How often do you cycle through life being hot for Jesus and then cold and then hot and then cold and then hot again. There seems to be this continual roller coaster and we don't know how to handle the dichotomy of our lives being torn in two, wanting to follow Christ, but maintain our status of "me." I won't lie, Revelation 3:16 is talking to me too! I can't stand being lukewarm, and yet it seems that I spend quite a lot of my life in that status, because I can't continually keep my eyes focused on Christ.
We tend to think in terms of fully working or fully vacationing. We're either completely following Christ or we're just taking time to focus on "me." And yet, we know, from Scripture, that the Christian life will be hard. Jesus doesn't make light of that fact, nor does He make excuses for it. He simply reiterates, "Follow me."
Since you will probably find yourself in the same boat that I continually find myself in, I'd like to offer some encouragement. Rather than throwing up your hands and saying, "I can't believe that I am so far away from Christ, yet again," I encourage you to just take a moment and reflect upon where you are at this point in your life. No matter what has happened or what you've done, just stop and consider your "now."
After you have done that, I'm going to say something that might sound harsh - "Get over yourself."
See, we weren't put at the center of God's universe. Many of us think that is the case, but it's not. God is at the center of His own universe. We were created to join Him, but contrary to popular opinion, we are not central to God existing. He exists on His own, with or without us, spanning the entirety of time. And yet, we treat Him as if He revolves around us. "Lord, just give me some time to get my life together," seems to be a popular excuse among Christians today. At what point did you begin thinking that God couldn't handle you where you are NOW? What makes you think that you are immune to Satan's attacks? What makes you think that you are the only one in the universe that is feeling this way? Stop it!
Christ came to forgive us of our sins. And yet, rather than ceasing our sin, we continue on acting as if He's not good enough to take care of us. Instead of making Him our center, we expect Him to cater to our every need. We are stuck facing "me" and we can't seem to reorient our lives back to Christ. If that's the case, then we're in a sad state of affairs.
It's time for change. Stop worrying about what everyone around you is thinking. Stop your own worry about everything that is happening in your life. Point your life toward Christ and start walking in His direction.
"But, Bryan, it's SO hard." Yep. And it will continue to be. Learn to walk toward Christ, despite the difficulty, because He is the only one that can carry us through each of these difficult situations. Instead of pushing Him away and resisting His call, rest in the only One that can truly make you whole. No more me. Leave me behind.
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