My daughter Jenna is twenty months old and is into everything. I like to call her the little Texas Tornado because she leaves a mess wherever she goes. I am becoming an expert at storm chasing that’s for sure. Life is an adventure! It is entertaining to watch her play for she does strange things. For example, she randomly starts dancing, even without music to accompany her. She tries to fit into the most obscure places, like behind the couch or between the bed and the wall. One of the most interesting things, however, is how she holds onto a toy at all times even if she needs both hands free to do something. She will get so frustrated, but it never occurs to her to drop the toy in order to free up one of her hands.
I believe that just like Jenna, many times we need to learn how to drop some things in our lives in order to gain all that God has for us…to move from a good place to a God place. The differences between the words “good” and “God” is a capital letter and the letter “o”. First of all, God needs to be the capital of our lives. What I mean by this is He needs to be not only Savior, but complete Lord. When He is the ruler of our lives, we may have to drop some things so we can advance in our destinies. We may have to drop some o’s to go from living a good life to living a God life and living a life bigger than we could ever imagine.
Many times the difference between a goOd thing and a God thing is an O-obstacle. Dictionary.com defines an obstacle as something that obstructs or hinders progress. It is an obstacle that has the ability to hold us back. It could be a sickness, a trial, a heart ache, a disappointment or anything that gets us down. By prayer and trust, God teaches us through His Word how to overcome these obstacles. John 16:33 says, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
Here are a few o’s, obstacles, that I have learned (and am still learning) to drop.
~Obstacle of Obsession~
Okay, I admit it…sometimes I can be a bit of a control freak! What??? It’s true, and I know I’m not alone on this one. There was a time in my life that I could control everything, or at least I thought I could. I could control my grades in college based on how obsessively I studied. I could control my weight by working out tirelessly and eating grass to drop a few pounds. The lifestyle of a control freak is not just exhausting; it’s unhealthy! The Bible says that we should not obsess over things in this manner. 1 Peter 5:7 says, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about what happens to you.” The Message reads, “Live carefree before God; He is most careful with you.” I love that! He cares so much about every detail of our lives, so we can trust Him to be in control. It may have been good for me to get A’s, but it wasn’t the plan of God for me to lose my peace over it. God’s plan is great and is peaceful. “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!” Isaiah 26:3
~Obstacle of Overanalyzing~
“A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” If only I had a dollar bill for every unnecessary thought, I would be so rich! Oh, the time spent wasted on overanalyzing situations. Overanalyzing is a distraction from faith. It is not humanly possible to understand the depths of the works and plans of God. Yes, He gives us glimpses of what He is doing, but the beauty in faith is that it allows God to blow our minds with His miracles. If we can analyze and explain everything that goes on in our lives, we are missing out on all the fun! What if Nehemiah overanalyzed the rebuilding of the wall? He wasted no time nor did he give an ear to those who tried to distract him from his purpose. In doing this, what laid in ruins for 120+ years was rebuilt in 52 days. What if the woman with the issue of blood overanalyzed the crowd around Jesus? Would she have gotten her miracle? Naaman did overanalyze the directions from the prophet Elisha and almost missed his miracle. The amazing part is that God is patient and full of grace. He welcomes our questions, but longs for us to move from a place of trying to figure it all out to a place of trust even though we can’t figure it out. For us to be all that God has created us to be, we must believe that God can and will do things beyond our very comprehension. This is when life moves from good to God!
~Obstacle of Order~
Bear with me on this one. I understand that God is orderly. “Let all things be done decently and in order.” (1 Corinthians 14:40) Pastor Joe Champion preached about order and Noah’s Ark a few months ago. He said that if there wasn’t order, the animals would eat one another. So true! I want to look at the flip side of the coin on this one. Order does not imply that we get in a spiritual rut or ritual. We may plan and order our lives, but God wants us to allow Him to shake up some things. Make room for God to move. God may have something for you around the corner, but you miss it because you have set your coordinates to go straight. Be sensitive to God through prayer, and if he wants to change direction, be willing to deviate from the predictable into the supernatural. Proverbs 16:9 says, “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” When we take a step of faith, which is out of our comfortable order of things, miracles can happen.
We need to live life with open hands so we can grab ALL that God has for us. When we drop the obstacle(s) that we are gripping, we are free to catch the God blessings He so generously wants to shower upon us. “I will bless my people and their homes around my holy hill. And in the proper season I will send the showers they need. There will be showers of blessing.” Ezekiel 34:26
