The Lord has dropped in my heart some perspective as we are approaching the traditional time of the Thanksgiving Holiday in the USA. I know that the Holiday has its roots in the celebration of the early American settlers who depended on God alone for their very existence. Likewise, I have always been taught and personally endorse that we should take note of our many abundant provisions and make them known. I sense however a shift in my spirit away from the focus of circumstantial blessing.
Proverbs 29:18 (NASB) says,
18 Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, But happy is he who keeps the law.
Trina and I have known a special joy for years as we preach and share Jesus with many people. We now spend a little time each month delivering food to people whose circumstances range from difficult to utterly dire. We also have developed relationships that have soberly outlined our need to pray and minister to the persecuted Church in many parts of the world. It is important to note that these pursuits and discoveries have come at a cost to our natural comfort. We don’t have near the material availability we once did and it is especially difficult to be separated from our natural family in the USA.
Strangely though we find that our happiness has increased. As I’ve considered this seeming contradiction, I’ve been lead to conclude something very important to the Christian experience. It isn’t what you have or where you find yourself that makes you fulfilled, it is who you are doing it for that is important. Once you know Christ, to be found in His Will is what brings true happiness. This experience has changed my “vision” from the traditional view point I have held at the time of the Thanksgiving holiday.
Please understand that you don’t have to be in challenging natural circumstances or any other specific natural paradigm to walk with the Lord. You do however need to find Jesus and His plan, whatever it may be, for your life. This will give you a thankful heart that may well be a new experience.
Blessings in Christ,
Rodney and Trina
