Have you experienced a reawakening? That moment when your whole world tilts and then shifts and you realize the who’s who is not you, but rather God? It usually takes place because one day we wake up in an existential crisis and think, “What’s the point?” or “What am I going to do with the rest of my life?”
When this happens, most of us feel a sense of hopelessness and helplessness. We’re lost in this great big world trying to scrape together some semblance of meaning.
At this point, we have really, two directions to go. Toward God or toward death. I believe that this second journey is precipitated by the call of Jesus. He is whispering our names, trying to herd us back onto the right path. However there are several, common obstacles that get in the way. They are often a crisis in faith, hope, and love.
These obstacles rear their ugly heads because, as we’ve gotten older and grown bored of God, the story, the meaning, and the word. We think of it as static, finished, settled. Our growth is stunted, while our faith is filtered through the dull-colored glasses of the world.
No wonder we wake up saying, “What’s the point!?”
Faith doesn’t have a period on its end. It’s really a run-on sentence. The author, Brennan Manning writes, “In faith there is movement and development. Each day something is new. To be Christian, faith has to be new–that is, alive and growing…When Scripture, prayer, worship, ministry become routine, they are dead…If our faith is going to be criticized, let it be for the right reasons. Not because we are too emotional but because we are not emotional enough; not because our passions are so powerful but because they are so puny; not because we are too affectionate but because we lack a deep, passionate, uncompromising affection for Jesus Christ.”
The second call, the reawakening is when we can say “yes” to the questions: “Do I believe the good news of Jesus Christ? Do I know in my heart that God is good, that grace is mine, and that I am loved?”
The Lord is calling you. He is saying, “I am with you. I am for you.” He is affirming you, enabling you, encouraging you, and challenging you in your journey of faith, hope, and love.
Are you ready to take this second journey with Him and learn that it is all worth it? Are you ready to fumble, fail, fall flat on your face and still develop a growing and dynamic faith?
Because, the truth is, the second call, maybe the last call.
Are you ready to say “Yes, Lord, I hear you?”
