Radical Living

About a month ago, the director of the organization I worked for suggested two books to our staff. I bought both and just finished the first, "Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream" by David Platt. Several friends of mine have already read this or are in the process of reading the book. It's a fantastic book. It left me desiring to take my faith in Christ to another level, wondering how I can truly live out the calling I have been given.

This book helped me to look more closely at how my self-focus has left me desiring comfort, contentment, happiness, and fulfillment by things of this world. Not all the things I desire are bad, but they do take my focus away from the One who has called me. I've been living a life trying to satisfy my own desires, with only fleeting glances at what God's will is for me. I've given in to the notion that I can be fulfilled by life on Earth.

I struggle with normal "single-woman" issues, just like any other single woman, but I am actively trying to let go of that idea that I need something else to be complete. The older I get the stronger these desires become and if I am not careful, I will fall into the temptation of thinking that what I do not have is what will make me feel whole. I do good at times, just focused on what I'm called to do. At other times I wallow in self-pity, my mind wonders and then I get sad, depressed and feel like a loser. Because after all, being married with children is what is expected of 30 year old women, right?

Thankfully, God shows me daily that He has called me for a purpose and while I might not understand His plan, it is good. I need to die to myself (that lonely, single, sad, depressed, loser woman) and put on the life that He has given me.

As this school year began, I felt like God had a theme for me. The theme was Focus. At the time I thought He wanted me to really focus on my calling - a teacher and coach here at ICS because we were/are in for a hard year. I also felt that He wanted me to get my mind off myself and my single state. However, in light of the circumstances of the last month or so, I realize that God wanted me to focus on Him. He wanted me to focus on Him and Him alone; so that through the hard times, the lonely times, the stressful and busy times that He would be "my very present help in times of trouble." He wanted this for my life not because He loved me, which He does, but because He deserves all the glory.

When I focus on myself, I make myself higher than Him. That's wrong. Everything that I do should reflect Him, Everything I do should be to honor Him. Which brings me back to the book I just finished reading. I have been called to live a radical life, one that brings glory to His name, one that puts every other person above myself, one that gives sacrificially, one that wants to see others come to know Christ, one that wants to see those in my care sharing with others about Christ.

The world needs to know, yet I, just like so many Christians, have sought personal comfort and gain rather than sacrificing to make sure that others know.

The author suggests a "Radical Experiment" to see what will happen to my life when I really make an effort to really pray for this world daily, to read the entire Word, to give my money sacrificially, to spend time in another context, and commit my life to be in a community that wants to see others come to know Christ and then share it with others.
I may not be able to complete the author's tasks, but I feel that God is leading me to make some changes in my life. Some He has already been working on, others that I feel will be happening soon.
I'm so thankful to serve a God Who equips the ones He calls. I'm not worthy of this calling, but He called me anyway. So, I'm gonna follow.