On that 1st Easter, it seems that everyone expected a body ... not a living being. The Romans and the religious leaders, the disciples, 2 men on the road to Emmaus, all were caught up in an ending of a story that had played out over 3 years. They were all looking for an ending and were mulling over what that ending would mean. They were ALL wrong!
I wonder how often we make this same mistake? We draw the picture of our expectations with a permanent marker. We cast our small vision of what is ahead in concrete, watching it harden and dry along with small dreams, short-term wants, and logical outcomes. All the while, God is painting big dreams, world-changing hopes, and an ever-changing canvas that is bigger than the whole world. We get what we are looking for, and God watches, hoping we will open our eyes and hearts to His plan. I wonder if He gets frustrated with me, as I try to confine an infinite God to my own expectations?
We, our church, our denomination, and our little body of believers are in a season of hope. How do we seek the living Word and vast plan of God, as we wrestle with our small dreams? I have a few suggestions:
1. We choose fulfillment over fickleness - Our faith is sometimes fickle. It rests on our negativity and our willingness to settle for visions that fit the box in which we hold God. Yet, God has a big plan. We see that it includes children, youth, new faces, struggles, barriers, and blessings. Our 2nd service, yesterday, ended with a song called The Blessing (from Numbers 6). If you read the Numbers passage, there is both blessing and fulfillment. Have you read what it says? This blessing isn't just a benediction. It is a generational blessing, for those that hear it, and for those who will come after. In the song, I love the line, "for your family, and your children, and their children, and their children ... ." God's dreams for us are generational ... big ... vast ... fulfilling His great plan.
2. We see and seek what God values - In Matthew 13 a man finds a pearl of great value. He sells all he has so that he can buy that pearl. When have we confined the church, our faith, our Christian walk, inside our expectations? When have we allowed our attitude and mindset to become fog, that blurs our sight of God's bigger, better, vast plan? This little parable shows a God who found a pearl of great value. That pearl could be named Randy, Jimmy, John, Mary, Bob, Andy, Sandra, Kristina ... you get the point. All of those names ... and all of us who are part of this church ... are valued by God. How valued? The merchant (God the Father) sees that pearl of great value. So the merchant (God) gives the most valuable thing He has (Jesus the son) to pay our price. "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you! I have called you by name and you are Mine! (Isaiah 43:1)."
As we come into worship, into our time of praise, music, offering, message, and liturgy, I hope we can begin to grasp the depth of what is really happening. We must get out of the mindset that the primary thing every Sunday morning is, "What are we doing today?" We must get into the mindset of, "What is God doing today?" Look, and expect God to be doing something that fulfills His plan. Participate! Look and seek what God is seeking. Participate! You, we, all of those names above are not the painters ... we are the painting. You, we, all of the names above are not the potter ... we are the clay.
"Could it be that you were only waiting there to see, if I will learn to love the dreams, that He has dreamed for me?" Twila Paris
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