I have a lot on my plate at the moment. School, work, tutoring, being a dad, planning for the future, and pursuing a new opportunity, it all seems a bit overwhelming, and at times it really is. I've spent a lot of my life, for lack of a better term, reacting to what happens. I'll get caught up in something and find myself agreeing to something that I really don't have time to do. Right now, my schedule is tight; every minute is precious. I've realized that I have to start saying no to some things.
I don't like saying no. It isn't that I want everyone to like me, I just have a need to help people (seriously, my Enneagram results had me at 74% helpfulness where I need to help others in order to survive). Helping people is part of my DNA, and so saying no is not something I enjoy doing because it means I'm unable to help.
As my schedule fills, and my passion becomes clear, I'm facing some decisions. I have things I have to do, and things I need to do in order to move forward. I'm realizing that in order to fulfill my obligations and also to move in the direction I want to go, I have to begin saying no. I only have so many yes's to give, and in order to be able to say yes, I have to say no. I have to say no to everything that does not help me get where I feel God is leading me.
It has taken me a couple of weeks to write this post, I've started and erased everything about half a dozen times. In that time I've been thinking about the life of Christ, and two accounts keep coming to mind.
Matthew 4.1-11 records the story of Christ's wilderness temptation. During His trial, Christ is offered three different opportunities that would ultimately lead to Him avoiding the cross. The first temptation, to turn stones to bread, is a temptation for Christ to use His power in order to satisfy His own needs. Christ says no, refusing to misuse His power in a way that does not draw Him closer to the Father. The second temptation is for Christ to draw attention to Himself, setting up a ministry based on miraculous acts that is doomed to fail. Christ says no, refusing to draw attention to Himself and put God to the test. The final temptation is a chance to rule the world by worshiping Satan. Christ refuses, this final temptation offers Him a clear path away from the cross, but Christ knows that the only way to accomplish the will of God is to go to the cross.
Christ is focused on the mission, and though Satan offers multiple options to avoid the cross, but each one is refused by Christ because He knows that He must go through the cross.
The second account is from John 11. Lazarus, the friend of Jesus, is sick and close to death. Jesus is sent for, but will not go to Lazarus. "But when Jesus heard this, He said, This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.'" (John 11.4). Jesus waits, and only goes to Bethany after Lazarus has died. He meets the sister's of Lazarus, weeps with them, and then raises Lazarus from the dead.
Jesus could have gone and healed Lazarus' illness, but He waits, allows Lazarus to die and be buried, then He goes and raises Lazarus from the dead. Christ could have done a miracle by healing Lazarus, but He brought more glory to God by raising him from the dead. Christ did what was best, what would bring the most glory to God, by saying no to what would have been good.
The model given by Christ is one that says no to everything that does not focus on the mission, and on saying no to the things that do not give the most glory to God. This is the model I want to follow. At this point in my life, I must say no to everything that does not move me closer to what God has called me to do. I must say no to good things, so that I can say yes to the best things. I want to live a life focused on fulfilling the work God has given me to do, and I want to give God the most glory possible. In order to do this, I have to say no to certain things.
TO GOD ALONE BE THE GLORY!
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