God Projects
Several years ago I was reading The Message and came across Romans 9:30-33. It made a huge impact on me that continues to this day. It says, “How could they miss it? Because instead of trusting God, they took over. They were absorbed in what they themselves were doing. They were so absorbed in their “God projects” that they didn’t notice God right in front of them, like a huge rock in the middle of the road.” Personally that has greatly impacted how I view things in my life. It is very easy with my personality to become absorbed in my “to do list” and miss what is happening around me. I have to be careful. Also, in our new church plant I have found this to be temptation as well. It is always a temptation to have what I call a “fortress mentality” where I stay locked up in my office all day and miss the world around me. It is very easy to get overwhelmed with the tasks at hand and miss Jesus altogether. I desperately desire to stay focused on Jesus’ mission/purpose for His church and not what seems urgent for the moment. When we started this church plant, I spent every work day at a coffeeshop here in town. I met a lot of people and had begun several key relationships. We opened our new office and I had spent a couple days getting organized and set-up when it hit me that I had not been out and met many people over those days. When that realization hit me, I wanted to go out and meet some people but my immediate thought was of all the “stuff” I had to do. All that “stuff” was real and did have to get done but then I finally reasoned that all that would get done but I had to get out. I locked up the office and went to the coffee shop. I went to meet one of the employees I had been talking with for several weeks but God had other things in mind. He was not working and I ended up having a great conversation with a new guy that I had never met before. I was humbled by the thought that my “God projects” that were all good and necessary things almost caused me to miss the most important thing God had for me that day. My prayer for myself is that I will not get consumed with those “God projects” to the point that I miss Jesus and His mission/purpose/ministry for myself and His church. As Chris Tomlin says in the song, “God Of This City”- “Greater things are yet to come, Greater things are still to be done in this city!”
