You’ve heard of Double A batteries? How about Double C Idols?
That would be the twin gods of comfort and certainty. I was stopped short in my thoughts the other day by a quote attributed to Nancy Leigh DeMoss. Quoted in the excerpt at the bottom of this essay* she asks her listeners to, “Finish what King David wrote by filling in YOUR one thing: ‘One thing I have asked of the Lord, this one thing I seek_____________________’.” (Psalm 27:4)
Pausing to reflect, I had to confess that I couldn’t even narrow down all my prayer requests and heart longings to ONE THING. But I remember saying to myself, ‘what a great idea!’
Pretty soon, in less than 24 hours, I realized that ALL my prayers pretty much center around wanting MY comfort and certainty in the details of my life and the lives of those I care about.
In other words it’s all about me. Yet…that is not wrong in and of itself. God KNOWS that we operate in our own best interests. He wired us that way. He just KNOWS that which is in our best interests – a life fed, fueled, and instructed by Him.
Even yesterday on our hike up the Art Loeb Trail to Ivestor Gap,
I saw how much we crave certainty. Mike was navigating by topographical map. He is a typical mission-oriented male, just the way God made men to be. He had scoped out a hike and this was our 3rd attempt to complete it. The first Saturday, because we weren’t used to how long it takes to hike this kind of hilly terrain, we had taken a wrong turn. Then last Saturday, I casually mentioned that 4 hours of hiking was probably what I had in mind for a typical Saturday field trip. That information, shared with my husband for the first time, caused him to change our day’s goals. We successfully completed half of his planned hike. Yesterday our goal was to finish it.
As we ran into those inevitable decision points (how come THIS trail fork isn’t showing up on the map?), I realized how much we CRAVE certainty and how it eludes our grasp most of the time. What a futile passion, then, to want to KNOW that things will turn out the way we imagine them in the beginning. What a waste of emotional energy to angst, to stress, to push to ENSURE those pictured circumstances turn out ‘our way’!
God doesn’t promise us THAT KIND of assurance. (He DOES assure us of our salvation, if we have trusted in His forgiveness applied to us based on Christ’s work.)
Back to David and Psalm 27: As we hiked in the lush hills of Western NC, I meditated on my ONE THING while…
· passing locals gathering blueberries
· smiling at families tenting for the weekend
· chatting with a young couple & their daughter the age of our grandson. They were hiking up and down the hills, acclimating her to their lifestyle.
By the time we reached our parked car, I had formulated what I am NOW going to pray to God about and continue to order my life around;
· that I may KNOW moment by moment that I ‘live and move and have my being’ (Acts 17:28) IN Christ
· that I RE-MEMBER that I have a new ontology, a new nature thanks to the Holy Spirit in me
Why that request?
· I forget….daily..hourly
But if I can stay aware that ‘it is no longer I who live, but Christ in me..’(Gal 2:20), then why stress over ANYthing? Logic and common sense say that if I don’t have a crystal ball, if I don’t control the universe, than I cannot possibly know exactly what IS BEST for me or my loved ones. But the One who created the universe and all that is in it DOES know. And united to Him is the safest place to be.
What is your One Thing?
*
Reflections on God's Word 
Sep 02, 2013 @ 15:52:37
How nice to see a picture of the two of you! I still intend to climb Mt Sneffels, but Steve won’t be going along…it’s just not his thing. I guess I will need some shoes like yours to protect my feet… I answered the question: the one thing I will seek after is to remember to keep God in mind every moment of my day.
Thanks for the continued encouragement!
Sep 02, 2013 @ 17:16:57
Thanks for commenting! Find a girlfriend with whom to climb…and yes, good hiking books (Merrills) AND poles are a must.