As we were driving to Milford Sound on two-week break I saw a sign that said “Mirror Lakes”. As most of you are aware of, the sign was for the lakes that are so smooth and still, that they perfectly reflect the mountains and scenery above them.
Here is a picture of one that I saw in the Abel Tasman. It’s really incredible because you could be upside down and it would still look the exact same.
As we continued driving, I started to think about the lakes and the way they reflect the nature around them. In the days previous, I had just finished a book I was reading by Mark Batterson, a pastor in Washington DC. The book is “Primal: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity”. Here is a bit of the book:
In and of ourselves, we’re not capable of loving God. We cannot manufacture love for Him. We can only respond to His love for us. And I hope that sets you free. Religion is all about doing things for God. Christianity is all about receiving what Christ has done for us on the cross. And what we do for God is a reflection of and response to what God has done for us.
It’s not about what you can do for God; it’s about what God has done for you.
Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. – Romans 12:1 MSG
This is where the lakes come in. I think we are the water and God is the amazingly beautiful landscape above us. The water in and of itself cannot produce a picture like the one reflected. Water can’t be mountains and water can’t be flowers or trees; it can only reflect it. Just like how we can’t be God, we can only receive Him, his goodness and the fruits of Holy Spirit and we can reflect Him. And we reflect God best when we are still before Him. The water is most like a mirror when there are as little amount of waves as possible.
Because we live in a broken world, we will always have waves. Just as the wind creates waves on the water so, in life our own brokenness or outside circumstances can come and break up the reflection on God that we are intended to have. Actually we in and of ourselves can’t calm the waters, but we know from Matthew 8:23-27 that Jesus can. It says
“Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. Suddenly, a fierce storm stuck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown” Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!”
Jesus calms waves and storms in nature and in our lives. When we rely on Him and keep our focus on Jesus we are able to be still.
It all comes down to receiving and reflecting. It’s not as much about us as we sometimes think it is. It’s all about God. Here is more from Mark Batterson’s book:
Everything minus God equals nothing. God plus nothing equals everything. (repeat) At the end of the day, all that maters is God. God is God. And the quest for our lost soul often begins when we get to the end of ourselves. But that is when life really begins.
We all want our lives to be about something bigger than us, more important than us, longer lasting that us. And that is exactly what God wants for you. But that isn’t the ultimate goal. Loving God is. And if you learn to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, then your life will exceed your wildest expectations. Why? Because His love will be reflected in your life.
As we enter into a new term with lots of assignments and hard work, I want to encourage you to take time to be still before God. To remember who it is that we worship and how we are utterly dependent on Him for everything. We aren’t called to work hard for Him because He says “and without faith it is impossible to please him” – Hebrews 6:1
Another verse that helps me keep my focus where it should be is “but seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well: - Matthew 6:33
Because as I quoted before out of Mark’s book “It’s not about what you can do for God; it’s about what God has done for you.”
No comments:
Post a Comment