The God Thing

When the hubby and I lived in Oklahoma, we worked with some inner-city kids.  I can remember when some of them came into my house - suddenly it was like it was a circus.  They infiltrated every room, playing on the beds, running around the backyard, and.... what?!... are they getting food out of my fridge?!  I recall with shame the horror I felt at their "rude" behavior.  It seemed to me that these children needed to learn that when you go into someone's house, there was a certain way to act.  Most importantly, you always ask before eating someone's food!!

My intentions were good - attempting to teach these kids how to "function" appropriately in society.  But as I look back, I realize that those were not necessary lessons for young kids from inner-city Oklahoma.  They were not acting out of rudeness or disrespect, they were acting out of cultural understanding.  It was part of who they were and how they grew up to have a "my house is your house" mentality.  Surely God would've preferred me to just let it go and love them right through their differences from me.

Ephesians 5:15 & 17 says, "Be very careful, then, how you live - not as unwise but as wise... Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is."  Paul says to "be very careful" when choosing how to live, and to figure out what God's will is.  I must be cautious about making quick decisions that seem to be the right thing to my human mind (after all, Proverbs 3 tells me that I should not lean on my human understanding).  Instead, I want to seek God in all my decisions and then wait for His leading (an hour? a day?  a month?  just wait and listen, dear one!).  Then, and only then, will I have full assurance that I am not just choosing the "good" thing, but the God thing!

Love and Grace to you, my Soul Sisters!
-Kelly T