I’m standing at the stove cooking. From where I stand, it’s warm. It’s 16° outside and though my thermostat says it’s 73° inside, it’s cold. The kitchen floor is the coldest place to be in my house but the heat that radiates from the burner is keeping me warm. There are cracks that allow cold air to blow in my house and there are places that aren’t well insulated. To be completely warm on days like this, I need to be layered up with socks and shoes on. I would rather be under a blanket, but duty calls. So if I can’t be warm and toasty on the couch, the best place to be is standing at the stove cooking.
As I’m making breakfast for my daughter, she walks in, tummy growling checking on my progress. She leans into me and asks if it’s almost done. Before I can answer, she suddenly wrapped her arms around my waist and with her two bare feet, steps on to one of mine. I almost fell over and ask her what she’s doing. “It’s freezing in here! The floor is so cold.” Although she knows how cold it is outside and how cold it gets inside, she made a choice to wear summer pajamas. And her bare feet. Of course she’s cold. As I give her some sound advice to go put something warmer on, she clearly isn’t interested. As she holds on to me a bit tighter, she tells me she would rather just stay where she’s at. Where it’s warm. In front of the heat of the stove. Standing on me. I smile and tell her that’s fine.
But when I’m done cooking, I realize I can’t move. I’m stuck. I’m lop-sided and weighed down on one side.
And I pause. Pause to realize two things:
Spiritually, I’ve been in the one sided, lop-sided relationship with Christ. Unwilling to put in any effort on my own, I end up standing on someone else’s feet. Someone spiritually sound. I’ve been the one who doesn’t heed sound advice: the hard truth. You know, the truth that you are where you are because you choose to be? Oh yes, I have been there a time or two. Blinded to the reality that I needed to live out my faith in Christ. Blinded that I needed to work out what God put in. And by my own choices I ended up on the wrong side of rather with misguided trust. I got to where I would rather stand on someone else’s two strong feet. I’d rather stand on my job. I’d rather stand on my finances. I'd rather stand on my abilities. I’d rather stand on ____ you fill in the blank. And standing in those places, I ended up going through the motions. Holding on to all the wrong things, I wrapped my arms tight and subconsciously declared, “I’m standing right here. I trust you to hold me up.”
But by God’s merciful, long-suffering, grace upon grace, I’ve grown from that place. I’m growing in my relationship. From where I stand now, I’d rather have Jesus. And I’m living out my faith. Now a days, I’m the one trying to hold others up. I'm a fixer. God knows how I want to fix. I’m strong. Spiritually strong. I’m ready. I’m prepared. You want me to hold you up? I smile and say, sure. Stand on me? That’s fine.
But here’s the thing: As I’m standing there holding the weight of my daughter up on one foot, balancing myself to stand, I realize I can’t just keep standing there. This job; making breakfast, is done. But because she’s standing on me, I’m stuck. I can’t move where I need to go. I can’t accomplish what needs to be accomplished.
And the truth is, allowing her to stand on me, will ultimately hinder me from what God needs me to do. And if I don’t tell her the truth; in love, she will just stay stagnant. Where she would rather be. Standing.on.me. But where we’d rather be, if it’s not ultimately standing on Jesus, we will fall. And it could cause me to fall. So I need to be strong. Spiritually strong and point her to stand on Jesus.
Oh how I have learned this lesson over and over. This lesson that I can’t fix everything. That’s God’s job. My heart though, it wants to. But I get in the way. I get in God’s way of what He wants to do in me--to move forward, to speak up and point you to Him. And I get in the way of what He is working in you--to depend on Him. To stand on your faith in Jesus. He wants you to see, that standing on someone else to hold you up is only temporary. Though He certainly puts strong and willing people in our path, we can’t stand on their faith. Likewise, we may be the strong and willing, allowing someone to wrap their arms around us and stand, but we aren't fully capable to hold them up. Because you and I? We disappoint. We fail. We let down. But God--God is not capable of any of that. He never disappoints, never fails, and never lets us down. He will always hold you up.
As I’m making breakfast for my daughter, she walks in, tummy growling checking on my progress. She leans into me and asks if it’s almost done. Before I can answer, she suddenly wrapped her arms around my waist and with her two bare feet, steps on to one of mine. I almost fell over and ask her what she’s doing. “It’s freezing in here! The floor is so cold.” Although she knows how cold it is outside and how cold it gets inside, she made a choice to wear summer pajamas. And her bare feet. Of course she’s cold. As I give her some sound advice to go put something warmer on, she clearly isn’t interested. As she holds on to me a bit tighter, she tells me she would rather just stay where she’s at. Where it’s warm. In front of the heat of the stove. Standing on me. I smile and tell her that’s fine.
But when I’m done cooking, I realize I can’t move. I’m stuck. I’m lop-sided and weighed down on one side.
And I pause. Pause to realize two things:
Spiritually, I’ve been in the one sided, lop-sided relationship with Christ. Unwilling to put in any effort on my own, I end up standing on someone else’s feet. Someone spiritually sound. I’ve been the one who doesn’t heed sound advice: the hard truth. You know, the truth that you are where you are because you choose to be? Oh yes, I have been there a time or two. Blinded to the reality that I needed to live out my faith in Christ. Blinded that I needed to work out what God put in. And by my own choices I ended up on the wrong side of rather with misguided trust. I got to where I would rather stand on someone else’s two strong feet. I’d rather stand on my job. I’d rather stand on my finances. I'd rather stand on my abilities. I’d rather stand on ____ you fill in the blank. And standing in those places, I ended up going through the motions. Holding on to all the wrong things, I wrapped my arms tight and subconsciously declared, “I’m standing right here. I trust you to hold me up.”
But by God’s merciful, long-suffering, grace upon grace, I’ve grown from that place. I’m growing in my relationship. From where I stand now, I’d rather have Jesus. And I’m living out my faith. Now a days, I’m the one trying to hold others up. I'm a fixer. God knows how I want to fix. I’m strong. Spiritually strong. I’m ready. I’m prepared. You want me to hold you up? I smile and say, sure. Stand on me? That’s fine.
But here’s the thing: As I’m standing there holding the weight of my daughter up on one foot, balancing myself to stand, I realize I can’t just keep standing there. This job; making breakfast, is done. But because she’s standing on me, I’m stuck. I can’t move where I need to go. I can’t accomplish what needs to be accomplished.
And the truth is, allowing her to stand on me, will ultimately hinder me from what God needs me to do. And if I don’t tell her the truth; in love, she will just stay stagnant. Where she would rather be. Standing.on.me. But where we’d rather be, if it’s not ultimately standing on Jesus, we will fall. And it could cause me to fall. So I need to be strong. Spiritually strong and point her to stand on Jesus.
Oh how I have learned this lesson over and over. This lesson that I can’t fix everything. That’s God’s job. My heart though, it wants to. But I get in the way. I get in God’s way of what He wants to do in me--to move forward, to speak up and point you to Him. And I get in the way of what He is working in you--to depend on Him. To stand on your faith in Jesus. He wants you to see, that standing on someone else to hold you up is only temporary. Though He certainly puts strong and willing people in our path, we can’t stand on their faith. Likewise, we may be the strong and willing, allowing someone to wrap their arms around us and stand, but we aren't fully capable to hold them up. Because you and I? We disappoint. We fail. We let down. But God--God is not capable of any of that. He never disappoints, never fails, and never lets us down. He will always hold you up.
From where I stand, I look down and she’s still standing on my foot. And I smile. In love, I tell her as gently as I can. In order for me to do what I need to do, you are going to have to stand on your own two feet. She steps down. She’s cold. And before I can put the eggs on the plate and set the table for her, she’s back. She’s ready. She’s prepared. She’s put off the old and put on the new. And I smile at her as she stands there on the cold kitchen floor. Standing on her own two feet.