Appropriate Utensils
"Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him."
- Psalm 34:8
"I know what I'm doing Dad...",
... the young child says as she slides a chair across the kitchen floor. She has plotted that the chair would get herself closer to the mysterious pot that has been simmering for what seems like an eternity to her young... but hungry... belly. Though young, she feels capable of much more than what others give her credit for, and because of this, she can't help but feel proud as she climbs up the chair that she slid over in order for her to be able to see at eye level that which she so desperately desires. She tells herself that this... this will stop the strange growling in her stomach. She has been smelling the aroma of the tasty soup that her Father has been making for SO LONG, and time has only made her hunger grow... but NOW... now she has had enough; she WILL have partake in this forbidden nectar even if she has to do it herself!
"Oh honey...", said her Father laughing to Himself as He leans down to be eye level with His beautiful daughter, "... I can tell that you are hungry. Actually, we are ready to eat now if you would like to join us! Do you not remember Me calling your name for dinner?", asks her Father curiously, yet even though He is now eye to eye with her, His unwavering eye contact and a soothing, gentle voice still feels as if they could calm even the most chaotic water park wave pool that His little daughter has ever seen.
"Here darling, let me give you the utensil you'll need to get some of this soup into your plate!", her father exclaims lovingly yet concerned as she reaches impatiently into the utensil cabinet that is near to her. He is concerned because He is holding the ladle in His hand as she begins to dig in the drawer.
"I know what I'm doing Dad!", she says to Him yet again refusing His helping hand while insisting that she knows what she needs. She can't help but feel slightly annoyed at her Father, as He seems to be looming over her as she is working hard to get the utensil that will solve the hunger that she feels... a spoon. Searching, and searching, and searching, she looks and digs in the cabinet confused why there doesn't seem to be a utensil that will solve her problem... until AT LAST!! SHE HAS FOUND THE SPOON SHE NEEDED!
"I told you!! I told you that I KNEW what I was doing!", she proudly exclaims to Him. She can't help but feel proud of her hard work to get the spoon that she is now is holding up proudly to make sure that Daddy can see what her hard work has accomplished!
"Honey...", her dad begins to say concerned, still looking at her with love; however, before He could finish speaking, she cuts Him off. She begins to think to herself that He isn't impressed at her ability to do things herself and instead of being proud of her, she concludes instead that He is simply jealous that she didn't need Him! Sure of this conclusion, she boldly she says up to Him, "I KNEW WHAT I'M DOING DAD, AND I STILL DO! CANT YOU SEE?! I GOT A SPOON, AND I CAN DO IT ALL BY MYSELF!"
"Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him." - Psalm 34:8
Honestly? That line, "I know what I'm doing...", I truly can't look at that line and not chuckle. Seriously! I guess I chuckle not only because it truly is the "famous last words" of every child (or adult) before they realize that they truly did not know what they are doing ...
But I chuckle because even though I know Jesus..? I say this to Him a lot... ...Much more than I like admitting.
What about you?? Do you say this to Him more times than you would like to admit? Well... welcome to the club. You are safe here.
And while we are on this topic, I honestly find looking at children's behavior almost... haunting... Well... Let me explain: Even in the story above (which I know that I've seen more than once in my life), the child had many different responses that she could have made to her Dad who clearly knew what she needed...
She could have looked at her situation and said: "...That's it... I give up... can You help me Dad...?" ... but instead, she looked at her Father who offered to help her and said: "NO! I know what I'm doing, leave me alone!"
As a follower of Christ? Even I find myself saying this to Him in different ways. For me? I can go through my days with one or two different approaches to the Lord:
I strive to go through every day submissive to that Voice which says to me, "Seek Me, Jonah." That Voice, could sometimes come to me at the BEST times (like when I get back home from the office and have the rest of the evening to relax), Or that Voice could come at the worst times (such as that moment when I finally kick back and am excited to FINALLY be able to relax after a long day but that small Voice calls me to seek Him instead and surrender for that moment whatever it is that I desire to do)... That Voice that says to me, "Seek Me." "Seek Me, Jonah."
It's truly a crazy feeling, maybe you can relate to this! It never fails... Every. single. time. that I refuse to yield to the Voice of the Spirit prompting me to seek Him... every. single. time. that I truly hear Him, but I don't submit and obey what I hear... Every single time that I refuse Him, I find myself feeling a strange emptiness... a feeling almost like the one when you are hungry but you just ate! You know... like after eating chinese food... and it isn't long before I find myself yielding to the same things that I did not desire the moments before I heard that Voice calling me to Trust Him and Seek Him...
... but for some of you? Maybe you don't hear, "Seek Me"... maybe you hear "Stop running."
Maybe? You only hear this "Voice" rarely,
or Maybe? You hear this "Voice" SO often that you fight it and you fight it and you FIGHT IT while insisting that you know how to be satisfied on your own...
You insist that you know how to be loved,
You insist that you know what is best for your life,
but just like a child who lets pride prevent them from tasting the soup that they KNOW they crave... the soup that is available and freely offered to them...
you know what you need to do;
but you run and you run and you run...
or you try and you try and you try to just get even a tiny drip of not just the soup you crave... but ANY soup!
Just something to satisfy the hunger that you feel!
And just like the child, maybe you try with all that you have to get that soup that will truly satisfy the hunger. You try to somehow get THAT soup out of the pot, and INTO the bowl of your life and soul.
And just like the child, you might be trying with the wrong utensil causing you to start running out of patience when it comes to your hunger to seek for that which you once hungered and thirst so much for!
... Both you and me? Honestly, we are in the same boat. We both need to just stop...surrender... and simply cry out: "That's it... I give up... Daddy can You help me?"
... The even crazier part of all this?? All we have to do is simple cry out with all that we are for the food that we so desperately search, and search, and search, so long and hard for in everyone and everything..
A heart that says, "That's it... I give up... Daddy can You help me?" FAR outweighs the actions that says, "I know what I'm doing Dad..."
All that we search for... Pure faithfulness Pure Truth Pure joy Pure satisfaction Pure rest Pure love Pure correction Pure direction Pure guidance Pure wisdom Is found in our Creator and in our Creator alone...
Oh heavy hearts, may we truly hear the Father who leans down to say with unwavering eye contact:
“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.
“Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my Word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
“For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall make a name for the Lord, an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” - Isaiah 55
May we simply learn how to come to You, Jesus, empty ... Come with our brokenness Come with our questions Come with our praises Come with our hurts Come with our doubt Come with our joy Come with our regrets Come with our fears Come with our hunger Come with our need Come. Just come... May we come as we are. May we lay down our inappropriate utensils and taste and see That His Word, That our Father, That Jesus can be trusted Only He alone uses appropriate utensils in every moments of our life.
- Jonah Fair
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” - Jesus, (Matthew 11:18-3)
Lyrics: Here [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O3HhJ2OriU&w=560&h=315]