John 14:11-14
“Believe me: I am in my Father and
my Father is in me. If you can’t believe that, believe what you
see—these works. The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m
doing but even greater things, because I, on my way to the Father, am
giving you the same work to do that I’ve been doing. You can count on
it. From now on, whatever you request along the lines of who I am and
what I am doing, I’ll do it. That’s how the Father will be seen for who
he is in the Son. I mean it. Whatever you request in this way, I’ll do.
Scripture
quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002
by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs,
CO. All rights reserved.
I’ve created something of a
“monster.” Ever since Timothy was little, I’ve drawn things for him –
and “sculpted” objects out of Play-doh®…animals,
superheroes (well, in HIS mind they were superheroes!)…and more.
Timothy has finally gotten to the point where he will draw and sculpt
his own creations…but his two siblings still insist that “YOU make it!”
The trouble with this is twofold…1) I can’t get them to do
things for themselves; and 2) they will not let their Uncle Greg or
anyone else help them…it has to be their Debbie! They do not trust
their own abilities…or what they have learned from observing me draw and
“sculpt” dozens, if not hundreds, of animals, characters, landscapes
and more.
In our relationship with Jesus, we are often like
these little kids. Countless times, we have “seen” Him model what we
should do. But when push comes to shove, we want “My Jesus” to do it for
us. He tells us, “YOU can do this…I have shown you how.” But we whine
and complain and say, “I can’t!” No matter how much Jesus says, “It’s
okay…I am with you, and you CAN do this!”…we kick and scream and say,
“NO, I CAN’T!”…or even, “I WON’T!”
You may not think you behave
this way. You may insist that you would never refuse Jesus…that you are
ready, willing and able to go wherever He sends you and do whatever He
calls on you to do. But are you? Are you really ready to give up your
time and energy to help someone else? Are you willing to turn off the
TV and phone someone who needs to hear from you…especially if that
person is not a close friend? Will you step up and out for Jesus – and
trust Him to equip you for whatever task He sends you to complete? Are
you truly committed to feeding the sheep of Jesus…and are you ready to
begin today?
I am fairly confident that in time, Nathan and Zola
will follow in Timothy’s footsteps and happily create their own
“masterpieces” with art supplies and Play-doh®. I
keep showing them the steps and encouraging them to try on their own.
And this is what Jesus is doing with us. He is far more patient with us
than we deserve. But it is time for us to take responsibility…to step
up and out… and to feed the sheep in Jesus’ name. As long as Jesus is
totally behind what you are doing, you will be able to accomplish it.
What is He calling you to do today? Who do you need to “feed?”
©2016 Debbie Robus
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