“Growing up on a farm,” Stan began, “there was always a lot of work to be done.”
“I was pretty much a self-starter, but my younger brother was not.”
“Did that cause some problems?” I asked.
“Well, I heard my mother say to him lots of times, ‘don’t just stand there, do something.’”
“I heard that a lot, too,” I said.
Stan continued, “it was only after I began my walk with God that I heard Him say something entirely different.”
“Which was?”
“Don’t just do something, stand there.”
“How did you interpret that?” I asked.
“God made it clear to me that too much of what I thought I was doing for Him was really only what I thought I should be doing, rather than seeking His will for what I should be doing.”
“It became very clear to me that rather than denying self, I was exerting self.”
“And rather than taking up my cross by doing what He wanted me to do, I was doing what I wanted to do.”
“And rather than following Him, I was asking Him to follow me.”
“That must have been quite a turn-around for you,” I responded.
“Yes, it was,” Stan said, “but what He made clear after that was even more so.”
“He said that once it was clear what He wanted, I was not just to stand there any longer.”
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Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10.
Prayer: Lord, you know I want to do your will in every part of my life. You also know that too often I think I know what you want me to do without having ever asked you. I need and I ask for your help in truly seeking what it is that you have for me to be and to do. Help me not run before you. Amen.
