It takes being lost to be found and once I was found, I wanted to remain found. Sometimes, we are lost and oblivious - that is scary. There are times we get lost and are aware of it, but don’t know how to circle back to being found. There are also moments where we get lost, get found, and then dabble back in spaces that had us lost again. No matter what your ‘lost’ story is, there is absolutely nothing that can separate you from the love of Christ; no trouble, distress, shame, external pressures, nothing. (Romans 8:35) Your intercessor, Jesus, roots for you all the days of your life. - LOVE
My ‘lost’ story is interesting. As I play it back in my head, I realize that I always had an inkling that the decisions I made did not bring me ultimate peace, but I shoved it under “this is my man, my friends, family, so it makes sense, that is the norm, it’s the culture or such is life or there could not be any other way” - which is funny because that inkling was the other way: the God way. For some of us, we suppress or brush over the Holy Spirit’s hints for so long that we begin to take on a reality that God never designed for us in the first place. [Listen, I am just glad He makes all things work together for our good lol! I don’t know how He does, but that’s why He is God!!]
In my line of work, I am fortunate to hear people’s stories in-depth and when I listen closely, rip apart the layers, get to the root of things, and even navigate my own story, I have discovered that what we all want is to be loved, seen and heard. While that may look different to every individual, the decisions we make speak to these three yearnings of life. In searching and reaching externally to fulfill these, we get lost. Truth be told, placing high expectations on people to fulfill these things, may have us feeling disappointed. Secondly, everything else that is materialistic, or our accomplishments, status, addictions, or idolization of people or things, just keeps us hungry for the wrong things, because they never truly suffice.- LOST.
I would like to submit to your consideration that maybe, being lost is not knowing that you are loved, and being found is knowing you are loved. It sounds simple, but it carries so much weight. When we do not know we are loved, we reach out to things outside of us to fill our voids, for validation. We extend ourselves to find everything outside of us to validate us when we don’t know we are loved. Love is such a powerful force!
I know that going to work for a period of time will get me paid, and getting paid, pays the bills. It gives room for me to splurge on special occasions or just because lol. I get up even when I do not want to and go to work. Even though it gets hard sometimes, I show up because of what I know. Or a better example is when we are in a new relationship and we feel like we are on cloud nine, the glow, the ear to ear smile; we stay up late or go out of our way to do things that feed what we are feeling. [because it feeeeels good, right? lol] - When you are aware (know) that something yields a desired result, you make decisions that get you closer to the result. A result that ultimately would either make you feel loved, seen, or heard. If you don’t believe me, just take a look at the series of decisions you have made in your life leading up to this moment and answer the question: “Why did you make the decision?” You may have to ask it multiple times, but the road leads to being loved, seen, and/or heard.
In the same way, when you know that you are loved, truly loved, deeply loved, loved with no buts or ifs, and you experience that love that has no bounds, you show up differently. Your yes becomes your yes and no, no. You become intentional with your heart, you guard your ears and eyes. You do not look to outside sources to make you feel worthy. You do not go for anything and everything. You insert yourself in spaces that water the seeds of your purpose and not spaces that make you feel inferior. Why? Because it is in God’s nature to elevate you to be the highest version of yourself every time! Anything that counters that - anything that consistently makes you feel yucky, confused, fearful, unloved, questions your self-worth, sacrifices your morals and values, and leaves you feeling unfulfilled cannot be of God - and that is on the Bible.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)
How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You. (Psalm 139:17-18) - Love!
What, then, shall we say in response to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32) - ahem! “All things”
There is also of course;
For I know the plans I have for you; plans to prosper you, to give you a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11)
and let’s not forget - This is how we know what love is:
Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. (1 John 3:16).
I do not want to deflect from the fact that we cannot just flip a switch and ta-da we know that God loves us or that we feel it every time and we make all the right decisions. Hey, maybe our backgrounds have also fractured what we believe to be true and what is the truth, and because of that, we have clung to the wrong things.
The only way though, we can confidently exercise this muscle of knowing is being highly self-aware of what brings us life and what drains us. It is a shift in mindset.- I refuse to keep feeling the same way, to be stuck, to be a slave to life when Jesus died so I can have dominion and live an abundant life. Ask yourself “does this call me higher, to do something uncomfortable but radiating Christ? Does this bring out my ratchet or my bougie? Does this person help me discover where God dwells within me? Does this bring out me or who I think I should be according to the world's standards?” Take note of your answers. It may open up a whole can of worms, but it’s a start. Now, once we can identify what’s what we have to do, the work to still remain found.
In the beginning, I started by saying, “once I was found I wanted to remain found,” and to stay in alignment with God. Just like the Israelites, it is common to want to go back to what is familiar, because that is all we have known. Usually, what is comfortable may be detrimental to us - our call, our why, our core, our future - our being! Familiarity is not always healthy. It takes constant and intentional, redirection of thoughts to remain found. God meets us where we are, to take us to where He is. For that reason, sometimes there are pleasant occurrences[God’s fingerprints] that make everything a breeze, allowing us to dance in the rain. However, doing the work to unlearn; swapping the falsity of our subconscious with what you are now conscious of, the truth, - that you are loved by God, that He loves you, sees and hears you, always and you are enough just as you are is key to remaining found. <3
- Bisi
Comentários