No, they're not mine... but they're awesome:-)The thing about flying is you have to jump off the ledge. In order to glide upwards on the currents and eddies you must hurl yourself headlong into the abyss and believe that underneath are the everlasting arms. A mother eagle does not teach her chicks to fly bit by bit. She simply kicks them out of the nest. Often God is more gentle with us, but often He wants us to do our bit of the growing too. I often wish that God would simply place in me all of the attributes He wants me to have so that I won't have to learn them the hard way. But, it turns out, the only way to develop patience is to be faced with many oppurtunities to be patient. The only way I am ever gonna learn to fly is to get out of the nest. But if I won't get out, God may well give me a shove. He knows I need it. Instead of resenting God's nudging or overspiritually rebuking the enemy when in fact it is only my circumstance which are out of place- I need to recognise the purpose and the lesson in the shove. What attribute am i learning here? How are these circumstances giving me oppurtunity to grow up?
Ranting and raving about unfairness, i've discovered, is kind of pointless. Are we actually genuinely demanding what is due to us? Let's think about that for a second. That might be dangerous... I deserve eternal judgement and fury for what I've done. But God in His incredible and reckless grace has chosen to be a father to me, whether that requires taking me by the hand as I take my first steps, picking me up and reassuring me when I fall, or sometimes saying, "Matt, you're old enough to do this now- just do it. Don't make me shove you. You have to grow or you'll stagnate and I'm not willing for you to be lost. So even if it means me shoving you out of this nest, You're gonna grow and become who I want you to be, and fulfill all that I have planned for you. I love you too much to let you stay how you are. Now get out of this nest and get on with the flying."
