The Burden of Restoration
Bailey writes that "surprisingly, the Shepherd rejoices in the burden of restoration still before him"
The Shepherd sees that just finding the sheep was not the end of the job. As many of you have mentioned, the joy that lies ahead is in the process of restoration, the burden.
This summer we are in a unique position to both be carried in the process of restoration and to carry others in their restoration. What does it mean to lead? It means that we follow Christ. Christ is carrying each one of us...a reality that we cannot lose sight of, or we'll find ourselves stuck believing that we can earn something (much like the performance-based theology Reid wrote about). And if we find ourselves living in that, then we will lose sight of the joy of being tools in the burden of the restoration of others.
I'm finding that right now the Lord is stretching me in my willingness to let go of control, to let go of "perfect" as I would define it, and to continually recognize my need for him. I think that he is truly reshaping the lens through which I view the world. He is shepherding me, and I need to trust Him and the restoration He is leading me in.
My apologies for being late on the game with the blog! I'm working on getting my head in the game.
Mirm
The Shepherd sees that just finding the sheep was not the end of the job. As many of you have mentioned, the joy that lies ahead is in the process of restoration, the burden.
This summer we are in a unique position to both be carried in the process of restoration and to carry others in their restoration. What does it mean to lead? It means that we follow Christ. Christ is carrying each one of us...a reality that we cannot lose sight of, or we'll find ourselves stuck believing that we can earn something (much like the performance-based theology Reid wrote about). And if we find ourselves living in that, then we will lose sight of the joy of being tools in the burden of the restoration of others.
I'm finding that right now the Lord is stretching me in my willingness to let go of control, to let go of "perfect" as I would define it, and to continually recognize my need for him. I think that he is truly reshaping the lens through which I view the world. He is shepherding me, and I need to trust Him and the restoration He is leading me in.
My apologies for being late on the game with the blog! I'm working on getting my head in the game.
Mirm
Thanks for this post. It gave me big encouragement to consider anew the need for me to seek Christ's lens to shape my vision/perceptions. When I was reading your post, this verse came to mind --
ReplyDeleteThe person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord
so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.