Take God Out of the Box

“Take God out of the box!” These words were spoken to me just short of 5 years ago. Even though I have been a Christian since I was 9 years old and have loved God for the majority of my life, at 45 I realized I had stuffed God in a box. I found myself on the sofa in a Christian counselor’s office seeking solutions to the place I didn’t intend to end up but, never the less, found myself. Over the last several years I have spent a lot of time in prayer, soul searching–looking in the mirror–allowing God to redefine my thinking and breath a freshness from Scripture that I have never experienced.

The first order of business for taking God out of the box was taking a step back and looking at how in the world I had made God so small and taken all the power out of my relationship with Him. Some of the most powerful words that have ever been said to me were, “DROP YOUR HANDS.” As I became completely honest with myself, God, and a professional Christian counselor, I started seeing where I was trying to be God or “in charge of others” and not trusting God with them. It was pointed out to me in Scripture that we will all go before the Lord one day. No one will be standing with me to give an account for my life, but me. 2 Corinthians 5:10 holds a powerful statement. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”

For me, this Scripture painted a clear and vivid picture of a new direction for me, a direction of being more concerned with my relationship with the Lord and being obedient to the things He was telling me. My focus shifted away from trying to be responsible for other people and their actions. I realized I needed to apply Proverbs 4:23,” ABOVE ALL ELSE GUARD YOUR HEART FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO FLOWS FROM IT.”

The second order of business for me was to get up earlier, much earlier, and spend more time, a lot more time, with God. Time spent reading the Bible, praying and sitting quietly before a HOLY GOD. This was the start of “GUARDING MY HEART.”

I knew from a very early age and a lifetime of growing up in church, and in a Christian home, that this was the right thing to do. But somehow over time and the demands of life, I let God ride shotgun instead of letting HIM be the DRIVER. I am not yet perfected and know that I won’t be until heaven one day but the fruit of being honest with myself and God has led me to a very intimate relationship with God. It has taken my actions as a “recovering people pleaser,” and set my feet on the road to being a “God Pleaser,” and thus responding to Him directing me to launch Back 9 Ministries.

I certainly don’t have any idea what the future holds but I do know Who holds the future. I have taken major leaps of faith in being fully obedient to Christ. Allowing Him to be God, not putting Him in a box, has given me back the “FIRM FOUNDATION” that He intends for all of us to stand on.

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