Cruise Control

I have gone on sort of a cruise control in my life for the last two years.  In November of 2011 I began serving as ministry leader for the Celebrate Recovery ministry at my church.  Since that time I have been blessed to grow tremendously in my own recovery and to see the miraculous changes God has made in the lives of many men and women who "keep coming back" each week.  As a leader I have had to do some things that are well outside of my comfort zone, things that have challenged me in the area of codependency, control, and relating with people in general.  All in all it has been an extraordinary journey.  However, I feel as if I have settled into a groove and gotten comfortable with where I am in my spiritual journey.  I do understand that a lot of ministry work is simply mundane, day-to-day activities that have to be accomplished, and I do those things with the joy of the Lord.  However, I cannot help but think about Jesus' own words about those who are led by the Spirit when he says in John 3:8, "The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit."  Jesus uses this analogy as part of his explanation to Nicodemus about how to be born again.  A life led by the Holy Spirit is one of exciting spontaneity, twists and turns, but always secure in the love of the Father.  I have experienced some of that excitement, but I long to be surrendered to my Lord in such a way that I accept the unexpected as the expected.  I do not want to go through the motions and get in a rut, but rather live on the edge of my routine, always walking with Jesus with the joy of anticipation. That is one of the things that stands out to me in the gospels: how the disciples immediately left what they were doing when they were called and followed Jesus wherever He went, not knowing in most cases where they were going or what they would be doing. I believe that that is the type of life God has called me to and my prayer for the year 2014 is to live my life in that way.  May Jesus be in control of the steering, the accelerator, and the brakes in my life.