John 11:3-6 (NLT)
3 So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, “Lord, your dear friend is very sick.” 4 But when Jesus heard about it he said, “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.” 5 So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, 6 he stayed where he was for the next two days.
John 11:13-15 (NLT)
13 They thought Jesus meant Lazarus was simply sleeping, but Jesus meant Lazarus had died. 14 So he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. 15 And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him.”
This story brought so many things to mind, and some of them were really challenging to grasp. It took a while to really soak it all in. Lazarus’s sickness was for the glory of the Lord. God allowed Lazarus to endure sickness and even temporary death for His glory. I've thought about my life and its purpose over the years. For a long time, I primarily thought about ways I could serve others in His name, or how He might use “me” to grow His Kingdom. But then one day, I felt like He was teaching me that it’s about more than that. I began to really understand the meaning of "surrendering my life”. My life really isn’t about me at all; it was His to give and it is His to take. Whoa!! That was hard to swallow at first! It took talking with Him through it all for a couple weeks for it to really sink in and for me to embrace it.
I felt like He was telling me, “Josh, you need to understand and be OK with the reality that I might have created you to help another person (you fill in the blank). This person is the one I have chosen to lead the charge and they are going to go through a rough time and your entire existence was to encourage this person in their time of need." (GULP) “Really Father?” “Yes! When you've done that, you’re coming home. Your job on earth is done.” “But Father what about my son, my family, and my friends?” “Josh, those were just added blessings I gave you along the way.”
Wow!! That conversation changed my life. It put my life into perspective and taught me the beauty and peace that is only present when truly living for Him! Tomorrow suddenly became a lot easier, knowing that it is part of my purpose rather than another day to achieve my goals. There is no race against time! I don't know what the future holds, but I do know that it was in the death of my desires that I was able to start living in His.
To a life worth dying for!
3 So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, “Lord, your dear friend is very sick.” 4 But when Jesus heard about it he said, “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.” 5 So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, 6 he stayed where he was for the next two days.
John 11:13-15 (NLT)
13 They thought Jesus meant Lazarus was simply sleeping, but Jesus meant Lazarus had died. 14 So he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. 15 And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him.”
This story brought so many things to mind, and some of them were really challenging to grasp. It took a while to really soak it all in. Lazarus’s sickness was for the glory of the Lord. God allowed Lazarus to endure sickness and even temporary death for His glory. I've thought about my life and its purpose over the years. For a long time, I primarily thought about ways I could serve others in His name, or how He might use “me” to grow His Kingdom. But then one day, I felt like He was teaching me that it’s about more than that. I began to really understand the meaning of "surrendering my life”. My life really isn’t about me at all; it was His to give and it is His to take. Whoa!! That was hard to swallow at first! It took talking with Him through it all for a couple weeks for it to really sink in and for me to embrace it.
I felt like He was telling me, “Josh, you need to understand and be OK with the reality that I might have created you to help another person (you fill in the blank). This person is the one I have chosen to lead the charge and they are going to go through a rough time and your entire existence was to encourage this person in their time of need." (GULP) “Really Father?” “Yes! When you've done that, you’re coming home. Your job on earth is done.” “But Father what about my son, my family, and my friends?” “Josh, those were just added blessings I gave you along the way.”
Wow!! That conversation changed my life. It put my life into perspective and taught me the beauty and peace that is only present when truly living for Him! Tomorrow suddenly became a lot easier, knowing that it is part of my purpose rather than another day to achieve my goals. There is no race against time! I don't know what the future holds, but I do know that it was in the death of my desires that I was able to start living in His.
To a life worth dying for!