Transparency II

Psalm 145:18 “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.”

So, I now know that the origin of all of this… “stuff” is from my “lack of,” leading to my “thirsting for” my Heavenly Father/Daddy. He’s clearly omnipresent, so He’s not the one slacking on the one-on-ones or daily connections. Dag, so it’s me? (Talk about a rhetorical question.) I guess a prayer here and there with maybe a verse in between isn’t quite what God had in mind for me… for most.

*But there’s no time! I have to do THIS, after I do THAT (which should’ve been done way before THOSE things happened) and then do something else after THAT!

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.” (NIV) Matthew 6:33

(He always come with a rebuttal to our excuses… always.)

Okay, okay… so, my disconnections have caused the operator (His spirit within me) to take notice of my not-so-great spiritual line and make a few adjustments so that I can get connected to Christ again. It’s like talking on the phone with someone who was your tight end back in the day that you haven’t talked to in months, maybe even years. There’s slight awkwardness, maybe even repetitions of “so, what you been up to?” with the occasional, uncomfortable seconds of silence in order to think of something else to say.

Thought: why are people so apprehensive to say what they are thinking? Yeah, some things are completely inappropriate which is why we should think before we speak. However, I believe we may think too much to the point that we over-analyze what could be a simple statement of clarity or strong belief... then we just don’t say anything at all. What happens after that? What has always been happening. Why? Because we decided not to change or alter the course of polite individuality with necessary honesty.

Anywho... back to the field.

In those conversations with old friends, you are probably thinking, “It’s been such a long time, and I have no clue if we even have the same connection. How have they changed? How have I changed? We have nothing new to talk about! Where did we end so that we can begin again?” and a host of many other thoughts and questions. It gets even more awkward when we know deep down inside we’ve been trying to avoid this reconnection. Why? Shame, guilt, embarrassment, unmet expectations, falsified levels of insufficiency… sin.

But now, the opportunity is here, and what’s my choice? I want to reconnect and not disconnect again because my life is hanging on the wires of spiritual communication. And not just mine- those unknown faces I’ve seen in my dreams… those African children singing in my ears. But, I can’t just call Him and try to reconnect like nothing’s changed. I gotta be honest. He knows the truth Himself, so what’s the point of trying to cover-up or avoid saying what really needs to be said?

Step 2:
We must realize there is no growth in simply recognizing the problem then the origin of the solution; the puzzle has to be completed. The disconnection doesn’t come from God disowning us, but from us disowning Him and His presence. Yes, we now realize we need Him, and we need to talk to Him. Yet, if we want a two-person conversation, we have to be honest. According to the Word, God’s near to those who call on Him in honesty. We can call and talk to Him all we want, but if we really want His presence- if we really want to reconnect those spiritual lines- we have to call on Him in honesty, confessing our sins of pride, shame, and fear. So, let’s breathe in, breathe out, and be honest with one another. The more honest we are, the closer we can be. That’s God-mentality.