I think Holy Spirit finds a kind of devious enjoyment by waiting until I’m drifting off, then slowly, quietly rearing back and smacking me across the face. I agree, it’s pretty messed up.
A few days ago, we took a break from our honeymoon in Charleston to drive up to Boone, NC, and support our friend Marshall Daniel’s CD release weekend. It was great seeing new friends and family in the gorgeous North Carolina mountains.
Also, spending time with and hearing two of my favorite musicians, Jonathan and Melissa Helser, made the long drive well worth it. They were there to play with Marshall and help promote his new album. I first heard Jonathan and Melissa play at my World Race training camp back in 2010 and have been following them ever since.
But, unfortunately, the Helser’s possess another gift besides music. They are excellent at providing Holy Spirit with an opportunity to slowly, quietly load up for that unannounced slap.
During one of their songs, which often last for 20 minutes or more, Jonathan paused to say something about God’s love for his children. He read Romans 8:17 aloud, “Now if we are children, then we are heirs–heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.”
Those words sank into the crowd, then he sang out, “I was made for more! I was made for more! I was made for more! I was made for much, much, much, much more!”
It wasn’t part of the song, but the sang it again. “I was made for more! I was made for more! I was made for more! I was made for much, much, much more!” Like it tends to do, my mind began running. “He’s absolutely right. I was made for more … I could be doing much more right now,” I thought.
I went down the list in my head.
It’s been wedding and honeymoon month, but my writing hasn’t been as consistent. I can do much better at that.
Our support raising for Nicaragua and Spain is going alright, but we have a long way to go and I admit it’s Whitney bringing in most of the funding. I can do much better at that.
(slowly…)
E-mails to return, packing for Nicaragua, preparing for our wedding shower/going away party, the list went on and on in my head. I was made for more.
(quietly…)
“I was made for more! I was made for more! I was made for more! I was made for much, much, much more,” the words echoed. Then, they changed.
(rearing back…)
ah, shit.
Mike Bickle, the leader of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, once said, “The kingdom of God is populated by two kinds of people: lovers and workers. And lovers will always outwork the workers.”
Yea, I missed the point.
Do you know someone that has an exceptionally intimate relationship with God? Jesus is precious to them. They hear and follow the Holy Spirit. They know they’re heirs of the Father. I can think of a couple people in particular, and it’s not coincidence they’re incredibly successful people. In fact, they are world changers.
Can I be known for that, please?
We were made for more Jesus. More relationship. More love. More grace. More intimacy. In our day to day work, and even in ministry, it’s easy to love the ministry and forget to love Jesus. In relationships, it’s easy to love being relational and forget to love Jesus. I want everything I do to be an overflow of my love for him.
With more of him, all the extra work – the stuff we think we should be doing more – will be done from love, and done more effectively.
My cheek is still stinging a little from that slap, but I’m pausing to reset my focus. From the work I think I need to be doing more, to the man for whom I was created for more.
When God says that you were made for more, do you immediately run down the list of what you could be doing more? Do you allow your love to outwork the workers?