“Let all men know and perceive and
recognize your unselfishness (your considerateness, your forbearing spirit).
The Lord is near (He is coming soon).”
(Philippians 4:5 AMP)
When I as at Mission School I
struggled with giving up control of the things happening around me.
Before I entered Mission School I was active in various leadership positions
and the leader of worship in my church. In preparation to go to Mission
School the Lord impressed upon me that I would have no leadership positions and
that I would be learning how to follow. This was a very hard thing for me
as those of you who know me personally understand I tend to be forthright,
seeing things in black and white with no gray areas, and like to have “all my
ducks in a row”. Well, let me tell you: your row of ducks can fly
off at any time and mine did!
I often became frustrated when I saw
others struggling with leadership positions, stumbling and falling and
affecting those around them – including me. I wanted to step in and fix
the problems. That was part of my nature, to logically look something
over and fix it. That was part of my “old nature”, the unredeemed part of
me. The Lord used Mission School to teach me what a forbearing spirit was.
He allowed me to go through those struggles so that I could become more like
Him – unselfish, considerate, and forbearing.
Unselfish – not being concerned
excessively or exclusively with one’s self, not seeking or concentrating on
one’s advantage or well-being without regard for others.
Considerate – marked by or given to
careful consideration, thoughtful of rights and feelings of others
Forbear - to choose not to do
(something that you could do): to avoid doing or saying (something)
God graciously moved upon another student to point out my faults in this area. She left me a note in my locker quoting “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time. Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man” (Col. 4:5-6 KJV).
The Holy Spirit convicted me of how I
tried to fix others defects as I saw them. He instructed me that this was
HIS job, not mine. I repented of trying to fix others. I repented
of trying to control the things around me. I acquiesced to His will for
my life and when I did He filled me with His joy and peace. When faced
with other people’s failings I found myself not trying to figure things out but
rather I prayed quickly for them to find God’s way to do things. I found
peace in the turmoil. That is a great place to be. In my yielded
heart God started to change me and stir in me the compelling desire to go hard
after Him (Ps. 63:8).
Have I, as they say, “arrived” at my
destination in this area of my life? No, my “old man” tends to want to
exert itself as I see a problem or issue I think I can or should control but I
submit to the Lord and release this “old man’s” desire to Him thus working out
with Him the salvation of my soul: “be keener
than ever to work out the salvation that God has given you with a proper sense
of awe and responsibility. For it is God who
is at work within you, giving you the will and the power to achieve his
purpose” (Phil. 2:13b PHILLIPS).
Brothers and Sisters, it is time to
put our differences aside. These differences, these annoyances, these
frustrations only serve to separate us and distract us from God’s calling on
our lives, which is to reach the unsaved around us and be God’s conduits to
draw them into His Kingdom. How can we do that when the unsaved see us
squabbling among ourselves? It is time to quit trying to exert our own
ways. It is time for forbearance because the days are short and the Lord
will return soon. It is time to go hard after God!
