Worship and the Will

I am often like this mouse.

   A few weeks ago, I was out in my backyard mowing the grass. I had to turn the mower off for a second in order to move something out of my way. And just before I was about to begin mowing again, a little field mouse scurried past my dirty shoes. It was odd that I would see a mouse in the first place. They are just not something you see everyday. But it was also odd because he was running in circles right past me. I don't think he eve knew I was there because he was blind. That is why he was running in circles. He was looking for some sort of point of reference. He was lost and looking for his way. I wanted to help him, so I bent down to pick him up and take him somewhere that he could find his way. But when I touched him, he jumped away from me. He was naturally scared of me, that I would hurt him. But eventually, after several tries, I finally picked him up and escorted him to the woods, where he would have many points of reference and could make his way despite his blindness. When I knew he was safe, I resumed my lawn mowing.


   While I was finishing the job, I was thinking about that mouse. I am often like that mouse. In this life, I have no point of reference. I can't know on my own what is right or wrong, true or false, safe or dangerous, healthy or cancerous. And when God sees me running in spiritual circles, He gently reaches down to pick me up and lift me to safety. I want to go one way, but he sees where it leads and corrects me or lifts me out of harm's way. And I fear his touch, thinking it will harm me. Little do I realize that it is the best thing that could possibly happen to me. The thing that seems like the worst possible idea at the time, is often God's loving hand protecting me from something really bad.


   God is lovingly sovereign. He does nothing for our harm. He loves us tenderly, and has the wisdom of an all-knowing Father. But sometimes he has to override our own will in order to bring us to safety. And often he has to wait for us to realign our will before he can use us greatly. On the one hand, when our will is contrary to God's, we are speeding toward danger. On the other hand, when our will is contrary to God's, He can't use us for His amazing purposes and we can't grasp His love. Our will must be submitted to Him before we can live a life that is worth living.


   But how must we can we submit our will to God, if it is our will that drives everything we do? It seems almost contradictory, like making a robot that recreate itself, or designing an engine to be its own mechanic. It is hard to grasp the concept of submitting your will, until you can understand that God is greater than you and that you desperately need Him. This is the essence of worship: declaring that God has infinite worth, not only to you, but also to all of creation because He is greater than all and needed by all to even exist (cf. Colossians 1:17). And when you begin to worship - not only with your words, but with your whole life - you have taken the first step to a life that matters. Worship wins the war for the will. And it is a lifestyle of worship that makes God proud.

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So how are you doing at submitting your will?

If you gave someone permission to be honest with you, would they recognize a pattern of worship in your life? or just selfishness?

Are you up for the challenge of submitting your will to the One who holds all things together?

How are you doing at submitting your will?

I dare you to be brave today: Tell God you are ready to submit your will to Him, and ask Him to show you specific way you can worship Him with your life. And DON'T back down from what He shows you.