Columnist advises acceptance of Christ requires patience
Billy Snashall
Issue date: 3/11/10 Section: Opinion
I have been a Christian for about a decade now and I have known God's love. Yet one of the major struggles of my life has been feeling God's love. I know it's there. It even says in God's word that He "so loved the world..." [John 3:16].
But I haven't been feeling it. While I haven't always acted upon this lack of feeling maturely, I believe I am in a good place today.
I recently returned from a trip to Honduras with a group of Capital students. We were there with Campus Crusade for Christ, providing medical care and sharing the Gospel with them. I had expected to grow close to everyone on the trip or have some kind of emotional experience. It happened, but not like I expected.
I wanted a deep, emotional connection with God during this trip. But for the first four or five days, I felt very little.
Like many years prior to this, it seemed I was only going through the motions. Sometimes, it can be years before the dryness begins to be filled with an emotional response of some kind. I know in my case it was a very long time.
Yet, the Bible says there will be dry parts of our lives where we are simply learning to discipline ourselves. Indeed, the "desert," as the Bible calls it could be even worse than this, bringing about feelings of isolation from God as if He wasn't there and He didn't care.
In my belief and in that of authors like Lee Strobel there will always come times of difficulty and trial. These are meant to teach us something, make us strong and force us to rely more on Christ.
But the decision to choose Christ is still ours to accept or reject. So when we go through a trial and become angry with God for allowing it, we miss an opportunity. After all, what does love and joy mean if we have no difficulties (disasters, deaths, choices, etc.) to come compare it to?
On the last day of our trip, I met an eighty-year-old woman who rejected Jesus. I had never seen anyone do this before.
It hurt to see someone reject something that brings me such joy and purpose. But now I have a reason to continue things like this.
If it had not been for my patience with the Lord, accepting the closeness with others (or lack thereof) and knowing that I was being obedient, I would have missed out on great joy.
By being joyful and accepting that I was growing closer to God even if I couldn't feel it the way that I wanted to, I learned to change. And, I am better for it.
By Billy Snashall
Contributor
wsnashal@capital.edu
But I haven't been feeling it. While I haven't always acted upon this lack of feeling maturely, I believe I am in a good place today.
I recently returned from a trip to Honduras with a group of Capital students. We were there with Campus Crusade for Christ, providing medical care and sharing the Gospel with them. I had expected to grow close to everyone on the trip or have some kind of emotional experience. It happened, but not like I expected.
I wanted a deep, emotional connection with God during this trip. But for the first four or five days, I felt very little.
Like many years prior to this, it seemed I was only going through the motions. Sometimes, it can be years before the dryness begins to be filled with an emotional response of some kind. I know in my case it was a very long time.
Yet, the Bible says there will be dry parts of our lives where we are simply learning to discipline ourselves. Indeed, the "desert," as the Bible calls it could be even worse than this, bringing about feelings of isolation from God as if He wasn't there and He didn't care.
In my belief and in that of authors like Lee Strobel there will always come times of difficulty and trial. These are meant to teach us something, make us strong and force us to rely more on Christ.
But the decision to choose Christ is still ours to accept or reject. So when we go through a trial and become angry with God for allowing it, we miss an opportunity. After all, what does love and joy mean if we have no difficulties (disasters, deaths, choices, etc.) to come compare it to?
On the last day of our trip, I met an eighty-year-old woman who rejected Jesus. I had never seen anyone do this before.
It hurt to see someone reject something that brings me such joy and purpose. But now I have a reason to continue things like this.
If it had not been for my patience with the Lord, accepting the closeness with others (or lack thereof) and knowing that I was being obedient, I would have missed out on great joy.
By being joyful and accepting that I was growing closer to God even if I couldn't feel it the way that I wanted to, I learned to change. And, I am better for it.
By Billy Snashall
Contributor
wsnashal@capital.edu
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Billy Snashall
posted 3/12/10 @ 11:31 AM EST
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZE33ejdgWIY
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