God Is Still Sovereign

10/9/2024

Written By: April Mills

For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name. – Luke 1:49

During our recent small group gathering, our study guide posed the question: What’s one specific belief that you hold that you could act on more consistently starting today? The answer in my mind and spirit was immediate - That God is Holy.

Now, hear me out. I know Gods is holy. In my heart, I know this. Nevertheless, somewhere I have lost a little bit of the awe of Him. I have become too casual. Do I love the Lord God with all my heart, all my soul and all my mind? Absolutely. As I sit here in this moment, my heart is overwhelmed with the greatness and pure scale of God in my life. When I look back at the slide show of my life, I see His hand of faithfulness touching each moment.

Having said that, I have allowed myself to be casual and too often. I have given myself permission to become distracted and have allowed things of this natural life to sidetrack me, persuade me, derail me and steal my focus. No matter what I am experiencing, there should always be a holy reverence resonating in my heart for the Lord God.

Instead of carving out time to focus only on prayer, I allow myself to multi-task. I tell myself it’s fine as I pray while I clean up the kitchen or fold the clothes. And maybe it is-but am I truly opening myself up in that moment? Am I really settling myself down, and focusing solely on the Holy of Holies while I fold socks? Likely not. Somewhere, I have allowed the everyday tasks and worries to over take my focus and I have become casual about communing with God.

When we take time to solely focus on God through worship or prayer, we are exposing every hidden part of our hearts to Him. When we humble ourselves before the throne of grace, the light of His presence and Holiness shines into the darkness of our pain and suffering. And while all that sounds amazing and transformational, sometimes it’s just painful. There will be a time that He will require you to hand over the pain, the grief, the fear and the suffering. This can be scary, and a part of you will wonder-Will He take care of it? Will He lift this burden from me? Can I trust Him to handle me with care? Or, is it safer to just hang onto it a little while longer? If I bury it deep, then I don’t have to look at it, acknowledge it, or admit it is there. I can keep it in the dark where it belongs. You see, the Spirit of God seeks to remove what doesn’t bring life. We tend to collect the weeds of life-stress, fear, worry and angst. We lack the strength to pull them ourselves, so they grow multiple. When we pray and worship in truth and spirit, the Spirit of God comes and pulls that weed out by the root. And yes-the ground may rebel and fight back, and yes, it may be painful. But then what is left is ground that has been turned over and is ready for a new seed and ready for new growth.

Keeping things in the dark comes at a price. It requires a lack of engagement and surrender in prayer and worship. This creates distance, and a lack of closeness between you and God. Before you know it, instead of kneeling in humility at the feet of Jesus in Holy communion, you are halfheartedly praying as you fold socks.

I recognize that in effort to protect myself, I have stayed away from the presence of God. I have chosen my pain and stress and declared them more worthy than bowing my head or heart before the King of Kings. I have chosen to use my hands to push down feelings and fears down rather than to raise them to glorify His name. I have chosen to deny access to my heart, and my brokenness. Let’s just say, it’s not working for me.

Moving forward, I will be intentional with my prayer and worship time. I will sacrifice my pride, ego, frustrations, stress, all of it, to give God the glory that He is due. I will with pray with reverence for His name instead of checking a box. I will go forth, declaring that He is Holy and worthy to be praised, and let this be my life song instead of the heavy load of this natural life. Let it go, friend. He is waiting.