I wonder if a Christian walk may be simplified to the simple act of hearing and obeying. It seems as though the complexities of my journey arise out of my adding to what God is asking. For example, the minute I begin to envision my responsibilities to give, I become confused.
There is always more need than I can give to. Trying to determine how to respond to every crisis overwhelms me. And no matter how much I give, it is never enough. And no matter how much I reduce my expenditures, I feel racked with doubt about whether I am spending too much.
I am not living like a monk, but neither does living like a monk “feel” right. I know what Jesus’ instructions were about “always having the poor.” I know what systematic theology would likely yield on this subject. In the end, however, it seems as though what I should be doing is responding to what God is asking, nothing more.
The same applies to my vision of the future. It seems as though I can add, complicate, and confuse the issue. But one word from Jesus provides instant clarity. It is when I move beyond that word that I become muddled.
I have spent weeks, months, sometimes years, carefully thinking through a plan, when in the end, my conclusion was still wrong. Yet, all along the way, those things which God led me to do, that I complied with, produced fruit.
So much about this concept that is liberating, yet there is so much that is dangerous. It calls one to live on the ragged edge of faith.
It strips one of all the certainties.
It fosters utter dependency.
