Receive the Adventure of Following Jesus
If you think that life with Jesus is boring, then you’re just doing it wrong.
–Emily McAlister
When we were children, we longed for adventure. The world was full of endless possibilities. We wanted to go on a magic carpet ride, find a secret passage to another world, or discover that we were the long-lost princess (or the conquering hero). Our hearts were on a constant verge of explosion with the excitement of it all.
Then we grew up.
Somewhere in the middle of transition from childhood to adulthood, our dreams changed from wild to safe. They changed from boundless adventures to a boxed in house with a white picket fence. Really, what child ever dreams of merely a nice home and an ordinary life…and yet, how many of us adults do? A perfect house, a good marriage and family, a stable career, a presentable life. How did our dreams turn…so boring?
I’m not saying any of those “safe dreams” are bad. But in our culture that’s permeated with comparisons and expectations, these dreams can become our main goals in life. I’m definitely guilty of that. Just look at my blog title: Smashing Sandcastle – Imperfect Life of a Perfectionist. My tendency is to do all that I can in my power to make my life look like a perfect sandcastle. Even if I think I succeed at times, ultimately that’s all it is – a sandcastle. One wave can easily wipe it away. What if…instead of building my own sandcastles and staying on the beach, God wants me to ride the waves with Him?
I think I know what you’re thinking. You are asking me to reclaim my sense of adventure. But how do I do that when my life is so ordinary? I’m a stay-at-home mom, or I have a mundane job. Every day is pretty much the same. I get up, I do all the things I have to do, I only dream of things I want to do, and I go to bed. So many of us (myself included) fall into this category more often than we’d like to admit.
His love is wild for us.
The other morning, I asked my oldest daughter to put on a long-sleeve shirt because I knew it would be cold that day. She started to give me the look of annoyance, and I immediately thought to myself: Here we go. Why can’t things be “easy” with her? After a few minutes, my daughter approached me and politely asked, “Mommy, may I please put on a short-sleeve shirt?” It made me smile, because I remembered how these types of scenes used to play out. This was the same strong-willed girl whose preschool years were incredibly challenging, as we worked with her (daily) on how to have self-control when things didn’t go her way. She’s much older now, of course, but her response that morning made me appreciate the progress we had made. She is now capable of checking her own attitude and taking the initiative to make things right (not that it happens every time). If the morning went as “easily” as I wanted, I would have missed out on this moment of appreciating the progress. His love is wild for me…and for her.
Every morning, when I get my 2-year-old son out of bed, he is full of smiles and giggles and all kinds of things to say. Everything about the moment fills me with joy, my heart is about to burst. I kiss his chubby cheeks and I soak it all in – his softness, his smell, his cuteness. I can’t believe that I’m privileged enough to experience this every morning. His love is wild for me.
I’m an ordinary person. And this is an ordinary day. But I have a wild, extraordinary God who has a purpose for me. I think that’s where it starts: being expectant of the wild adventure in midst of the ordinary.
This also includes being able to embrace the unexpected…and even the painful. I have experienced some of my dreams – my sandcastles – become destroyed by unexpected waves. How painful that was (is). But when I look back, I see that these waves led me through a greater adventure with Him. They led me to a place of deeper trust and understanding that His love is wild for me.
“Aslan is a lion – the Lion, the great Lion.” “Ooh,” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is he – quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.”… “Safe?” said Mr. Beaver… “Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”
–C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus.
–1 Corinthians 1:9 The Message Bible
Unreserved, unrestrained, Your love is wild, Your love is wild for me
–Bethel Music, Pieces
Be expectant of the wild ADVENTURE in midst of the ordinary.
