Jesus wants me. Jesus
wants you. For some reason when I say this the theme song from the children’s
educational program, Barney, comes to mind. Sing it and see if it
doesn’t fit. Maybe that song comes to mind because I have young kids. That’s a
possibility. Actually, I think that song comes to mind because of the warm
feeling I get, a feeling you can only get from hearing it sung by a purple
dinosaur. That warm bubbly feeling is the same feeling I get when I hear it
said that Jesus wants me. It sounds almost too good to be true. Jesus actually
wants me?!?! No way! That can’t be possible. Why would Jesus ever want me? And
yet, as I sit and listen to Jesus pass by on the seashore, as I enter the text
and meet Jesus there I recognize that Jesus really does want me. He really does
want you. He wants all of us and it feels great.
It is wonderful to be
wanted, desirable. We feel important. Cherished. Valuable. Oh the wonderful
throes of feeling wanted. Honestly, after the warm fuzzies of feeling wanted
fade, a more cynical voice remains. It is a voice that whispers that Jesus only
wants me for what I can do. He only wants me so I can serve. He only wants me
for what I can accomplish, for the benefit I bring him. I am not fully certain
of where that voice comes from. In part I think it is the voice of the evil one
who loves to speak lies. Yet, I also hear in that voice a cacophony of voices
of pastors, pastors who told me Jesus wanted me and used this text to prove
their point. When they spoke they always had something for which Jesus wanted
me. He wanted me to do something. As I look at the text and others like it, I
can’t get around that Jesus does have things that he wants me to do. Is this
why Jesus wants me? If Jesus only wants me because of what I can do then he
really doesn’t want me. He just wants to use me. Frankly, I have had more than
my fair share of encounters with people who want to use me. Is this why Jesus
really wants me?
As I sit with this text
and try to live it, try to experience God in and through it I am surprised by
the longing I sense in Jesus’ voice. It is a longing not for what I can do but
for who I am. Jesus wants me. He really wants me. He wants me for who I am. He
longs to be with me, for me to be with him. He longs for me to come and follow
him, to share my life with him. He is not concerned about what I can or can’t
do. In fact, on my own I can do very little. Rather, he promises that if I will
simply be with him, he will transform and empower me to do. He will make me
what I am not and enable to do what I cannot, to join him in his mission and
ministry. As I really listen, I hear that ministry and service is definitely an
outcome of this relationship but it is not the crux of the relationship. Jesus
doesn’t want to use me. He simply wants me. In the deepest part of me, I want
him.
A fellow traveler,
Blake
Spiritual Formation Pastor
So what is my next step?
I would encourage you to consider doing the following as a way of handing off faith to
your family. . .
·
Sit with
God: Jesus invites us to come to him and be in
relationship with him. It is in this relationship with Jesus that we are
transformed so that we might join him in his mission and ministry. This month,
consider adding a time of silence to your times of family prayer as a way of
accepting Jesus’ invitation. You might do this at your times of offering thanks
for meals. When you pause to pray, begin with a few moments of silence in order
to sit with Jesus. You might encourage your family to simply sit for a moment
and imagine they are sitting in the presence of Jesus. One way to help younger
children with this practice is by adding an extra place-setting for Jesus at
the dinner table. After sitting with Jesus for a few moments, proceed with your
prayer of thanks. As we sit with Jesus, we learn that it is more important to
be with him and offer our lives to him than to rush to him and ask him to be
part of our lives. We also open the door for him to speak to us and teach us
about the life he offers.
I would encourage you to consider taking the following next step on your faith journey.
. .
·
Practice
Surrender: Jesus invites us to come to him so that we
might experience a life-changing relationship with him, one that enables and
empowers us to join him in his mission and ministry. However, approaching Jesus
takes surrender, coming to him for a relationship and life that are on his
terms. The reality is that surrender is hard. It doesn’t come naturally. We
have to train ourselves to surrender to Christ. Often our ability to surrender
is rooted in believing that God is trustworthy. This month, consider offering
the following prayer to God. “Father, I know that you are good and loving. I
surrender to you.” Offer this prayer as you rise and as you lie down in the
evening. Seek to offer this prayer as you go about your day. You might say it
as you move between appointments or tasks throughout the day. You might
consider journaling about your experience, the feelings you have as well as how
the attitude of your heart changes. At the end of the month review your journal
and offer thanks to God for the way he has worked in your life.
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