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Whatever It Takes

Words that can either haunt me or inspire me depending on where my emotions are when the words come to mind. It is a commitment I made to God exactly thirty days before my husband was killed. I was at a Leadership conference for church & business leaders when they brought out a clay pottery vessel. The vessel represented us, as God made us. It was then shattered into pieces representing the brokenness we experience in this world. We were then each handed a broken piece and encouraged to write whatever was on our hearts. I vividly remember the fullness in my spirit that day, as I wrote…Whatever It Takes.

There will be a cost

Scripture warns us, there will be a cost to follow Christ. The cost can come in many forms.

Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.
Luke 9:23 NIV

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
2 Timothy 3:12 NIV

As a widow, I am more sensitive to the cost. Of the pain God endured by sacrificing His Son on the Cross. I all too well understand the pain of death.

As I search for purpose and meaning in this new life, I remember that I must deny myself in order to follow him. This is the most challenging part – to deny my frequent desire to surrender to my emotions. It is important to acknowledge our grief and work through our feelings. But we can’t fulfill our purpose if our emotions become our master. We sometimes need to deny those emotions from overtaking us in order to walk by faith and honor our God.

And the lessons don’t stop there. I am now more aware of the persecution of our faith. Persecution comes in many forms. As widows we are not immune from persecution. People don’t understand our faith. Our response to grief, with God as our foundation, can look different than what others expect. They may think we are foolish or naive. Or the opposite, they may think we are super strong people – without recognizing the strength comes from the Lord. Their responses can become a form of persecution. A constant push in our daily lives – to rely on ourselves, to blame God or to become our own god.

Becoming more obedient

How then shall I respond? By picking up my cross daily and following Christ. Becoming more obedient in the little things, so I can be trusted with the bigger things. I am at that point where,

“What I WANT…is to be so aligned with God’s will for my life that I am able to accept His plans for my future.

Whether those plans are what I currently desire or not.”

Those three simple words – Whatever It Takes – are now woven into the very core of my being. God has brought me to a place where I know and love Him in a way that has brought about a whole new level of surrender. It has been at great cost, but it has also brought tremendous gain. Today there is less of me, more of Him.

There are times when I slip back into my old way of thinking. Thankfully, He always brings me back to my purpose. My purpose always has been and continues to be to glorify Him.

Ladies, He is faithful, He will supply all of our needs. My prayer for each of us, is the same as the one Paul prayed for us long ago:

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ-to the glory and praise of God. Amen.
Philippians 1: 9 -11 NIV