Growth

Cruise Control

I drive a long way to work (Full disclosure – I love my job and I love where I live so this isn’t a complaint, just a statement of fact.) And as can be seen from previous posts, God often uses these moments on the road to teach me lessons that I may otherwise not hear in the busyness of the day. In fact, if I were to recount almost all (but not every) major decision I’ve made in adulthood, at some point in the story you’ll probably hear me say “and as I was driving….” Perhaps this is weird, but like most people, my life is busy. When I’m on the road, the distractions are minimal, and I spend sweet moments with my Lord.

Because I drive against traffic, I often have the opportunity to use cruise control. To whomever invented that neat little feature, I owe a huge debt of gratitude.  It provides such freedom, such liberation for those who are on the road for long periods of time. When I’m driving on cruise control, I’m not as worried about what’s going on around me, because I know my car will continue to move forward. It allows me to relax, to not take the drive quite as seriously as I otherwise would. It affords me the opportunity to, in the immortal words of some teenager, just chill.

However, there are some occasions when I don’t dare hit that cruise control button. If there’s construction (which is a common occurrence on Southern California freeways) my foot remains firmly on the gas, ready to press the brake. If there’s an accident or a car driving erratically, I stay poised ready to make a move. In short, when there’s any kind of danger, putting the car in cruise control is the last thought on my mind.

This is why the Christian life doesn’t come with the cruise control option. God’s Word tells us that we don’t have to wonder if there’s the possibility of trouble, we’re guaranteed it. In fact, Scripture tells us that Satan is on the prowl, looking to make us stumble. Therefore we have to be constantly vigilant, constantly active, in order to thwart these attempts. Our opportunity to chill remains for the enjoyment of Heaven. When there’s no danger, that’s where we finally get to rest.

Cruise control is great,  when it comes to the car. But for the Christian, in this life, the only option is press the pedal and drive hard until we reach the end.

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Growth Hope

Unveiled Faces

I’m never been a big fan of costume parties.

The primary reason for this is that my creativity is limited as is my originality. So coming up with a costume that I’m comfortable being in, but that’s also not totally expected is a little bit of a challenge. The second reason is that I don’t like talking to people in costumes. Specifically, I don’t like talking to people when I can’t see their faces and therefore don’t know who they are. Although my students don’t really believe it, I’m an introvert by nature, so talking to strangers in and of itself is a bit of a stretch outside my comfort zone. Talking to strangers when I can’t even tell who’s behind the mask is way outside of it.

Sometimes, it can feel like our relationship with God is like a conversation at a costume party. And Scripture makes it clear that there’s a reason it feels this way. After all, our sin separates us from God. Before we are a Christian, our faces are veiled; they are covered. However, after repenting and putting our faith in Christ, that veil is lifted. I used to always think that the removal of this veil was in regards to the removal of our shame. Instead of seeing our sin, when we put our faith in Him, God sees Christ’s righteousness. Therefore, we have no reason to hesitate to approach the throne because our price was paid on the cross. And just like the veil of the temple was torn at Christ’s death, so was the barrier of our sin torn asunder. And while this is true, it is also true that having the veil lifted has another effect. Just as we see who we’ve been talking to when costume masks are removed, having our spiritual veil lifted causes us to see God for Who He is. We can experience His glory – His majesty – because we rightly recognize His holiness.

This is one of the many reasons I’m looking forward to heaven so much. After all, Scripture also teaches that here we know only in part, but there we will fully understand. We will not only completely understand the need for our Savior and the grace that He extended, but we will fully comprehend all that He surrendered in order to give it to us. We will realize that magnitude of His majesty, the cost of His compassion, and the lavishness of His love for us. We will fully appreciate what He had, and what He forsook in order to save us who were His enemies. We will see, not only the depth of our own despair, but the heights of His glory.

And as a result, we will worship.

In the meantime, until we are in His presence, our goal is to increasingly see Him as He is. And then to live the life we would live if we could see Him completely.

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