God Is Ready to Take It to the Mat by Rick Warren “God blesses those who ... realize their need for him.” (Matthew 5:3a NLT) God doesn’t mind having a wrestling match with you, because wrestling is a contact sport. It means you’re up close, and God would rather have you up close wrestling with him than have you distant and apathetic. You know the problems you’re having in your life right now? That problem you’re having with your kids, your spouse, your finances, or your health — that’s just the symptom. Your real struggle is with God. What is your struggle with God? Your biggest struggle is when things don’t go the way you want them to or as fast as you want them to, and you take matters into your own hands. You don’t wait, you don’t trust God, you don’t pray, you don’t think God will provide for your needs, and you get in a hurry. Whatever the problem is in your life, it boils down to two things: Will you trust God to take care of the situation? And, will you obey God and do the right thing even if it doesn’t make sense? The root of all your conflicts in life is that you want to be in charge. You want to be God. You want to call the shots. So God says, “OK, let’s have it out. Let’s go to the mat. Let’s wrestle — you and me, one-on-one. Let’s have it out. Let’s see who’s really in charge here.” The Bible says in Matthew 5:3, “God blesses those who ... realize their need for him” (NLT). I love the analogy of wrestling, because the whole purpose of wrestling is to pin the other guy on the mat. How do you know when you’ve won? When they say, “Uncle!” or “I give up.” God is waiting for you to say that. He’ll wrestle with you as long as it takes. Talk It Over What is the problem or struggle you’ve tried to handle on your own that you need to entrust to God? Why is it difficult for you to give control of this problem to God? What keeps you from saying, “I give up”? What changes can you make so that you can slow down, wait on God, and give him the chance to work for your good instead of taking matters into your own hands?
Posted on: Wed, 03 Sep 2014 09:04:11 +0000