This week, our church has brought in Jerry and Lynn Jones to present their Relationships Matter seminar. Sunday through Wednesday of this week, we are blessed to go to hear them speak. I love that what they have to say is relevant in so many areas of life.
I loved this statement shared last night regarding walking through trying times in life:
The best way to find the sun is to head east into the darkness so that you can catch the sun coming up.
What I hear in that is exactly what I feel God doing with me on my journey to let go of self. I can avoid doing battle, shrug off my struggles, put up my guard, and carry on as I have been. In many ways, it seems so much easier. Taking the hard path? Doing what is difficult? Seeking a whole heart that is fully God’s, while letting go of the control I so desperately want to hold onto? Why would I willingly go down a road so dark and difficult when I could just take the short-cut and avoid digging into the root of my sin?
If I really want to see the glory of the sunrise, if I want true healing and wholeness that can only come by way of full surrender to our creator – I will walk the harder road. I’ll journey down the path that seems dark because of all the unknowns through new territory. I’ll even walk it confidently because I am guided by the One who sees the way clearly.
The blessed irony of walking the difficult road is that letting go of control and grabbing the hand of the One who holds me while I stumble along is actually much easier than trying to navigate the road on my own cleverly constructed map. My own map has become a series of unsolvable mazes and dead-ends. It may seem well lit, but the roads lead to nowhere. Been there, done that. Now which way should I turn?
I’m choosing to head east. You’re walking me through this, Lord? You know where the potholes and branches are that I need to avoid? You see the dangers ahead and protect me from them? You know exactly where I’m supposed to turn and what I am supposed to do along the way? I give you the control then. Lead me, Lord.
I’ll joyfully keep taking steps toward the east, knowing that what awaits me on the other side is a beauty so radiant it can only been seen after looking through the black.
A glorious sunrise!
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