Branch On The Vine

How are you doing this fall? 

Not going to lie, for me, it has been a rollercoaster season. I have been feeling very up and down emotionally and struggling to be content with where God has me. I even had a few weeks of anxiety creeping back into my life. I’ve been in a season of waiting on the Lord. It’s been a little messy over here. 

I’m not saying all of this in search of a pity party. That is the opposite of what I need. I’m sharing this because I want to be truthful. Even when life is good, (which mine truly has been great as far as circumstances go), our hearts can get out of whack. In fact, I think it might even be easier for my heart to wander from the Lord when things are going well. 

I don’t know about you, but I am someone who is almost always looking forward to the next thing. When it was spring, I wanted it to be summer. When I was single, I wanted to be dating. When I was dating, I wanted to be engaged. When I was engaged, I wanted to be married. When I lived in Columbus, I wanted to be back in Michigan. When I was in school, I wanted to get a job and make money. When it was fall, I couldn’t wait for Christmas. You get the picture. 

These are all natural desires. There is nothing wrong with any of these desires. 

The problem is that I often let them consume my mind. I obsess over the future.  I spend way too much time planning and hoping and dreaming about the next phase of life. Instead of being present and content where God has me, I’m always trying to move forward, forward, forward. 

Lately, God has been taking me through multiple sermons and podcasts about idols. Idols are things that consume our hearts, minds, and lives that we end up loving more than Jesus. I’ve heard it explained from multiple sources that God made humans to worship, and if we aren’t worshipping him, we are worshipping something or someone other than God. Jesus sums it up beautifully in Matthew 6:4 when He says, ‘“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”’ 

Money is a common idol among humans because we kind of need it to survive, and it can promise things like wealth, nice things, comfort, safety, and protection. However, if we are consumed by money – working an unhealthy amount of hours to make more, being so frugal that generosity gets kicked to the curb, or spending with no limits – we get very distracted from serving God. We start living for money. It feels like we can never get enough money because it cannot truly satisfy us. 

That’s an example of one idol, but today, I want to discuss the idol of the future. 

This is an idol in my heart, I’m working on tearing it down. 

Although it is fine and natural to look forward to the good things coming in life, getting to the next phase is not what is going to fulfill you. It is not going to fix all the broken pieces inside you. If you are always looking forward to the next thing, you will never feel content with where you are right now. 

Jesus offers us a better hope. He offers us true contentment, no matter the situation. Jesus offers us these things through faith in Him. 

Paul writes in Philippians 4:12-13, “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” 

When we struggle to find joy, ride the emotional rollercoaster, are in a season of waiting or grieving, WHATEVER IT IS, we can be content because of the strength that Jesus gives us. His grace is sufficient, (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

One way to combat the worship of idols in our lives is to remind ourselves of the truth about who God is and where we can find true hope. The following verses were listed in the study notebook that my church is currently going through: 

• “Now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in You” Psalm 39:7
• “My soul waits in silence on God alone; from Him comes my salvation” Psalm 62:1
• “Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” Isaiah 30:18

I am working on memorizing these verses to teach my heart where to search for true hope. I invite you to also memorize one of them or a different verse that reminds you of God’s goodness this week. 

I hope this little look into what God has been doing in my heart is encouraging to you. It’s easy to share the highlights, but it’s essential to confess your sins and struggles with people too. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Confess the idols you’ve been consumed by, and turn back to Jesus Christ who gives true hope, joy, and peace to those who seek Him.