What Was Missed

Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles; and they will mock Him, and scourge Him, and spit on Him, and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again. Mark 10:33,34 (New King James Version)

Jesus spoke very plainly on a number of occasions of His impending death and resurrection. Today’s passage is just one of many times that He was very clear on the truth of what lay ahead for Him. Therefore, I often read with amazement that His disciples missed what He was saying. When He was eventually crucified they did not anticipate the resurrection…it never entered their mind. Instead of looking for His rising again, they lived with sadness, confusion, and fear. Although that was not the end of their story, it is a chapter within their story that I often experience.

Truth that can be crystal clear to others can sometimes elude me. By the time I see it and really get it, others may be amazed at my missing such an elemental truth. One of the first of those truths for me was the fact that God’s love was not dependent on what I was doing. I was a Christian for over 30 years before I began to understand that the Christian life is about relationship with God NOT performance for God. The change that came with that truth was phenomenal!

Recently the light came on for me regarding another truth I had somehow missed and it is this…..my emotional well being must be attached to God rather than people. In the 35 years of being a Christian, I have not known that truth or lived my life out of it. Anyone who has known me or read my devotionals for any length of time can attest to the constant battle I have fought to find the balance between looking to God and looking to people. I saw only two options: look to people to meet my emotional needs or ask God to kill any desire in me to even be in relationship with people. How God must have ached to see me miss His offer of help and healing, which includes people, with Him as the Source.

I am not meant to walk solo through life without the counsel, input, and advice of godly friends. I am not meant to close off my heart to every one but God. The body of Christ is His body….His representation. What He wants me to see is while I look to Him and depend upon Him, He will minister to me in ways that include people. Once again, His ways are higher than my own and I am in awe.

Father, I have lived with a famine mentality when all the while You have been calling me to feast on You and all that You provide. I love You! Amen.

He Believes in You - Point of Grace
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIKsimvJlPI

I welcome your questions and comments to any devotional thoughts. I am honored and delighted to share my journey with you and privileged to hear of yours.