But God, what does this look like to you?

A number of years ago a major part of my Spiritual growth was to anchor my sense-making in asking God, "what does this look like to You?"  Right after I started this discipline, I had an intense experience where God confirmed to me how important this is. Gail had just obtained her "dream car", a Honda Prelude sports car. After obsessing over the car for about three months, something "terrible" happend. I say terrible" because from a carnal perspective (one that focuses on how things affect us personally), this was a bad circumstance. I am at work one afternoon focusing deeply on business issues when the phone rings. On the other end is Gail, obviously upset. In an emotional way she cries out 'my car has been stolen'. She goes on to tell me she had pulled up to a C-store, run in to get a D Coke, and left the car running. While in the store she looks back to see two young black teens driving off in her car. A 2 hour car chase by the sheriff follows only to end with the car totalled in Columbia, over 90 miles from Ft Mill.

Now I do not handle surprises well so this was a challenge for me. My first response would have normally been, "I told you so" since I had often warned her of leaving keys in her car, must less leave it running. I think God grabbed my tongue and I just said, "I'll be there in 20 minutes."  Once in my car my mind was racing, all kinds of emotion, none really good. About 3 blocks down the road God reminded me of my commitment to check with Him, so I asked (out loud), "God, what does this look like to You?" If we seriously ask this, He is faithful to answer. The answer came immediately back, "I am much more interested in the lives of those 2 black kids than Gail's car." The remaining time I spent praying for the kids. When I arrived to Gail, I was exactly for her what I needed to be, patient and understanding, not what I would be in my natural self.

I had a close friend who was out of a job and coming to the end of his resources. Riding down the road one day I was explaining this spiritual discipline to him and so he stops me and says, "then what do you think God has in store for me?" He recalls that I looked right at him with no hesitation, "the Wedding Feast of the Lamb, everything is really immaterial." This perspective changed his life.

I just got back from seeing "the Soul Surfer" movie. I have to admit I cried throughout the whole movie until my eyeballs ached. Often in the movie the question was asked how losing an arm plays into God's plan for the life of a championship surfer. I think the movie answered that question. An interesting point in the movie came as the surfer with one arm came in 5th of 6 in the chanpionship event. When asked if she struggled with trying so hard and not winning, she said "I came here to surf, that's what i was made to do."

The lesson for all of us is that God simply asks us to play out what He put in us. Our needs, the way we want things to go, what others think about us are never the issue from God's view. He simply uses our faithfulness to play out our life from our soul (His design on us) to impact the lives of others, for His glory, not ours. What a beautiful way to make sense of our lives because then no circumstance is ever a bad one!!