Super(natural)

Suspense in movies... is silly.

Some of us watch dozens of films in any given year. As always, the good ones tend to keep us on the edge of our seat, holding our breath (figuratively or literally) and hoping the good guy makes it out alive. Wondering if the lovebirds will find a way past all the obstacles between them. And cheering for the underdog.

But WHY? We all know it's going to work out in the end. What's the worry? While watching Taken... did I have any doubt that Liam Neeson was going to find his daughter alive, kill the bad guys, and rescue her? (And don't give me any crap for spoilers, that doesn't qualify given the nature of this post!) But I promise there's no more mention of specific movies for me to ruin here ;-) And yet as the movie progressed, I still found myself caught up in the risks being taken... caught up in the moment.

We all find ourselves there... caught up in the moment. Some of us more often than others. It seems the younger you are, though, the more it rules you. Spend some time with a 3 or 4 year old. How quickly their concerns can change from moment to moment. If they're hungry, that's all that matters right now. And that's part of childhood. But what if you applied this idea to your faith life, to how it affects a relationship with the creator. What if you applied it to what rules your everyday actions. Your words. Your thoughts. And... of course, your emotions.

What's so silly? The fact that even among the faithful who KNOW the Lord is working all this for good, who KNOW he'll take care of them, and who KNOW any crisis is God's way of taking us to something greater, we still worry. We still doubt the outcome, we still stress over whether or not something will work out. So this isn't the movies, this is real life. But we still struggle with doubting God's promises even when we KNOW His love never fails. We're still caught up in the moment. We ::still::doubt::God::. wtf, mate.

The truth is, God works through the natural. Floods, plagues, miracles... were the biblical exception. Some of us look for God in the supernatural so often, that we miss the less obvious signs of grace. We look for God in the spectacular, and in turn miss the Holy Spirit. Personally, God has taken me so supernaturally into some areas and relationships in my life that when it came time to move on from them, the leaving was so natural I couldn't accept it. I couldn't see it. I was so focused on the fact that God led me to those places for some greater purpose that when those areas went from a benefit to a detriment, I missed what the Lord was calling me to move to. I looked for God in the spectacular alone. God can only work in us to the extent that we allow him to. Stop and think about that for a second. I've harped on this from previous posts for a reason... that the more alive we are in Christ, the more the Lord can do through us. The less we let Him in our lives, the less He can do. While this may be His world, His plan, His creation... it's the boundaries/walls of our decisions and faith that decide how much we can join in the celebration.

We might not be little kids anymore, but we're still God's children. We still make childish mistakes, and we still risk letting our emotions rule us. We struggle to act on principle. Women in general might be more 'emotional' beings... but really, guys are just wired to suppress it. Emotions make us reactionary in nature... and if anything, I would venture to say that men are more apt to be impulsive and reactionary than women. (of course, the exception being when a credit card is involved ;-) When we allow our emotions to rule us we open ourselves to fear taking over. And if there's one thing that can be said about fear it's that it attracts the negative... while faith attracts the positive. Faith that in crisis, God is working for us, and never against us.

"Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier" - Colin Powell

In my mind, perpetual optimism is another way of telling me to steady myself in the word of God. To not be tossed about by every attack on my emotions, to remain focused on principle and keep confessing what i KNOW to be true, as it'll only multiply the forces of good that can be realized in this life.

While I may still be on the edge of my seat in the movie theater, I can walk out the doors, and peacefully through the fields of gold, eyes closed, knowing my next steps will be on firm ground :D

Steady yourself in the Word of God.