Abide in God’s Joy
March 13, 2024
I consider myself a planner, and it is difficult to plan without knowing what’s to come. When we are standing in the unknown it is hard to plan and hard to trust.
I have been reflecting on a recent sermon I heard at church where my pastor preached about the importance of having childlike faith. In Matthew, chapter 18, the disciples are asking Jesus who the greatest in the kingdom of heaven is. Jesus replies in verse 3 and says, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” What Jesus is referring to is the faith of a child. The humility and surrender that children have in just believing.
Having childlike faith means that we trust who God says He is, and who He says we are. Childlike faith trusts God's Word. So, the big question is, do we trust God for our lives or do we not? Even further, how do we abide in God’s joy amid uncertainty. Without knowing the answer, can we still trust and be joyful?
How often do I, or any of us, slow down enough to ask God, what do You want me to do? Where do You want me to go? I believe that through complete surrender we find the joy that God has in store for us. The only thing that we are risking by not giving up full control is perfect peace in our souls.
Growing up, my mom, the most wonderful hard-working woman that I have ever known, always reminded me that God is never late, He is never in a hurry, and He is always on time. Long story short, yes, I still need to go to work; I still have to make lunches, clean the house, do the dishes, get to basketball, get to gymnastics—oh, the dog needs to go out—I forgot to move the wet clothes from the wash to the dryer again. Yay! But in this beautiful, mundane chaos, I can choose to surrender. I can choose to trust God for my whole life and abide in His joy. I couldn’t have known or planned ahead for the joy God had for my family and me within the CCS community, but God had a plan to bring our family here three years ago, and it’s been one of the greatest blessings of our lives! This community is truly special, and God is so worthy of our trust.
“He must become greater; I must become less” John 3:30(NIV)
