In over my head, I want to be
Caught in the rush, lost in the flow,
In over my head, I want to go
The river’s deep, the river’s wide,
The river’s water is alive
So sink or swim, I’m diving in.
I'm going deep, here...hang on!
My Mother and I had a long conversation today about our recent spat (A Life Lesson blog) and how God had given me a new perspective as a result, and how He has used that testimony to encourage others that I've shared it with.
In the course of this conversation, God brought another truth into my heart and mind that I must share.
In years past, when I struggled to keep my mouth and temper in check when dealing with my Mother, she would eventually bring up the point (after the boiler had settled down) that the Bible says to honor your Mother and Father. Even today, she pointed back to God's truth about honoring your Mother and Father (Ephesians 6:2). And while I believe she's right (honoring your Mother and Father is a command, not a request), I must beg to differ with her on one point. We'll call it...
Respectfully disagreeing.
Or maybe...it's a simple difference of perspectives (imagine that!!!).
God did command us to honor our parents. But quite honestly, that is not why I apologized to my Mother for being a jerk. I apologized because God called me into accountability TO HIM for my personal actions/reactions to that situation. God showed me where I was wrong, and then informed me that humbly apologizing to Mom was not required of me for her benefit, but for mine...because...my Mom is not my judge.
My Mom is not my ultimate Authority.
God is.
My Mom is human. She makes mistakes. She has weaknesses. She's not always right. So I can finger point with her until my finger muscles grow stiff...but at some point I still have to answer to my Father. The MAC DADDY Father of us all!
That would be God.
And guess what? He's perfect. He makes no mistakes. He has no weaknesses.
And He's always right! Here's my point...
I can argue and find fault with my parents all day long...that's easy because they're human and imperfect. But I can't find fault with my Heavenly Father at all...because He's perfect and is never wrong. Therefore, being accountable to my PERFECT HEAVENLY FATHER is a whole different sport than being accountable to my imperfect parents.
And when my Heavenly Father says, "What's your problem?"...I better 'fess up because He already knows, anyway. PLUS...He tells me that I am without excuse!
Try arguing with God. Try giving God time to "cool off" so HE can apologize to YOU. Try using His imperfections to justify your own reactions.
Try duking it out with The GOD of the universe and see what happens.
I can tell you what happens...
You lose.
God's love for you and me is PERFECT. His love for us does not have flaws or conditions. And because He is GOD...we are left without excuse. No arguments. No protests. No doubt!
When you're accountable to a holy and perfect God,
there IS no finger-pointing!
And when you stand before Him without excuse...it's humbling. To think that the same God Who gave up His only Son to die for you, is the same One that you stand before in utter disobedience, is heartbreaking and life-changing.
I didn't apologize to Mom because I was sorry about being hurt. I didn't even apologize to her because of Ephesians 6:2. I apologized to her because my first obligation and accountability lies with my Heavenly Father. When He says "You're wrong", He's says so while standing in the eternal position of being my ultimate Authority. And to disappoint Him...to step out in disobedience toward the One who loved me enough to send Jesus to die in my place...is crushing. It's unacceptable. Standing alone in His shadow, I see my ugly faults and even uglier attitude, quite clearly. No amount of pride, hurt feelings, or desire for justice compares.
How many times in the Bible, do you read about Jesus demanding justice when they beat Him to the point of being "barely recognizable as a man" (as described in Isaiah)? How many times did He call out to God in prideful indignation and demand for them to "make it right"?
Not once.
I can't help but wonder
how different our relationships would be
if we would live by this truth.
How much more we would comprehend about our own shortcomings and failures! How fewer times we would justify our actions/reactions based on someone else's treatment of us! How much less opportunity we would take to "save" our pride at the cost of our testimony for Christ.
Dude...
It's not about us. It's not even about that person to whom we reacted.
It's all about God.
No matter who's at fault...He still calls us to be righteous.
To be obedient.
And to honor our Mother and Father.
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