Recently, I came across a video titled Walk with God. It was not the typical kind that talked on end about how to walk with God. It was a demonstration. The creator knocked on the camera and took us through his entire day walking with God. It was simple, concise, and straight to the point. It demonstrated that God is in the mundane activities of the day. Be it driving, working, exercising, hanging out with friends, sleeping, or anything else we deem habitual.
Yesterday night, I was super exhausted. My work requires us to report on Saturdays for half the day. It was hard to adapt to this new routine. You hardly have enough time to truly rest. When I left work yesterday, I went shopping for some essentials I needed in my house. As I was leaving to go home, I met an amazing colleague from work who lived around the same area. During the week, she had told me that she had 'glad tidings.' I was very curious to know what those were. Whenever I met her, I reminded her that we needed to talk, and yesterday presented itself as a perfect chance to do so. We stood in the middle of the street and talked for a good thirty minutes. She might have realized that the conversation would extend for another hour or so. So she suggested we sit at the nearest food outlet and order something as we converse. Believe me, the conversation went on and on for a good two hours. We had to stop because it started drizzling, and she didn't have an umbrella.
When I got home, I had laundry to do and some cooking. By the time I was done, I was cold, hungry, and exhausted. I tried doing something that would ease my fatigue, but my body constantly beckoned me to sleep. A new habit that I have been trying to cultivate is praying before bed. And not simply praying for the sake of it but genuine communion with Jesus. Yesterday, I had to make an exception. The moment I got into bed, I could not contain my sleep. My room provides the perfect pitch darkness that fosters good sleep. As I drifted away into slumber, a thought came to mind. I imagined God holding me in his bosoms saying 'She must have been tired.' I imagined him extending grace to me because of my fatigue. This thought gave me so much comfort.
Initially, my inability to pray because of fatigue was equaled to laziness and lack of commitment. This mentality developed from the teachings I heard from various people. They treated God with so much fear. The fear that subjects have for their tyrant leader. In the past two years, I have indulged myself in Chinese drama. I particularly fancy those set in prehistorical China where monarchs ruled. The criteria for selection are monarchical rulership, unwavering warriors, intelligent women who represent the epitome of feminism, and a good old happy ending. In most of these dramas, the emperor is highly revered. Not because he is a worthy leader but because he has the power to annihilate an entire clan on account of the sins of one man. Any association with the victim would warrant beheading. You were not even allowed to show sympathy to those who were wronged if the emperor commanded their annihilation.
This example demonstrated the kind of teachings that served my early years of Christianity. I viewed God as a distant other who indulged himself in egoistic pursuits and dispensed people at his own pleasure. However, my perspective has shifted greatly. I now know that He is nothing like the villainy of man. He is everything good and perfect that I have ever imagined. When I dozed off because I was extremely tired from my job, he still watched over my sleep and gave me his breath to sustain me through the night. He still commanded his angels to keep watch over me.
I remember a time in high school when I heard someone say that if you are walking with God, then you trip and fall, the consequences would be unimaginable. He would continue walking, and by the time you rise from your falling, you would have to strive to catch up. That illustration provokes anger and resentment within. Even humans wait for their companions when they have fallen. Though some like myself may laugh heartily at their falling, still I would help them up and wipe the dust off their clothes. I would offer a shoulder when they have sprained their ankle and lead them safely. Far more superior in every thinkable way is God. It would be impossible for such a being to neglect their own when they have fallen. He sits with us when we are grieving and dances with us when rejoicing. He does not harbor evil thoughts of destruction towards those who trust in him. He is not scheming like a man and does not operate based on his ego. He does not tell us to dispense those hurtful feelings when we are injured but offers a shoulder to lean on.
The justification that many who promote a villainy image of God use is that he is no respecter of persons. While that is the case, these speculators have extended the usage of that phrase to harm others. God is not to be influenced by man. He does not do our bidding as some might presume. I have come across people who imagine that God is a hitman who would harm their enemies and exert vengeance for them. However, if you look closely in the Bible you realize that men like Paul could have been the first to encounter the wrath of God if at all He did what men desired. Paul killed numerous Christians, yet he received mercy and preached the gospel he once wrestled with.
At the heart of the matter is surrender. When we realize that our flesh may belong to us, but it is in constant fight against the spirit. Sometimes we may desire evil for our enemies, but God has called us to a higher standard. I have always wrestled with this concept. The strong urge to exert justice when we witness an injustice going on. 'Why did that person do that, and yet no one held them accountable?' whenever I find myself in such a situation I remind myself that God is far more superior than me in his sense of justice. Thus, I compose myself and entrust him with the sins of others as I did with my own.
To me, walking with God is a gradual and mundane activity. He is aware of my presence and appreciates my choice to walk with Him. He listens when I ask Him to accompany me throughout my day. He looks out for my best interest and holds me whenever I am about to trip and fall. Even when I fall, he waits there with me until I am ready to continue. He does not force me to snap out of my emotions because even those are from Him. His works are perfect in every sense. Nothing happens to me that He has not permitted. The good, the bad, and the horrible are all in His list of plans for me. I have known for a while that I live in a fallen and broken world. Yet, I have a compassionate companion.
Lovely! Thank you for sharing your wisdom ❤️