was Never Meant to Be Safe by Craig Groeschel. In a nutshell, it echoes the sentiment “be careful what you wish for.” When we pray to God and ask him to shake up our life, we better be ready. Saying “yes” to what the Lord has in store for you is, in essence, the very definition of adventure. Many times, what He calls you to will not be easy. It will not be quick. It might even make you regret asking for what you’ve prayed for.
But when the Holy Spirit moves you, you better be ready and willing to accept the call to action. You see, God has big plans for us. During a recent Bible study, something was brought to my attention that I really needed to hear. It was regarding a verse in John 14. Jesus is talking to His disciples about His relationship to the Father (God) and He says, “Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12). This is coming from a man who has made the blind see and the lame walk; He’s raised people from the dead. GREATER?! What could possibly be greater than that?
The small group of women that comprises our Bible study talked it over for a bit, and one of the answers that came about had to do with the ability to change a person’s heart. Emotions are a powerful thing, and getting someone to change the way they view a situation can certainly be just as intense as any miracle given the stubbornness of people today. It’s yet another thing that isn’t easy…but the outcome is often worth the effort.
I don’t know what you’re currently going through right now. Perhaps you are feeling lost, but afraid to make a move that could change the way you live. Alone, we are weak, and that can be a scary feeling. But we were never meant to take on this great adventure we call life by ourselves. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 says “…‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
God never sets us up for failure. As humans, He knows we are limited in what we can do. He has given each one of us gifts. It doesn’t even matter if we know what they are or not. We just need to show up and get ready to do GREATER. To be GREATER. Will you answer His call?
