I haven’t been consistent in running since October. After today’s run I realized it has been the enemy keeping me from running because I remembered how much the Lord speaks to me nearly every time I run. I believe the Lord taught me three things (in addition to the enemy keeping me distracted from running):
I started thinking about the word “gift.” How Jesus is my gift. He’s the gift that will never change. He’s constant. He will always be with me – now and for all eternity. What am I doing with Jesus as my gift? Am I tightly holding onto Him? Or am I exchanging Him in moments for what’s easier to do? What’s easier? Oh for sure walking in my flesh is easier than walking by the Spirit! It doesn’t take any work to walk in my flesh. It’s my natural man. It’s my old self. What about the most precious earthly gifts He has given me? Hands down – my husband and children. These earthly gifts will change. God actually created them to change. Just like God created the seasons in our weather pattern to change – winter, spring, summer and fall – Jesus created my family to change. But God never changes.
Normally, I really like change. But I don’t like my family changing. I want my vision for my family. My vision is, the kids can grow up, but they need to stay close to me. Key word – me. But they weren’t created to stay close to me. They were created to stay close to Jesus. They were created to change, but with Jesus by their side. Not with me by their side. Oh this is hard lesson!
As I continued to run, I watched the landscapers hard at work in someone’s yard up ahead. I’ve seen this yard before and how the succulents are overgrown and look messy. I started to think that someone gave these three men in that yard a vision of what they wanted them to do – dig up all the succulents – at least that’s what it looked like in my brief passing of this yard. As I got closer, I said “Merry Christmas,” to the men and they replied the same cheerfulness. Then I looked at these men’s shirts and noticed their Christian landscaping logo and I excitingly said, “Oh you guys Christians?” The one man, who I presume was the boss because he had a different shirt on, lifted his thumb up and nodded enthusiastically “yes,” as he continued to work in the trenches with his two other employees. This all happened in a matter of seconds, but I thought how Jesus, my boss, my gift, is working alongside me in the trenches. He is digging and breaking up hard soil in my heart – my control, my vision – and wanting to replace it with His control, His vision.
I continued to run and started to reflect on how the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. Then I remembered Jesus’s gentle response in the form of the Lord’s prayer. So I started dissecting the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6:5-15) and prayed this way:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name
Thank you that you give me the ability to run, thank you for those men being Christians, thank you for the visual of you being in the trenches with me, thank you that you will never change.
Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven
Your will, not my will, not my control, not my vision. But your will be done. Your will is happening in heaven always. Make that a reality on earth for me because I want to do my will. But I must pray for your will, not my will.
Give us this day our daily bread
You always provide for my daily needs. Never once have I gone without. Thank you.
And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us
Oh if you kept a record of my sins, I couldn’t stand in your presence! But you sent my gift, Jesus! So I can stand in your presence continually because of Jesus. Show me who I haven’t forgiven and help me to forgive as you have forgiven me.
And lead us not into temptation
What? You lead us into temptation? How did I miss that? Oh yeah, you led Jesus into the desert to be tempted. But I can ask you to not lead me into temptation, right? So I ask you to lead me in paths of righteousness. But if you do led me into temptation, then I go back to your will, not my will. And I remember you told me that no temptation can overpower me because you always give me a way out! You never tempt me, but you do test me. And you always set me up to pass my test. It’s when I chose to do my will over your will that will lead to sin in the temptation. Help me to be strong and stand under temptation! My control, my will, my vision – replace this in my heart with your control, your will, your vision!
But deliver us from evil
You have broken every chain. You are the chain breaker. Evil has no power over me. I surrendered to you on 9/28/07. Show me how to break the chain of my will, my control, my vision – my anything is evil. Break me Lord!
Jesus told His early disciples that walked face-to-face with Him to go into their closet and pray this way and He’s telling us 21st century disciples who have yet seen Him face-to-face to also pray this way knowing that Jesus is ever interceding to the Father for us (John 20:29, John 17:20).