by Tim Holler
That’s my dog. You know what he’s doing? He’s bringing glory to God. You know how I know? Because he’s doing what dogs do. He’s being completely dog-ish. Sometimes, he does other things. He chases squirrels, he digs for voles (our yard is evidence of this), he barks at Steve (our neighbor), he eats, and well, other things. These are all things that dogs were designed to do.
When he does what he was made to do, he brings glory to his Creator.
Trees do the same thing. Just standing, swaying in the breeze, producing their particular kind of fruit or seeds, and reproducing their own kind, they are doing what they were meant to do, thereby honoring their Creator.
You know this if you have ever tried to build something. Wasn’t it great, didn’t you feel wonderful when it did what you meant it to do?! Some will look at you and say,
“My, you are quite a clever builder of things!”
When something does what it was meant to do, it brings honor and glory to the builder or the maker.
But animals, trees, and ‘built things’ are quite different from humans.
In fact, humans are the only creatures that can choose to be what we were made to be.
We actually have options, opportunities, and choices as we develop to move toward our God-ordained destiny as humans made in His image or away from that image.
We also are the only creatures that have adversaries of multiple layers and sources that make these choices more challenging and difficult. Some are biological, some are cultural, some are genetic, some come from our family of origin, some are environmental, and most challenging–some are supernatural. Diabolically, part of that supernatural adversity resides inside our very hearts.
From the time we are born until the time we die, it seems that something or someone is attempting to make the choice of moving toward our union with God more difficult. Meanwhile, there are people and circumstances that are helping us move toward our union with God. In this mixture of experiences, we have our own choices.
It is because of this “mixture of experiences,” along with our choices, that it’s important to examine our own stories.
Like Socrates, who claimed that the unexamined life wasn’t worth living, I think it’s important to explore our stories with the help of others: what and who were the influences in our lives, what were the choices we made up until this point, what is God doing in our lives, what is the story God is writing? This is particularly important because the story isn’t over! Ecclesiastes says that as long as there is breath, there is hope. So, while you are reading this, life goes on, and your story does too.
Where will it go? What will happen next? How will the decisions you make influence your story? How have the events of the past impacted your life?
These are all important questions, and a good counselor can help you answer them. Contact us today.