Jon McCartie

Erin and I just celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary. Depending on where you’re at, that might be a drop in the bucket for you, or an eternity.  Regardless, we’ve spent a considerable amount of time together. We’ve seen each other cry, wrestle with tough decisions, mourn the loss of family, and laugh so hard it hurts. When we need to communicate with kids around, we can sometimes talk through mumbling and eyebrow movements. (get a toddler and you know what I mean here) My point is this: we work hard on this thing. Really hard. We didn’t wake up one day with a relationship — we built it. It’s messy and it’s not perfect, but no one knows me like Erin. And no one knows Erin better than I do. 

My relationship with God is just that … a relationship.  But if I’m honest, I don’t treat it like one. Good relationships start with good communication, so let’s take a look at my prayer life, shall we?

I think a good amount of my prayer time is spent asking for stuff.  Sure, I make sure to precede my requests with all kinds of flattery (I want to butter Him up before I ask for that miracle, right?).  But once the formal introductions are over, I feel like we can then get down to business: “Ok, God, now let’s talk about what really brings me here today.”

Really?! That’s what I’m building my relationship with God on? A strategic one-two punch of flattery and petition? 

There is no depth or maturity there — just manipulation. I play my little game with God. Granted, it’s not always like this, but it’s definitely a prominent character in our story together.

What would happen if I really cultivated a relationship with God? If I got to the point where we finished each other’s sentences, and could communicate without words? I think that’s what “pray continuously” looks like. And I definitely think it’s what a relationship looks like.

God is not a puzzle to be figured out, a game to be manipulated, or another item on my todo list. I need to spend less time asking for a “fix” and more time immersing myself completely in God’s presence.

John 10:27

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

Psalm 46:10

“Be still and know that I am God…”

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What about you? Do you find yourself too busy to just stop and listen? What steps are you making to actively cultivate a relationship with God? 

This previous week I had the privilege of hearing from my pastor Craig Groeschel talk about 10 things he’s learned from 15 years of ministry at LifeChurch.tv.

The first thing on his list was this:

“To step toward your destiny, you must step away from security.”

I turned to my wife Erin and briefly smiled. She recently wrote a blog post about our journey from California (known, safe, and secure) to Oklahoma (huh?). Although our move across the country was difficult for us, we can now easily say that this is where God wants us. At a critical point in our lives, we stepped away from security and stepped into the craziest and most fulfilling ride of our lives.

I smiled and looked down towards my notes.  ”2”, I wrote, ready for the next point in Craig’s list.

Wait, that’s it? I’m done? Why is it that we sometimes think that once we’ve walked through a difficult decision in our life, we can simply check that “spiritual lesson” off our list?  

“Well, God taught us about stepping away from security. Glad we learned that one. What’s next?”  Do I honestly think that God brought us through the pain of leaving our families and friends just so we could add to our “lessons learned” trophy shelf?

Two things I’ve learned about God in this area:

1. Rarely will God push you far BEYOND your breaking point, however, 
2. God will frequently push you TO your breaking point.

God wants you on your knees. God wants you fully reliant on Him.  God did not have Erin and I go through that season of discomfort simply to tuck it away and become satisfied with previous spiritual successes. And I need to be ready for what’s next, because God isn’t done with me. God will require me to step out of my security more and more — this was just the first lesson.  This past season was so drastic only because it’s what God needed to do to shake me from my slumber.

But I’m awake now. I’m listening. And that’s exactly where He wants me to be … so I can learn and respond to what’s next … to whatever happens to be “Lesson 2.”