Even though we had a very small group at church last night, we had a good study of a portion of the book of Mark. Chapter 8,verses 22-26, Jesus heals a blind man. For me, the interesting part is the fact that Jesus heals the blind man, but He doesn’t do it all at once. He does it in steps. First he places his hands on the mans eyes and partially heals him, the mans vision is blurry. When Jesus places His hands over the mans eyes a second time, the man is able to see! He sees everything very clearly! Jesus tells the man to go home and tell no one.
We all know that Jesus was in the business of performing miracles and this was one of them. But this is one time when Jesus did not perform the entire miracle in one single touch. His first touch gave the man blurry vision. It was Jesus’ second touch that cleared the mans vision totally.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I can relate this to my own life very well. For several months now I have felt God asking me to do something for Him. I know this because I can feel God calling me, but I have not been able to figure out what it is He wants me to do. I ask someone how I can figure it out and they usually tell me to read my Bible, “Look in His word and you will find your answer”. OK, but….where do I look? The Bible is a pretty long book, and while I do plan to read all of it eventually, I surely hope that I don’t have to read the entire book to figure out what it is that God wants me to do!
Well, after reading and discussing this short passage last night at church, actually it was a few days ago, but I finally realized something about what God was telling me. He is leading me to what I am to do, one step at a time, not in one single touch! Just like with the restoration of the blind mans vision, my calling was not going to come to me in one simple step. But God was going to be in control all the way, and He is in control.,
Over the past several weeks, I have heard some sermons that really stomped on my toes. I mean, the sermons have been just for me it seems!! Each has taught me a lesson about myself and my relationship with God that I probably would not have learned, or figured out for myself, for a pretty good while! So, God has been using the sermons I am hearing, and bless my pastor’s heart for teaching these lessons so well! I thank God for Brother Jared all the time. He is an absolutely wonderful pastor!
And then there are the Sunday school lessons that also seem like they have been written just for me. In each lesson, God reveals a little more of what I need to know. God is teaching me how to be more like Jesus, one step at a time. God knows what books I need to be lead to read and He leads me to them. He knows what lessons I need and what setting I need to receive these lessons in.
God is preparing me for something. I don’t know what God’s plans for me are, but I do know that at this time He is teaching me and showing me things that I need to do or change about myself. He is showing me where I need to make improvements in my life in order to be more Christ-like. God is showing me how a simple improvement or change, such as stopping and thinking something through before just diving off into it, can bring me closer to Him and to Jesus.
When I finally realized that God was not going to pull me into some big project right off the bat, but is preparing me very patiently for whatever task it is He has for me, I was very relieved. I know God is not going to ask me to do something unless He knows I am capable of doing it. Being capable and being willing are two different things though, and I have to be both. I have been willing for a while now, but I wasn’t stopping long enough to hear what God was trying to tell me. So, He took charge and made sure that I am hearing the right things from the pulpit of my church, and in my Sunday school class. God is helping me to improve my character, to be a better person, more Christ-like. I am so thankful that God is patient with me, because He knows how easily I can get frustrated and typically that leads to my deciding to take a different path. So God has been teaching me in just the right way for me, slowly and with great patience.
Isn’t that just the most amazing thing in the world? That God knows exactly what I need to hear, when and how. It is very amazing, but not surprising. He is GOD!! He knows all! He already knows how my story is going to end. He is just working with me right now, preparing me for something much more than my everyday life. It may be something as simple as teaching someone something, or who knows. With God, there is no limit to what kind of gifts and opportunities He can give me, if He chooses.
Well, I am going to read my Sunday school lesson for next Sunday and see how it applies to me, and I am 110% positive that it will definitely apply to me! Thank you God, for being so patient with me.
His Grace Is So Amazing... 