Friday, February 06, 2009

Out of our brokenness

And now on with some more of what Pastor Don talked about a couple of Sundays ago:

Don said, "It's out of brokenness that God births a vision in your life....If God breaks your heart about something, He's saying, 'Do something about it.' ...Long before God gives you a vision He has been preparing you - He's been at work in your life - long before you even knew there was a God out there."

"...You may have had a painful life, experiences you wish you could forget. But if you give your life to God, no matter how bad - if you surrender your pains to God - God can work good things out of bad."

"...A vision given by God will always demand courage and boldness from us. ...If we think we can do it, it's probably way too small and not from God. A God idea will always stretch our capacity to think that it's possible. A God idea will always be beyond the resources we see available. A God-given vision is always bigger than our perception of our own human ability."

But the comment has been made by a couple in the congregation: "I've never had a vision from God. Surely not everyone is going to receive such a grand vision." Some people feel there's something wrong with them. They lead good unselfish lives, doing things for others, yet don't feel they've ever had one of these God-sized ideas. Some are feeling guilty about that. Some are feeling there's something wrong with them.

From my limited experience, I have seen that some of the greatest visions have come to those who have experienced the greatest pain in their lives. Don has also said, "Out of the source of your greatest pain, [God can bring forth His] greatest work." But, as he said, we need to surrender our lives to God.

Have you ever had a God-size vision? Do you feel that's possible for you? Shouldn't it be enough to be a help to others in whom a vision is birthed? Let's talk about it. How are you feeling about all this?

2 comments:

Spin Original said...

I feel like I have a partial vision. I know some of the things that I know I am called to be doing in my life. I have some sort of direction as to where I'm headed, but it's not clear cut. A part of God's vision for us is us using the gifts and talents he has given us. That's why He gave them to us in the first place - to use.

Lots to think about here, Marja. Thanks for sharing!

marja said...

Hi Paula, I know. Following God is like being on a mystery tour. You never know where He'll take you next. All we can do is to follow, one day, one step at a time. Neat, eh?