Life can be so complicated if we make it that way. So much to do and be in life. We start as a child with a knack for dreaming. Life as a child, we think should be like the fairy tales we read. Ask any four to eight year old this question "What do you want to do when you grow up?" and you will get a big dream. At that age anything is possible and life is grand. Princesses live happily ever after and all girls should grow up to live as one. Boys are superheroes and dragon slayers in training.
Unfortunately as we grow older, the pressure begins. Figure out a career, make something out of yourself, we are told. What started out as a walk now has become a run. A run on the wheel of success at life. We get the dream of success firmly planted in our heads early on. Then after high school or college we are ushered into it head on with the expectation we will conquer the world.
I am 47 years old and only now am I figuring it all out. All the wasted years I spent on what most of us think is the highway to success. Only to find out, I was headed in the wrong direction going way to fast. My hope is that maybe I can stop a few others earlier than I did myself.
We are not taught that our place in life is to follow. Instead, we are taught that to get ahead, we must fight our way to the top and lead. In effect, while doing that, we are building pride in ourselves and making an idol out of our own success. We place ourselves in the position as leader and become the one we rely on. We make things happen.
What a deluded belief. And definitely one that Satan would like us to keep at our core. The truth is we were never meant to lead. We were meant to follow. Follow after Christ as our leader. We were meant to be the instruments He uses to accomplish His will. Sometimes He may pick us up and use us, other times we are in a mode of waiting.
I think the most profound discovery I have made in the bible so far has been the story of Enoch.
There is not much written about him in the bible but what is written I believe is vitally important for us to understand. It gives us our place and shows us what is truly expected of us if we really want to please God. It gives us the real reason we are here on earth and were created in the first place. We were created to walk with God and follow along behind Him. Enoch shows us the importance of that.
Enoch was only mentioned twice in the bible. We know that he was a prophet for it tells us he prophesied about the Lord's return in Jude 14-15. But the most profound mention of him is:
Genesis 5:21-24 - Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.
After 365 years of walking with God, Enoch did not die, God took him. God was so close to Enoch that He wanted him for himself so He took him home. The most important thing that Enoch did that made God love him so much that He could not be without him was "walking with God".
No special works or talent is spoken of. Not one great thing is given to his credit elsewhere in the bible. Enoch walked with God. A close and extremely personal walk with God I imagine. He spent time with God because he loved walking with Him. He had no agenda to get something from God. He was not climbing a ladder to success. He simply walked with God.
I want to be that person. Walking humble with God, no agenda or plan. Not because I am told I have to. Not so I can get to heaven. Not even because I fear the consequences if I don't. Because I love to walk with Him. I want to be that kind of person. The kind of person Enoch was.
Lord, I just want to walk with you. Can you help me just walk..... ?
2 weeks ago
3 comments:
Amen! Awesome thoughts for me to ponder. Been pondering some of the same thoughts. Found you from the LPL site.
Peace,
Kim Feth
Apex, NC
fethfamily@gmail.com
Thanks Kim,
Glad to have you stop by. Come back anytime!
Hugs!
What a wonderful reminder! My prayer has been to have that personal "best friend" relationship with God, so that He is the first One I think of in the mornings and my thoughts turn to Him all during my day and that's exactly what I want :) I too love to walk with Him. You brought the story of Enoch to me in a way I had not thought of. Thank you
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