Walking in the Sweet Spot
by Beth Parkinson
Presenter, CBN Europe
Featured Articles
Over the last couple of days, we’ve looked at Jesus using broken lives and restoring religion to a place of relationship. But once we’ve submitted our lives, and are living in relationship, what does it look like to continue walking in that sweet spot? To live life between the ditches of religion and relationship, between judgementalism and liberalism, between extremes of all sorts?
Fully God, Fully Man
Our ultimate example is, of course, Jesus. He lived a life fully submitted to God, only doing what He saw His Father doing (John 5:19), but it’s easy to take that to mean that he didn’t struggle like we do. We know that Jesus was fully God, but it’s important to remember that he was also fully man. He didn’t have super heavenly powers that made it simple to know exactly what to do and how to do it.
But it’s not complicated either. He lived a life fully surrendered to God’s purposes, because he went and spent time with his Father (Luke 5:16 and Mark 1:35). He knew what God was asking of him, because He sought out time with him, away from the hustle and bustle, he invested in tuning into His father’s voice.
It wasn’t a one-way conversation though. When Jesus is about to be betrayed, we see the most beautiful expression of his humanity in the garden of Gethsemane. He’d been living a surrendered life, ministering for 3 years, and knew the purpose of his life, and yet, in that moment, Jesus wept and begged for another way forward.
Whatever it looks like for you, know that God is a good and loving Father. He longs for that full, restored, trusting relationship with you. Turn to him today.
The Human Gap
We can live submitted and still struggle with the gap between our humanity and God’s heavenly purposes. Even as Jesus did, not just once, but three times, we can take the mission back to God, we can question if it’s the only way, we can breakdown, be real about the emotions we’re facing – but just as Jesus did, we do it from a place of trust, a place of submission, from that daily time with God.
And just as Jesus’ life then shows, a submitted life, in full trusting relationship – able to converse with our heavenly father, not just blindly follow – leads to the most glory for His name.
Today, thinking about what you’ve read, what is your next step? Is it to spend more time with your heavenly Father, learning to recognise His voice more? Or is it to take your conversations to the next level and get real with God about your vulnerabilities, letting Him minister to your heart.
Whatever it looks like for you, know that God is a good and loving Father. He longs for that full, restored, trusting relationship with you. Turn to him today.
