The Danger of Doing Something

The past few weeks, I've joined a friend in leading a small group Bible study for 9th grade girls. It's kind of like a flashback to last year, teaching the same age again. And I still love it.

We're going through Emily's book Graceful. I highly encourage you to check out her blog and read either of the two books she has written-- they were mind- and heart-shifting for me, the perfectionist and I-can-do-it-by-myself girl. I've learned a lot about grace, and I hope these sweet girls are learning, too.

This book has reminded me of a truth that I have tried to remind myself of daily: Doing vs. Believing. The danger of doing is the temptation to put a load on our shoulders of responsibility, guilt, and loneliness. The blessing of believing is freedom, trusting, and peace. Which would you rather have?

Way too many assignments are due at the same time.
What am I supposed to do?

Expectations were not met.
What am I supposed to do? 

The budget is tighter than your pants on Thanksgiving.
What am I supposed to do? 

Failure. Sickness. Death. Loneliness.
What am I supposed to do?  

The awesome D on our front door broke.
What am I supposed to do?

The D on our front door broke into 3 pieces, and so did my heart. Kind of. It was so nice to call our apartment "the one with the D on the door." But try as I might, that D wasn't getting fixed. So I trotted on over to Hobby Lobby and fixed myself a brand new fall wreath!

But some things just can't be "fixed." Have you ever noticed our desperate inclination to try to "fix" every situation that comes our way?? There are some parts of life that just can't be upcycled. As much as we want to, we can't DIY our problems to make them look better than they were before. We may attempt to put it all back together, or replace the problems with a cover-up smile while telling ourselves to "man up," but in the end the problem is still there.

The problem is still there because problems don't get fixed by little ol' us. Rather, a great, big GOD lifts our heads in the middle of the problem.

Suddenly, we stop trying to do something and start trying to believe something. We believe He is good. We believe He is in control.

Way too many assignments are due at the same time.
He is our Rock, a fortress in times of trouble. (Ps. 9:9)

Expectations were not met.
He is sufficient. (Phil. 4:19) 

The budget is tighter than your pants on Thanksgiving.
He is our Provider. (Phil. 4:19) 

Failure. Sickness. Death. Loneliness.
He has a beautiful plan in every tragedy. (2 Cor. 1:3-5, Jer. 29:11) 

I'm thankful that the burden is lifted. I'm not used to simply believing; I'm more of a hang-the-pretty-wreath-you-made-and-hide-your-problems-behind-the-door kind of girl. But the happy part? His grace is teaching me to simply believe instead of trying to do something myself. Because, really, anytime I try to "do something" about my problems... I end up letting myself down. But Christ does not give up on His sweet but oh-so-pathetic children!

What will you choose to believe?

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