Just look up



I am a fan of self-care, self examination and being self aware. I have seen the devastating consequences of people that are completely disconnected from themselves and utterly incapable of recognizing their own need to evaluate and take steps towards health.

But I am sure you noticed a recurring theme in there that may raise some red flags.
There is wisdom in all of this and I believe it with all my heart. But then I read this quote.

"For every look at yourself, take ten looks at Christ." - Adelaide Proctor


My constant attempts to go deeper into myself to find out what was wrong and to truly confront the deep issues in my heart seem wise and mature but I realize that for every look at Christ there have been hundreds of looks into myself. My genuine desire to "work through" stuff and arrive at a more stable place in life to THEN be able to encounter God on a deeper level. But there has been no freedom in and of myself. Me without Christ is a cavernous pit with only downward steps. It is so important that we open the door into the basement of our hearts and look around with honest eyes in hopes of restoration, but I think I overdid it when I slowly started moving all my furniture into the basement to be closer to the action. Jesus is the only way to find freedom and it His heart to give it to us. But this freedom comes as the words "I", "me" and "my" are replaced with "He", His", and "Him" and as I lift my eyes beyond myself into the vast expanse of who God is.

I frequently read posts, books and blogs by people that are drowning in themselves while trying to help other keep afloat. I think this is why we love tips, tricks, life-hacks and ten steps. We want the life giving change that only Jesus can bring by looking everywhere except in Jesus himself. We can't give something we don't have, and more than anything, I just want to give people Jesus. The world is aching and longing for Jesus' followers to rise up; not on platforms and pedestals built by man, but on humble feet, firmly planted in the good news with eyes firmly fixed on the only one that can save us. I don't think from here you should jump to your feet, smashing all the mirrors in your home and vowing to never repeat the word "I" as long as you live, but for those of us who are longing to go deeper and become more authentic, let's remember that we can't be the centre and we definitely aren't the source. We weren't created for that. It's like asking my dog to start paying the bills. I am only setting myself up for failure, resentment and confusion. We aren't supposed to the be centre of it all even though everything around us broadcasts a completely different message. So, let's look up, readjust the lens of our souls to focus earnestly and recklessly on Jesus. I am pretty sure He will take care of the rest.



Photo by Stefan Kunze on Unsplash

Comentarios

Publicar un comentario

Entradas populares de este blog

No soy el mejor padre. Gracias.

Imagen
  No soy el mejor padre. Gracias.  Las gorras y tazas, playeras y chocolates me envían un mensaje que me encantaría creer. Mi corazón brinca de la alegría al sentir que todos estamos en una competencia y me llega la noticia que soy el ganador. El mejor papá del mundo. Pero, para decirme que soy el mejor de lo que sea, quiere decir que estemos metidos en el campo de la comparación: un lugar dónde no tengo la confianza que mi corazón entre a batallar. Gracias a Dios que no compara lo que crea.  El mensaje es lindo y las intenciones muy chulas, pero cuando el mundo aparentemente se armoniza en mandarme una señal que soy el mejor, algo está muy mal. Podrán decir que solo es una forma de decir cuan especial e importante son los papás que reciben los halagos, pero más que comunicar, nuestro mensaje alimenta mi deseo de ganar; algo que me ha tomado años a querer desnutrir. Todos sabemos que hoy, millones de padres pondrán la gorra y tomarán de la taza pero pocos se preguntan, ¿t...
Leer más

The Story Behind the Story

Imagen
I just arrived in Canada after an amazing time in Nashville at the Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO) Summit. The four day conference was focused on the different aspects of orphan care: adoption, foster care and residential care. It was interesting to find out that CAFO has now included a fourth pillar in the spectrum of orphan care which is family reunification; exactly what we began doing at Casa Bernabe in January of this year. I am heading up the newly founded department of family reunification and my psychologist and administrative assistant/nutritionist were also able to attend the conference.  Aside from all we received from the speakers and panels, the most incredible part of the conference was to be surrounded by thousands of people that have passionately dedicated their lives to taking care of orphans all over the world. Before leaving Guatemala, I was able to visit one of the mothers that we are working with to see if she can possibly be reunited with ...
Leer más

Connected

Imagen
I wrote this on my plane ride to New Orleans, hours before Sophia and Hanna were born … As North Americans, we certainly do love our programs. We see some sort of need or problem and our forte has been to perfect a series of steps to detect, evaluate, assess and critique in order to respond, address and consequently provoke change. We hear about children dying of preventable diseases in Africa and we create sponsorship programs to meet a need. A rise in adolescent suicide rates? We create a catchy publicity endeavor and a 24-hour hotline to boot. Our kids have needs that we can’t meet? Church programs. We can’t lose weight? God bless Curves and Biggest Loser initiatives. Too much trash in Texas? We accoridnly all learned that we “DON’T MESS WITH TEXAS”. We love programs. Most often they are very appropriate and quite necessary. Considering this culture of programs that we have so efficiently and globally implemented, I have been thinking about the true needs that I see around...
Leer más