Recently, my morning Bible reading was the short book of Titus. It’s a book so short you might miss it flipping through and, if your Bible is anything other than pocket-size it is likely less than a full two pages. I prayed briefly before starting and, sure enough, the Lord brought a portion of it to the forefront for me as I read through.
Titus 2:11-3:8 is below (bolding added for my own emphasis):
For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope – the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. These, then, are the things you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you. Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always be gentle toward everyone. At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing and rebirth of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
What a rich passage, full of material to contemplate and allow to soak into our consciousness and help steer our thoughts! But as you’ll note above by reviewing the bolded lines, the general idea that hit me on this particular morning was this idea that we as God’s children are to be eager, ready and careful to do what is good.
As I ended the reading, I was overcome with the desire to pray because all I could think was “What is good?” I want to do good, but what good would God have me devote myself to? I try my best to do good as a mother and a wife, as a sister and daughter and friend. I try to do good as I use some of my time and abilities to serve clients and churches through my business/career. I try to do good in the use of my spare time, and through the use of the financial resources God has entrusted to me, and through the use of my words to encourage or uplift others in their faith. There sometimes seems to be no end to the good we could be doing! But could there be some good to which God wanted me to devote myself which I hadn’t yet stepped into, or did I perhaps need to shift something in order to lean more into something I was already doing to some degree?
Haven’t many of us had these thoughts? Is this how I should be spending my time? Am I living in step with God’s best plans and purposes for my life? Is what I want in alignment with what He wants and, if not, how will I know?
I began praying all of this to God, and I shared some specific areas of my life with Him that I especially wanted to emphasize my desire for Him to have His hand over, whether it aligns with my own desires or not. And I then began asking Him for answers. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I was expecting something. I asked Him if He could share with me whether His plans involved granting us another healthy baby to raise for His glory. I asked Him if He could share with me whether I needed to make any shifts in my work life, in how I was serving Him and earning a living. I asked Him whether He could share with me whether we were where He wanted us as a couple, as a family… meaning where we attend church, where we live, how we live and commune with others, and how we use any skills and gifts in our lives. Any aspect of life that came to mind, I just brought before Him and asked Him to help me know whether I was “doing good” in these areas by His standards. I was overcome with the desire to lay everything at His feet and only pick back up whatever He told me to. That’s the visual in my mind as I prayed with my hands open and eyes closed before Him.
Eventually I realized I should stop talking on my end and see whether God might speak something to me. He has never audibly spoken to me, but His voice is unmistakable when you hear it in your spirit, and His sheep know His voice (John 10:27.) I have heard it before and every time it is an amazing gift. I love the expression that God wants to speak to you even more than you want to hear Him. Again, I don’t know what exactly I was expecting as the answer, but I just stayed quiet for a few seconds because I knew He’d heard me and I wanted to be receptive if He did decide to respond in that moment.
And He did. But not at all how I’d anticipated.
In laying all of this down and asking what I should do, His response to me was better than I could have imagined and gave me more than I’d even known I’d needed.
“Spend time with Me.”
The moment I heard it, I knew.
And it broke me a little but in the best way. I have a loving Father always extending me grace, forgiveness, more love than I can fully receive or comprehend in this physical body and when I came to Him for answers, He gave me the one He knew I needed to hear. He wants me to spend time with Him.
This could perhaps seem like an odd response because He didn’t lay out the specifics of the life He has for me. He didn’t lay out the changes I might need to implement or any shifts He has in mind. But here’s what I know – as I spend time with Him, I will come to know what He chooses to reveal to me, and I will come to understand more and uncover His promptings for any needed changes in His time. I will likely be surprised along the way by the answers He gives, and I know I can trust Him with outcomes as I spend time with Him and, in so doing, learn more about who He is and who He has called me to be. Spend enough time with someone and they will rub off on you. God is no exception. Spending time with Him will in itself mold me more into who He has made me to be.
I realized as I reflected more on what God chose to say to me, and also on what He chose not to say, that I had been coming to Him with all my worldly cares and woes. Which He certainly understands and wants us to do – He knows us better than we know ourselves and knows how easy it is for even the most well-meaning of us to slip into worldly passions, pleasures and cares, neglecting that which is most important. If it matters to us, He wants us to come to Him with all of it.
But worldliness is sneaky; it slips in and slowly pivots our concerns, cares, desires and views away from our God and onto things that only matter in the here and now, if at all. The eternal is put off for tomorrow, which often becomes never.
See, we were not made for the world such as it is now. We were not made for sin, sickness, death, trauma, or any of the hullabaloo we get ourselves wrapped up in. The pettiness, the relational discord, the political atmosphere, wars, natural disasters, mental illness… none of it was God’s plan for His creation! We were created for continual communion with God. We were made to spend time with Him, walking through life in constant connection with Him in His perfect love and presence.
When God spoke His answer to me, I was reminded that He was bringing me back to what He ultimately created me for, created all mankind for. While I can so easily get wrapped up in the details or want specific answers, which He graciously does provide in His time, He reminds me to trust in His care and leading of my life. Yet, also, I will miss His direction and guidance if I am not spending time with Him. He is so faithful to steer us right when we spend time with Him, and listen for His voice amidst all the noise.
It was as if He was saying, “Daughter, it really is this simple.”
Spending time with God can look different for each of us. He knows YOU and He knows how you best connect with Him. Scripture, spending time in prayer, some solitude in nature or at least without distractions – these are ways everyone can find themselves closer to Him. Worship, journaling, tapping into other creative gifts… there are many ways to connect with our Father and He will always be the one waiting for you to show up. Never the other way around.
I love spending time with the Lord, and I do so every day in multiple ways because it brings me comfort, fortifies my faith and deepens my relationship with Him. But His beautiful word to me reminded me that it is also the ultimate, truest answer to all of my questions, all of my worries and cares and hopes and dreams.
“Spend time with Me.”
The most loving response and desire from our Father. How could you not adore a God like this? Lord, help me to love you back all the more!
James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” Thank you, Jesus.
HLC
sacred strokes 