Adding single moments to our lives.

Belfair State Park

This will no doubt be my last posting from Washington as a resident of this great state.  I will miss being a Washingtonian, as I have lived here much longer than any other place, by far.  Since our immediate family will still be here, I know we will be back, regularly.

I am a worrier.  That is I worry about stuff, sometimes to the point of obsessiveness.  I come by it naturally, my mother was really good at it and always was worrying something to the point of sickness.  I am not proud of it at all and for years didn’t really think of my obsession with the “what ifs” of life as worry, I just considered myself to be careful, or a detail guy, or making sure I knew what was going on around me.

But the reality is I worry and in doing so I fail to trust my Father and negate the work of the Spirit as He seeks to lead and direct me.  Worry snuffs out the one thing the Father asks us to do besides respond to His love–trust Him.

Worry subtracts while trust adds. Matthew 6:27 says “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?”  Of course the obvious answer is no, it subtracts.  It steals time you can’t get back, ever.  Jesus thought worry was so destructive that He concludes His major teaching on what makes Kingdom people unique from those who don’t believe with a very strong statement about worry and why we shouldn’t bother.

If worry subtracts single moments then trust must add them.  I don’t even want to calculate the number of single moments I missed or at best was not fully present in because my mind was stuck on some “what if” scenario. 

I will turn 60 in a few days and I usually try to make some course corrections as I pass my birthdate.  This years course correction is all about trust.  One reality I have learned is that my inability to trust my Father with the details of life, makes it really hard to trust others, and that is not a good thing for anyone.  Trust is the glue for all relationships, including the one I long to have with my Father.  Without trust, I am really nothing more than a poser.

So, I am quietly and confidently going after some single moments these days.  Releasing my fears, believing my good Papa knows what is going on, has me in the palm of His hand, loves me passionately, sees beyond today, wants nothing but good for me and my family and so on. 

I already have added some single moments to my life as I walk in trust and I am certain that the more I lean into trusting my Father, the more of the lost ones He will give me back.

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