Required...

Don't you just hate reading the word "required" sometimes? I guess it depends on what it is you are facing. The word "required" sometimes can be intimidating and unsettling.

Reason I am think about this is that I have a "required" retreat I have to attend, starting today at 12:30 and ending tomorrow at 4PM, in Asheboro. Maybe if it had been just a retreat I would not think twice about it. But it's required!

That sure is a bad attitude to take into a retreat setting, isn't it?

Sometimes from where we stand we are just too busy for required things. We want to determine our own way — our direction, pace, etc. The truth is, though we are all very busy, we often work to control just what we need, when we need it. Though our schedule is full, we will work to try and fit in something that we really want to do. It's those things that others want us to do — those things that require our valuable time — that we struggle with.

But that is exactly what God wants of us. God requires that we put Him first. When we call Jesus "Lord" that means that He is the Lord of our life. That requires a decision on our part. We have to decide. But for some reason we think that we lose out when we give up our life — the direction, pace, etc. In truth, instead of loosing, we gain more than we could image.

Barry Johnson at small group last night reminded me of this. He referenced the verse in Matthew 16 where Jesus says, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hand on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it." (Matthew 16:24-25, NLT)

The things we think we don't have time for — those required things — often can be exactly what we need. God knows what we need exactly when we need it. The question is, will we hold on or let go?