This week we are looking at the ongoing story of Lazarus as he first steps out of the tomb. He has heard Jesus call him, but it takes every ounce of strength to move with the grave clothes tied around him. It's an important lesson for us who get so antsy when some things take longer than we want them to. We have been spoiled and now we want everything to move at blazing speed.
Ever blown the horn at a person who didn't fire off the line when the light went green? How long did you give them before you blew the horn? Do you switch radio stations in your car or flip through the songs in your iPod without listening to them because you are bored or it's too slow or isn't your favorite song? Have you caught yourself flipping through the channels on the TV desperate to find something you can bear to watch?
Spiritual growth doesn't happen instantly either. That's the point of this week's lesson. We are moving slowly in this new transformed state. We have years of not doing spiritual life right to get out of our system before we perfect the abundant life Jesus promised. It's not in our nature at the moment to go slowly or to be patient with slowly, but growth as a follower of Jesus will take time. Let it, please!
The excitement of new found faith is great, but it wears off and we are faced with living the day to day as Jesus would want us to. But then we realize we don't know what Jesus would do in some of our cases and then we get frustrated, rather than thinking we need more time to know what Jesus would have done in this case. Getting off the old grave clothes so we can be whole and new takes a whole lot more time than we are willing to give it sometimes.
Remember how frustrated you got with an upgrade in software? Or having to use something new you really looked forward to but it wasn't operating the same way you were used to? Upgrading our spiritual dimensions is like that. Promising to follow God is an adjustment. Putting aside the former things in order to be more open to God takes a lot of work. So I want you to be patient with yourself. Just don't give up, resolve to take another step.
Maybe you were going to read the Bible from start to finish. That's a daunting task when you hit chapter 6 with all those begats. You don't care who gave birth to who at this point. A long time later, you move to chapter 7 but by chapter 11 another list of begats and your goose is cooked. May I suggest you start in the new testament with Matthew or Mark or Luke or John. Those are the stories of Jesus, it will bring back some memories if you did Sunday School as a child. This time you can decide you will imitate what Jesus did rather than just nodding your head and say how nice!
You once were dead and wrapped up, now you are resurrecting and it will take some getting used to. Training wheels are helpful to get you started, remember? Join in the faith a step up at a time, and don't crash and burn and give up, just use that stumble as a time for thanks that at least your not dead anymore.
Blessings on your journey, take it a step at a time, remember the pilots of the jumbo jets, didn't jump from paper airplanes to jets in a single bound, neither should you. Hang in there and start feeling the fresh air outside your tomb as a way to get started.
Pastor Jeff
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