You Can't Mess It Up
Which brings me to another of my favorites: requests for a blog post. Straight from one of my all-time favorite girls, here's what she asked for:
"Something addressing what God says about how he made us to fulfill a certain calling, but how to deal with or reason with the 'I definitely failed that test and I tried so hard and if this is what I'm meant to do, what is going on from here?' moments"
I was going to attempt to summarize this request, but honestly it was too perfect in its imperfect state. I loved the desperate, personalized crazy that sneaked through. And though I honestly don't have a clue as to the exact situation that prompted this question, I took it as a personal challenge.
So I'm writing her back in the form of a letter, since that's how we started communicating well (see the intro to this blog here to understand what I mean). It's for her, specifically, but the answer may be for you, too.
Sweet one,
You have one calling: sanctification. I'm not kidding: if God were to get up every morning and write out a goal for your day, it would be "Make her more like Jesus." And He does that in so many ways.
The first way He sanctifies us is in salvation; that's the start of our relationship with Him. In an instant, we know we're loved, clean, and set on a path to eternity with Him. Our salvation doesn't stop with God calling us and our saying, "Yes." It works in and through us until the day our lungs stop pumping air.
God can also sanctify us is with His blessings: a gorgeous sunrise on your way to work, a kind word from a friend when you were just about to cry, or the card from grandma with $10 in it when your broke self desperately wanted to try that new Panera salad. His blessings fall without us deserving them; we look at Him in wonder and praise Him for being the God from whom all blessings flow.
But those are not the only way He sanctifies you; sometimes it's through testing. And it's a little trickier here. Because we feel like, if God wanted us to pass the test, He should give us just a little bit more prep. Maybe even the study guide the day before. Nope; God's most revealing tests come from out of nowhere, like a spiritual pop quiz that you are most certainly going to fail. Why would God do that, you ask? I mean, didn't He know you weren't ready? Totally. But He wanted YOU to know that you had some shortcomings in your faith and your discipline and your love and your obedience that stood out in that test He handed back with all that red ink all over it. Tests might be ugly, but we rarely forget them.
Sanctification also comes in the form of redemption: taking what was meant for evil and buying it back for God's plan. You can find this all through the Bible:
- Moses doubted God could use his sub-par public speaking.
- David chose to have an affair with a married woman after he already had several wives (double no-no!).
- Peter denied he knew Jesus just hours after he declared he would die for Him.
- Jonah headed to the farthest western point on his globe when God told him to go east.
- After standing up to Ahab and hundreds of Baal's prophets, Elijah was so exhausted he was ready to give up and die.
And though the above was nowhere near a complete list, I can't neglect the women of scripture:
- Naomi felt God had abandoned her and decided to become a bitter woman.
- Sarah laughed at the angelic messengers that told Abraham she would have a baby at age 90. (Oh, and she was also eavesdropping. I don't know for sure that it's a sin, but it sure isn't walking in the light.)
- Rahab was a prostitute.
- Tamar wasn't a prostitute but pretended to be one so that her father-in-law would sleep with her so she could get pregnant with his child. (Oh, heaven, help us all.)
- Martha had a hissy-fit that Mary should stop listening to Jesus (!!!) and help her host an impromptu party, centuries even before Pinterest could stress her out. (As Charles Swindoll said, "Martha, Martha, chips and dip would have been fine!")
But if you go through scripture and find each of these instances, you'll see one recurring synopsis: GOD USED IT for HIS GLORY. Hallelujah. From sin to failure to focusing on the wrong thing, from "misdemeanor" disobedience to full-blown disasters: God takes it and redeems it. And we get to see that happen. He picks it up, dusts it off, washes it, reshapes it, and sets it back down to reveal that it was just what He needed for His glory and your sanctification.
God's plan for you is never, ever ruined.
Detours? Yes. U-Turns? Always legal. Closed roads? Sometimes. But you don't have the heavy equipment to tear up God's path.
So what do you do when you realize you're off the path?
- Get away from noise and anything that would distract you. Pour out your soul to Jesus. Confess. Cry. Repent. Worship. All this over and over.
- Choose to believe He is God not only of earth but of every situation. It's not your job to redeem that mis-step or failure; it's His. And good thing, too: you couldn't. He can; put it in His hands.
- Find a mentor, spouse, or best friend with whom you can talk through the whole thing. Secrecy is Satan's calling card, and just hearing yourself say the words will change so much of the power it has over you.
- Remember your only calling: more like Jesus. Re-commit yourself to love, forgive, serve, lay down your life and die to self so you can walk in victory on His path. This one failure might just be pointing you in a new direction. Or it might be the kick in the pants you need to straighten up. In Jesus' name :)
You will mess up, but you can't destroy God's purposes. Give yourself the credit you deserve, which is none when you try to do it alone but unlimited when His strength is in you (Philippians 4:13).
Definitely God wants to redeem it. Maybe, just maybe, it was a test. And you don't know; it might be a blessing: it just may be the thing you look back on in five years and say, "THERE is where everything changed for me."
Love God. Love yourself. Love others. You can't mess it up. I promise.
I love you.
@leslienotebook
myleslienotebook@gmail.com
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*My idea of a "life path" has been shattered with a book I just read: "Just Do Something" by Kevin deYoung. I just added it to my unofficial "everyone should read this book" list.
*I would love know what you want to know. Send those blog requests! Text me or leave a comment below or email me at myleslienotebook@gmail.com.
*This question coincided PERFECTLY with a Sunday School series I just started: My Life Path. My high school girls and I meet on Sunday mornings at 9:00 in the green room in the Youth building at First Baptist Church, Dickson. If you are female (sorry; no boys allowed!) and over the age of 16, you are invited! It started last week (October 28) and goes through December 2.
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