"oh i believe in yesterday..."

Yesterday was simply a fantastic day for me. At church, Deebs gave a message that was life-changing. All this time I have been praying the wrong thing, asking the wrong question: "God, reveal to me your will for my life," and "What is God's will for my life?" I have been pressing him for guarantees, asking him for a burning bush or a lightning bolt: "God, if this is the path you would have me choose then light it up for me," and "If this isn't within your will then make it painfully obvious to me" have been prayers I have prayed more than once. I have felt like a failure because I have not yet received those things and have, therefore, doubted my faith all this time thinking there must be something I am not doing, or I am doing it well enough, I am not praying enough, I am not believing enough, I am not praying the right way, on and on... Yesterday Deebs made it clear to me that I have not been walking by FAITH as much as I have been by SIGHT like Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:7. There are 3 types of God's will: 1) Sovereign - His secret plan for allowing things that aren't explainable or comprehendable (London, 9/11, Oklahoma City); 2)Moral - His revealed plan, the plan he laid out for us in the Bible (the 10 Commandments); and 3) Individual - His ideal, detailed life-plan (Proverbs 3:5-6, Colossians 1:9).

Basically, Deebs suggested that as long as we love God, we can do what we like. He gave us the freedom to choose in Genesis when he says to Adam and Eve, "You may eat from any tree but one." As long as they didn't eat from that one tree they were within his will. He didn't care which one they ate from just as long as it wasn't that one. When we give our lives to Christ we have a new ambition - to please him - but he says, "I am proud of you and I love you, no matter what you choose."

Then our small group met yesterday afternoon at 4pm. It was a great meeting in which we all were able to share from our hearts and really start developing a bond there that hadn't been uniformly present before then. Tears were shed, laughing ensued, hugs were shared, and ice cream and cake were eaten. It was a blessing - one of the highlights of my day.

I believe in the hope that yesterday brought to me!