If Jesus had never lived, we would not have been able to invent him. ~Walter Wink
I look at the road-end, the empty desert beyond. And a voice from behind says, keep walking forward. But my feet, and my heart, stay rooted in place.
Jesus, your way can’t possibly work. You see the clear signage–beyond here, no one goes.
It’s nice, but impractical to follow your way.
I Make My Case
Nothing will get done with life interrupted. My plans and intentions will die from neglect. I’ll find myself stopping for every touch in the crowd, or sitting to dine with types best avoided. And waste my time praying in the freshly dawned hours, or thumbing through pages, ancient onion-skin wisdom, when truth is as close as Siri’s sweet voice.
And a tweet or a text loving gesture enough.
Jesus, to me, your priorities seem off.
- You tell me to let go when I want to hang on.
- You tell me to trust when there’s reason to fear.
- You tell me to love the very people I loathe.
- You tell me to lose the same self I’m seeking.
- You tell me to wait as my world heads for a cliff.
Your way is at odds with what’s obviously true:
- Blessed are the meek in a world made for the bold?
- Blessed are the peacemakers in a world filled with sharks?
Oh, I’ve lived long enough to see it may work for a moment. But for every “chicken-soup-for-the-soul” ending, there’s a follow-up report. The glad cheers of yesterday are today’s breaking bad news.
Your way doesn’t work, as the evidence shows. So I’ll stick to the paths, well-worn by long practice. And wonder why the world isn’t what it should be.
His Answer
His answer comes swiftly, scented with promise,
Follow me, in my unconventional, “inefficient” way. Someday you will see it, and dance in my joy. What you think is life wasted is you being made new.
(1 Corinthians 1:18-31, Revelation 21:5)
How is Jesus asking you to be unconventional?
Photo credit: Kevin Den
12 replies on “Jesus And His Unconventional, Inefficient Way”
That’s beautiful, Janet.
Thank you!
“What you think is life wasted is you being made new.” I can so hear the deep resonance of the voice that called light into existence, echo in that sentence. The place where He told Samuel that His ways are not our ways, is perhaps the greatest understatement ever spoken!
Yes, we learn that, don’t we Rebecca!
How many times have I said this, “Jesus, your way can’t possibly work”? I’m so grateful he doesn’t allow my way to work. He’s continually bringing me back to the inefficient, unconventional Way that leads to growth and peace.
Amen!
Love this post, Janet. I especially resonate with the conflict between our priorities and those of Jesus. It’s an upside-down life of faith we practice isn’t it? That’s what makes every experience with Him a series of small, but significant miracles.
Tammy, so it is! Maybe we come to see it as the right side-up life.
Hello Janet, such a meaningful post to me. Your words fit right in my let’s-get-on -with-it soul as I wait for God to “get going” and bring change that would be sure to honor Him. But the deeper truth He’s brought over time is that He doesn’t waste pain, and that He’s is doing something in the process.
Thank you, Sharon. There’s much wisdom in what you share.
Thank you Janet, for this visual. Praying that I can see the road closure not as an interruption but a Divine Intervention.
So true, Cretia. Sometimes the sign means “stop” not “go where no one else goes.”