Today was “Graduation Sunday” at Asbury. For a brief moment, my focus shifted from the young men and women who were standing in front of the congregation surrounded by their friends and families to my own graduation.
And then it hit me.
That was almost 20 years. 19 to be exact. But closer to 20 than 15.
Really?!?!
Yeah. Really. Reality.
As I looked at those young people in the front of the auditorium, I tried to remember (unsuccessfully) what advice people gave me at that time in my life. Then I thought what advice do I have to offer? Surely 19 years has taught me something.
Yes. It has. Alot. But it can all be summed up in three points:
- Learn to love unconditionally
- Learn to trust God with everything
- Learn to listen intently
1 Corinthians 13 teaches us about unconditional love. It teaches that the Christ-follower is called to love. Called to give freely of themselves for others. Called to use the gifts that God has granted us to one end. Yep, you guessed it, love. It teaches us that even though we may not fully understand God or the path which God has laid out for us to walk down, and even though we may not always agree that we are to love. Faith, hope and love remain. Of these, love is the greatest. Learn to love. Unconditionally.
I’ve posted previously on trusting God (link here). The long and short of it is this: Trust. God knows your needs. God knows your shortcomings. God knows your heartaches. Put it all in God’s hands.
God’s got it.
When I learned to say those words, and mean them, life shifted from being stressful, painful, and impossible to being joyful, stressless, and easy. Trust God. That simple.
Consider this:
Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him and he will help you. — Psalm 37:5 (New Living Translation)
Learn to listen intently. Remember the story of Elijah. He defeats the prophets of Baal. Gets scared. Runs. Hides. Tells God that he was the only true prophet left. No one loves me. No one wants me. I’m doomed. If I show my face, then it’s all over. He tells God, “I’m it. Only one left who believes in You. They’ve killed all the rest. I’m next.” Then:
The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. — I Kings 19:11-13 (NIV)
Still. Small. Voice. God speaks in the silence. Listen intently to the voice of God.
God speaks to us on an individual level. God desires relationship. Think about the Adam story. God creates Adam for what reason? Companionship. God wanted a companion.
Let’s return to the Elijah story. Elijah has just heard the voice of God. The actual voice of God. Still. Quiet. Whisper. Awe. God asks Elijah (my paraphrase), “What’s the deal? You have things to do. Yet, here you are. In a cave. Hiding.” Elijah replies. His reply? The same exact phrase that he used before God told him to do wait on the mountain for an encounter. He says the EXACT SAME THING. God’s response? “Go do what I told you. I have faithful servants. Don’t worry about that. Go do what I told you.”
See, it all ties together. We love unconditionally, we are able to trust more. We trust more, we are able to better hear God. We hear God, and we learn to love unconditionally. Unconditional love will result in action. Listening to God’s voice, well, that will result in action as well. It’s a cycle. As we trust, we hear. As we hear, we respond (love). As we respond, it becomes easier to trust.
That’s the lesson of the last 19 years.
Love Unconditionally.
Trust God.
Listen Intently.
