So I am now entering my final two weeks of a 6 year journey with WBC. It is very revealing in hindsight how God has been preparing me all these years for the journey ahead. I think we have covered that this would not have been my 15 year plan. I am reminded of numerous prerequisites that are soon to return - like being the first to arrive and last to leave, moving chairs 12,000 times, and wearing more hats than a royal wedding. You know, everything learned in the degree program. I have often questioned God on the path we have walked. Not that it has been the wrong path though there have certainly been some moments. It has just been so foreign, out of place.
Have you ever felt out of place? My journey has reminded me of this continually. I am not a Texan and I did not get here as fast as I could. I do not own western clothes of any sort, would never wear boots, and could care less about UT or A&M, though I do like me some BBQ. When I moved here I only knew my wife. But I began to realize that I was not alone as God revealed more and more people on this same journey. There was something very recognizable about them though we had never met nor shared any particular interests. We were aliens, strangers in the land.
You know the Old Testament is filled with language referencing the foreigner/alien/stranger in the land. Mostly about understanding what it means to be one or how to treat one. (No politics here; I have enough issues.) There is a constant reminder in the Scriptures that "you were once strangers in the land of Egypt." And that, in Christ, we are "in this world yet not of this world." And again Paul says that our "citizenship is in heaven and that we eagerly await a Savior." I believe this to be one of our greatest struggles as followers of Christ and a continual reminder we need.
We are strangers in the land. This is not our home. The law of the land is not the law on our hearts. We answer to the King not the President. Though outwardly we are wasting away, inwardly we are being born again! This is not activism; it is identity and we need to be reminded of who we are; Whose we are. Do not fret, worry, complain, or give up! We need a constant reminder of these things and we are excited to be starting just such a place soon!
The cross of Christ does something to those who surrender their lives before it and they are forever marked by the experience. I have met many such people over the years and though they work regular jobs, maybe helped keep Austin weird, and even like the Astros they remember that their citizenship is eternal! So thankful for the years of ministry at RCS, CA, and WBC and looking forward to this August when Family Life Church at Cypress gathers a group of aliens/strangers/foreigners to seek together the kingdom of God as we eagerly await the Savior!
No comments:
Post a Comment