My Utmost for His Highest

God lead me to grab one of my husband's book on the shelves and thumb through it. This is the page that caught my eye.

"He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side...." Mark 6:45

God's purpose or Mine?

We tend to think that if Jesus Christ compels us to do something and we are obedient to Him, He will lead us to great success. We should never have the thought that our dreams of success are God's purpose for us. In fact, His purpose may be exactly the opposite. We have the idea that God is leading us toward a particular end or a desired goal, but He is not. The question of whether or not we arrive at a particular goal is of little importance, and reaching it becomes merely an episode along the way. What we see as only the process of reaching a particular end, God sees as the goal itself.

What is my vision of God's purpose for me? Whatever it may be, His purpose is for me to depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay calm, faithful, and unconfused while in the middle of the turmoil of life, the goal of the purpose of God is being accomplished in me. God is not working toward a particular finish--His purpose is the process itself. What He desires for me is that I see "Him walking on the sea" with no shore, no success, nor goal in sight, but simply having the absolute certainty that everything is all right because I see "Him walking on the sea" (6:49). It is the process, not the outcome, that is glorifying to God.

God's training is for now, not later. His purpose is for this very minute, not for sometime in the future. We have nothing to do with what will follow our obedience, and we are wrong to concern ourselves with it. What people call preparation, God sees as the goal itself.

God's purpose is to enable me to see that He can walk on the storms of my life right now. If we have a further goal in mind, we are not paying enough attention to the present time. However, if we realize that moment-by-moment obedience is the goal, then each moment as it comes is precious.

I've been getting frustrated lately about Autumn's lack of goals. This is a reminder for me to stop putting so much pressure on God, Autumn, or myself when these goals are not reached on my time-table. It's not about about when God heals Autumn or helps her meet her milestones but about the my obedience to Him each and everyday. My heart longs to give Him the glory and I would love to get on here and say "It's another miracle....God healed Autumn from _____(fill in the space)" and show His awesome healing powers. It's about me getting on here and giving God the glory by saying "God got us through another day and He has remained faithful to us". I want this big bang glory for Him because that is what He deserves but I'm forgetting that the everyday walk of our lives is giving Him the glory He desires...that we remain obedient to Him no matter what type of day we had. Lord, help me focus on the journey and not what the ending is about and thanks once again for showing me what I was searching for today. Love you!