Wind

When a gentle breeze gently brushes its way across my skin, I smile. It feels as if the hand of God is touching me, reminding me of His sweet presence and unending love. I bask in it. I pause and reflect. I stop, and I worship. I linger, and I live.

However, a much different response is produced when that gentle breeze is replaced with a brisk wind. Slight differences in speed make big differences in appeal. The breeze is soothing, but the wind is harsh. When it rips in with force - blowing my hair in my eyes, blocking my view, and disrupting my path with its cold chill - I feel annoyed, even angry. Instead of lingering where I am, I hustle to get where I’m going. Instead of stopping to praise God, I mutter my disgruntled complaints. Instead of being reminded of God’s great power, I’m angry that He can exercise it.

Yes, I complain about little things like wind. I don’t like disruptions. I don’t like discomfort. I don’t like being out of control. And that’s why I don’t truly know God.

Knowing God will disrupt my life. Knowing God will make me uncomfortable. Knowing God will put me in a place of surrender, not of control. If I’m always sitting in the breeze, in awe of my peaceful surroundings, I’ve probably lost the wildness of God’s heart. I’m probably creating an illusion of knowing Him, comfortable with a surface relationship, but missing the depths of life that can be found in the pits of discomfort.

Jesus usually disrupted the normal thoughts and ways of His followers. He stepped in, not to join with what they were doing, but to point them to a different way… a better way. He asked them to leave the things they loved. He commanded them to do the things they felt unprepared for. He was a portrait of the unnatural – not serving yourself, but dying to yourself; not desiring control, but giving it away; not thinking of this earth, but focusing on heaven. Jesus was a gentle man, but He had a fierceness about His passion. Passion is not easily removed, not easily quieted, not easily stilled. It is determined… but it is also vulnerable - vulnerable to pain, hindrances and discomfort. It is not the way of comfortable living, but it is the way to true life.

And so today I see that I must seek not only the gentle breezes of worship, the soft touch of quiet moments, and the heartwarming sensation of safety. I must also seek the winds of change, the winds of passion, the winds of God. I must not rebel against their blowing, but instead move with them, praise amidst them, and acknowledge the power of their coming.