God of the Current...

"But the person who is forgiven only a little will love only a little."
~ Luke 7:47b

Sometimes I wonder why it is that my soul can become so restless.  My family will tell you that I am two very different people who juggle to be one.  One is the person that struggles to make sure that the image that others see is one of a faithful follower, secure in his faith, and focused on the journey, while the other side of me is often weak, insecure and anxious, who fails miserably to make healthy choices for me life.

The painful reality is that I am both.  At times one will overtake the other, and when the two are in conflict, I will often retreat, rather than facing what needs to be done, while failing to admit that the struggle is real.  

I think that if we were all honest with ourselves, we all have things that we juggle.  Some are just better at keeping everything moving in the air.  I remember as a kid watching a man take a plate and place it on the top of a pole, spinning the plate, and then standing the pole straight up.  The plate would remain safe as long as the speed was correct, and that it didn't begin to wobble.  The man soon had a dozen plates, all spinning, entertaining the crowd.  He then removed each one safely, and the audience cheered his accomplishment.

I don't have to attempt this to know that I am not someone who can spin plates on a pole.  First, it is not something I feel like I am called to do.  The other, for me, is that I know that the risk is too great, and the audience, or the world, will see a clumsy man, out of control, and destroying a perfectly good set of dishes.

Let's face it, sometimes life is just not easy.  In many ways I know that both of the people that my family sees juggling, sometimes with the precision of the man who could spin plates with perfection, while sometimes seeing the man who literally destroys the set of plates, in reality is me.

While I struggle, I also realize there is a God who is present as well.  That with the dawn of each new day, seems to say, "I believe in you..."  

A God who knows me so well... all of me.  A God, who like the father of the prodigal son, waits.  A God, who looked at a shepherd boy and saw a king, knew.  And a God, who took a man who didn't see the strength in his voice to free a people, pushed.  Our God, who understands us better than we do ourselves...

I will admit, it is hard to share about the times when I struggle, but it certainly does not hold the same power it once did, when the struggle finds it's way into the light, and is met with love and those who have the courage to walk with you until you find a place that is safe.

Stay in God's grip!
Todd

God of the Current...
God of discovery and re-creation,
help me to know
that there will indeed be times of wandering,
but in my wandering
lead me to green meadows;
I understand that there are times of darkness
but while in that darkness,
I know that there will also be the dawn;
that in my heart
which seeks You
through my whole being
will begin to flow
a river
washing over the valleys of my soul;
and that I will journey
wet from the experience
when again I find that I am wandering.

G. Todd Williams (c) 2021