About 3 weeks ago I attended a conference – there is something about those, the crowds of eager people, the pressure pot of 3 days of uninterrupted worship and workshops and the anticipation in a human heart, that something will be different afterwards. I did feel different afterwards, I felt like somethings were whispered into the fibre of my being, things I can’t always put words to, like peace and a sense of renewed purpose. These descriptions fall flat in the face of what has actually happened. During this conference two of my friends felt moved to spend some time in prayer.
Two friends and a mountain top experience
Let’s call the friends Sarah and Tess. Sarah and Tess drove up to the top of Signal Hill a big arching mountain which overlooks the Cape Town peninsula. They sat there and they prayed powerful prayers. They prayed prayers which said, “I surrender.”
A week later
There is not a lot more powerful than a prayer that starts with “I surrender” when the heart that utters the words means what it says. I contacted Sarah during that following week and found out that something had happened in both her and Tess’s jobs. On exactly the same day, a week later both of my friends were called in for reviews and their positions terminated. Both of them are hard working and smart girls – the timing was uncanny.
God directs our steps
When something negative happens in our lives, it is very difficult to see the story which is written along with it. When you are told you no longer have a job, it’s very easy to get worried. To call all your friends and moan about the injustice, to become angry at God because he has taken away something which is important to you. We all do it, it’s a very real obstacle.
Bad things are the best that can happen to us
If you believe that God directs your steps then you have to resolve, when these things happen, that you will see the best in the situation. At times, things need to end for other things to begin. It’s a part of life and it’s a part of how God works. Both of my friends could have looked at their situations and said, “oh no!” They didn’t. How they dealt with the experiences was both brave and inspiring. Both had been feeling that the situations they were in were not using their skills and passion as best it could have. The end of both situations means something new can begin.
Each piece of life is a learning experience
As humans we automatically want everything immediately. We want the perfect job, the perfect husband and the perfect life. We miss out on the beautiful messy journey of imperfection because we think perfect is better. Perfect isn’t better, it’s flat. It’s grey and it’s self serving. Each piece of our lives adds to who we are and enriches our experiences. To miss out out on the messy pieces is to miss out on life itself.
Sometimes we never know why the bad things happen
Sometimes we won’t see the closed door as a good thing, and sometimes when we pray “I surrender” and something awful happens it will be hard to feel like this is the work of an almighty and caring God. It will be hard to even see the potential in it, like Sara and Tess did.
If we chose to pray prayers which say I surrender then we have to accept what comes in the aftermath. Happiness and tragedy are woven with the same coloured thread and to hear God’s call is to acknowledge and accept both side of the tapestry. Don’t run from surrender, don’t panic over the closed doors, trust God with every fibre of your being and you will be ok.