I Look to You

http://youtu.be/-vSDhJ0LAm8        Selah, “I Look to You”

This is a song that has touched me deeply. Music can have such a powerful influence over us…both for good as well as evil, depending upon the message.

I spent the evening with a new friend, preparing an upcoming retreat that I am so excited about. As we discussed the music, she shared this song with me. Take a moment to listen to it!

It’s a cry from the heart from someone who’s at the end of herself. Nothing has worked out liked she’d dreamed it would, once upon a time. Like a tower built of toothpicks, it all tumbles down around her, and she is left to pick up the pieces.

I’ve been there before. Actually, right now I’m staring at a root that is big and that runs deep in me…and it’s sucking the life from the garden of my soul. I’m finally at the point that I hate being cheated by my own choices; the choice to put something off that seems… unpleasant.

Procrastination is so pervasive, and f you’re not careful, it can literally take your life. Put off going to the doctor when you have chest pain, and it might be your last opportunity to avoid what seems painful.

We live in a world that says we should be able to live pain-free. Have a headache? Take an Advil. In a painful relationship? Walk away. After all, there’s plenty of fish in the sea.

But sometimes that headache is signaling that something is really wrong, and if we keep masking it, what might the physical consequences be? And worse yet, what is that medication doing to our liver?? (never fear, I take them too, but that doesn’t mean it’s always right…)

And what about discarded relationships? Friends, and even family members, can become rubble behind us, because it’s too uncomfortable to resolve a conflict.

Sometimes the decision to walk away really is the right choice, if it’s unhealthy. But so often it’s simply a matter of pride. “Can you believe what so and so just said to me?!…did to me??” We are only willing to see it from our own perspective, instead of entertaining someone else’s point of view. So we walk away,  justifying in our own minds that we did the right thing. But did we?

We can avoid things that scare us, intimidate us, or just plain seem too boring to deal with at the time. But sooner or later we have to pay the piper, and the cost for putting something off could be far more than we ever thought we’d have to pay.

The cool thing is that it doesn’t have to be like that. Even if you’re like me, and you’ve made plenty of mistakes by avoiding the unpleasant, it’s never too late to make a change.

The Bible tells us that when we are weak, that’s the time to turn to Him, who is all-powerful. II Corinthians 12:10b, ASV, says, “…when I am weak, then I am strong.”

That is such a paradox, and really makes no sense at all, at first glance. But it all falls into place when you realize that it’s when we feel weak that God is able to do the greatest good…because we’re finally willing to let Him.

It’s time to be brave! It’s time to take God at his word. When we cry out to the Lord in an awareness of our weakness, and as we open our arms in trust to the One who is entirely trustworthy—God meets us there. As we say, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven…”, That is the hinge that opens the floodgates of heaven.

Suddenly we have a surge of energy that goes beyond explanation. We have the strength to face whatever it is in front of us. So instead of hiding in fear, instead of putting it off, living in dread each time the door’s avoided—stop.  Ask the Lord to give you the courage to face whatever lurks on the other side of the door.

Many times you will find that the situation will be “all bark and no bite”. But even in the places that are quite painful, even seemingly devastating at the time, you will find that facing the situation instead of avoiding it will reap untold benefits.

It’s time to “… lay aside every weight, and the sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the Founder and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12: 1b-2 (emphasis mine)

So it’s time to look at the One who can help us with whatever we’re facing today. It may have absolutely nothing to do with procrastination. But no matter what it is, Jesus is always the right answer. Look to Him and He will always be there.

I would love to have your feedback on the song or these thoughts!  Anything resonate?

If you have a good idea for a future blog, let me know—I would love to hear from you!

 Some difficult things hit my family the last couple of weeks but God has been so faithful, as always. All praise to Him alone.

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