Sunday, May 23, 2010

Bearing Abundance


It is often remarkable to me where God is, and what He is planning for me. The remarkable part is how off base I am pretty much always. Even more remarkable is that my ignorance, pride, foolishness, stubborness doesn't get in the way. Let me modify that, God uses my bad as much as He does my good to accomplish His work.
I've been at my current job since January 2008. It hasn't been complete joy. It's been more not joyful as a matter of fact. I love my former position in a way that I didn't love my new one. Things changed from knowing I was good, really good at what I did to trying to figure out just exactly what it was I was supposed to be doing. It changed from an atmosphere of eight hours a day with friends who laughed and worked through the day with me to one of feeling isolated much of the time.
I suddenly found myself in a job that seemed to be completely void of vision. The lack of vision will make you feel exhausted after a while. Yet I know that God has placed me here. I knew every day that God had a purpose for me but it was like I was in a dark and unfamiliar room stumbling around for a light switch. It felt like all the things that made me great at my last position were worthless in this new one, and I couldn't even put my finger on what skills I needed now. Dont' get me wrong, I haven't hated my job for three years. I just hadn't felt like I had quite clicked, quite figured it all out. I didn't feel like I was as good at it as I wanted to be and as God expected me to be.
As the Christmas holidays approached I started to truly bottom out. I heard myself being pessimistic and argumentative instead of encouraging and energetic. I couldn't find the creativity that had been there before. I was clocking my time and that was it. But I knew that God gives abundant life and despite a paycheck and a nice office, my work life didn't feel abundant. Have a week of vacation scheduled between Christmas and New Year, I knew I had to get my groove back. I had to find the work the Holy Spirit was doing at the hospital so that I could get into His wake. So I prayed. I prayed about myself and thanked God for the job and worshiped for power and gave Him glory for the opportunity and claimed it all for Christ.
And I decided to stop speaking anything but life. Life Life Life. I returned in January with restored joy and peace. I asked for revelation and got it. Then I had to ask for courage to be a vessel for revelation. And I got it.
I asked for creativity to see past all of the agendas and ideas into the heart of Jesus. And I got it.
Now I find myself on Sunday evening looking forward to work tomorrow. I know not only what needs doing but God has given me a spirit that can tolerate nothing short of His will so I feel energized.
There's nothing about my work that would be very interesting to you. I don't even talk much about it at home. But I share this to tell you that all areas of your life are destined for abundance. That doesn't mean prosperity by man's measure. It means fullness, completeness, purpose, confidence, peace, joy, optimism, energy, laughter, focus. We must not divide our lives into tiny pieces taking good things here and lesser things there. I encourage you to examine your home, marriage, kids, friends, church, job, whatever the pieces are the build your life and seek God in every area.
Abundance is for every Christian to take with them into the world, sharing the supernatural edge to life that the unbeliever cannot create. Where there is not abundance, there is oppression. There is nothing between. It is the work of the Follower to bind oppression and make the path for miracles to show forth Christ.
Be the bearer of abundance.

3 comments:

Mrs. Mac said...

What a great lesson to realize while one is still living and able to put to use. I fear most people realize this too late in life. Thanks for the eye opener sister.

Margie said...

The story of Christ in your life... How Sara got her groove back!

Jada's Gigi said...

"Abundance is for every Christian to take with them into the world, sharing the supernatural edge to life that the unbeliever cannot create."
Wow! thank you