Obeying

"The natural life knows that if the spiritual life gets hold of it, all its self-centeredness and self-will are going to be killed and it is ready to fight tooth and nail to avoid that." - (Clive Staples) C.S. Lewis

     It started with a simple little coffee cup.  I had tea on the deck and left my cup sitting beside my chair as I loaded my arms with other things and struggled to open the door to come inside.  I decided I would pick it up next time and even wondered how long it would sit there.  That's when I heard Him.  "Pick up the cup."  I ignored Him as I sometimes do and walked inside, letting the door slam behind me.  He said it again, "Pick up the cup."  Okay.  It was obviously important to God that I pick up the cup so I did.  
     I have read so many books these last few months, I'm not really sure which one it was that spoke about obeying.  The author talked about God wanting us to obey the little things so He can trust us with the bigger things.  If I can't pick up a coffee cup, how can He trust me to do anything else He might ask.  As with any child, if they throw their bike on the ground, do you give them a car?  He has been testing me lately with small things, like where not to eat.  It was a test to see if I would obey Him.  In the book I was reading the author also talked about the meaning in His requests.  We don't always see the bigger picture.  If He tells you to clean a closet, it may mean it's time to throw out the past.  Maybe He is telling you to keep your house clean, so He can trust you with that new one you keep asking for.
     Today was a day full of obeying.  I sent a few emails and realized I don't always tell people the nice things I am thinking because of a fear that it won't matter coming from me, but when God says to do it, there is a reason.  Looking back over the day I realize how good it felt to obey God.  Good things came out of it.  He started out small.  Send an email telling her you smile when you think of her, send another email and tell her how much I love her.  At the end of the day, before I sat down to write this, I wrote a letter to a man I have known for over 30 years.  We hurt each other a few times over those years and I always felt most the blame was on him.  With all that I have worked on this last year, I realized why God asked me to write the letter.  I not only owed this man a few "Thank you"s, but I owed him an apology.  We were both kids who made a mistake and we were both responsible and we were both scared and hurt.  
     I will pray over it and maybe end up making changes if God tells me to, but I will send it and I'm not sure what will come of it, but I trust God after all I learned today.  I will be picking up my coffee cups and not leave them on the deck by my chair anymore, because one of these days God may tell me to do something that saves a life and I don't want be arguing with Him and miss it.


To anyone who reads this, God told me to tell you He loves you.

"We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed"
Brother Lawrence

"The man that believes will obey; failure to obey is convincing proof that there is no true faith present.  To attempt the impossible God must give faith or there will be none, and He gives faith to the obedient heart only." - A.W. Tozer