Atrophy

So, once again in my attempts at dominating the cooking skill, I had a setback. Sunday morning, right before church, I decided to cut some of the bread I made. I didn’t use the knife I normally use. This time, I chose the big butcher knife; (The one you see in all the scary movies.) In my third slice of bread, I did what you are thinking… I sliced my left index finger right along with the bread.

After calling Joe during his Sunday morning rehearsal, and my neighbor - who came to my house with curlers in her hair (thank you Susan Brown) - we assessed the situation, greatly bandaged my finger and off to church I went.

Since the cut was so deep, and I didn’t want stitches, she wrapped my finger in gauze and white tape. Thank the Lord, this worked perfectly, and I am recovering quickly. To avoid hitting the wound over and over, I kept re-wrapping the large bandage during the week.

About the 4^th day of recovery, I decided to leave the bandage off a little longer. I bent my finger to wiggle it, and noticed it was stiff. A week later, I started wrapping my wound in just Band-Aids. This time, when bent my finger, it hurt, and didn’t want to bend to its normal range of motion. I had to work it out some to get it moving smoothly again. It actually still hurts when I bend it now.

What surprises me is that the cut is on the tip of my finger – not my joint. We bandaged my entire finger for protection, which meant I didn’t use that finger while it was wrapped – therefore, my finger quickly became stiff. I expected my cut to be sore, but not my joint.

As I was pondering this, the Lord brought an analogy to my mind. When we spend less and less time with him our spiritual life becomes stiff.  Imagine if Joe and I slowly just stopped speaking.  We could have and occasional hello or some small talk, but no real conversation. What would happen? Things would start getting awkward. We would not know the needs of the other. Our marriage would not move in the same rhythm, or direction. We would make choices oblivious to what the best choice would be together. Then, when a crisis would hit, we are suddenly scrambling to figure out what to do. I would probably be demanding. Stress would prevail. Peace would be lost. We would be left trying to figure a situation instead of working together through it.

Then it hit me. This is what we do as Christians. We may be on fire and passionate for a while, but then slowly, we find other things to fill our time. Eventually, we become so busy or tired, that our time with God takes a back seat. If a crisis hits, we are freaking and trying to know what direction to turn in and not seeking the one who knows the direction.

The Life Group lesson we studied this week asked a question. It said, ‘What is your first reaction in a trial?’ The choices included anger, worry / panic, prayer and fear. I have noticed in my years of walking with the Lord, that the times I invest in him I have more peace in day to day circumstances. When I am walking on my own, I have a lot more anxiety in daily situations.

The cure? You gotta move. When I started using my finger again, it was stiff at first, but have now noticed I can used it as I did before. Repeated used of your appendages keeps them in working order. Not using them results in stiffness, and loss of full range of motion.

I now realize that my daily walk with God consists of so much more than what to do in a trial. I am learning that the more I dive into the word the more he sustains me. Daily, he shows up to bring knowledge and learning. Not only knowledge of him, but of his will as well. I am learning to yield to smaller promptings of the holy spirit. He is helping me see that interruptions in my day are divine appointments or delays. Have you ever run into someone at a store? Have you been stuck in traffic and realized you just missed being in a wreck?

Daily investing in God is worth every ounce of effort we give it. It’s worth turning off the TV. It’s worth getting off social media for a while. It’s worth staying up late or getting up early. God calls us friends in the bible. Friends are someone you spend time with. Friends are people you spill secrets to. Friends are the ones you call up (or text) to tell them about your day.

Try God out. Instead of looking at spending time with him as a monotonous routine that you need to check off a list, look at it as an invitation. Ask him to show you great things and mighty things you do not know (Jeremiah 33:3.) Each morning, come before him, lay your requests at his feet and wait expectantly. (Psalm 5:3)

A walk with God is exciting. It’s not a one-sided venture where you line up the same requests daily, expecting answers because of your many words (Matthew 6:5-15). It’s talking. It’s listening. It’s asking for revelation and receiving it. It’s understanding his will and walking in it. It’s asking him to show you what path to take – and he does. (Psalm 25:4)

I am speaking to myself. I see where I have been with him in the past, and what little time I give him.

Go to him. Start now. Spend time talking to him. Tell him your thoughts. Ask him his thoughts.

You might just be surprised at what you hear.