Unrequited

I will be absolutely honest and admit that I am no expert when it comes to relationships. Especially the romantic kind. There are times I wish I could claim more expertise, but then I realize that my lack of proficiency comes from lack of experience. And, honestly, I don’t think that is a bad thing.

I have only ever told three girls that I liked them. Three. That’s it, in my whole life, except for one that I don’t count because I told her in a letter and I never saw her again after that. But, anyway, being as I am now single, you can guess how those three experiences went for me. So, I have, though on a much lesser scale than many of you, faced rejection from the opposite sex. But, the good thing about only pursuing a girl when God tells you to is that you only get rejected when God wants to teach you something from it.

Believe me, this was not an easy realization to come by. I have spent many lonely nights in my past angry with God for the response I got for my obedience to Him. But, through it all, He somehow broke through my concrete skull and made me see the Truth.

I believe that one of the main reasons God made men and women on this earth was so we could see, through that relationship, something about our relationship with Him. For reasons unbeknownst to me, God has chosen to pursue the human race the way a man is meant to pursue a woman. And with that pursuit, He puts Himself in danger of that same response we have all faced on one occasion or another. God makes Himself vulnerable to our rejection.

Based on this thought, I slowly began to realize what God goes through when we reject Him. He faces the same hurt, the same depression, the same grief that we felt when the one we cared about did not respond in the same way. Imagine that pain you felt and then imagine it multiplied by the entire population of the world over the entire course of history. That might be a little piece of the agony God goes through each time someone rejects Him. And it’s not just when people don’t get saved. Every time we sin we are rejecting God. We are turning our backs on Him who has valiantly pursued our souls.

It grieves me to think of the pain that I cause Him every day. Now I know how it feels. Maybe that’s why He allows us to suffer rejection. But no matter what we go through, it will never compare to the pain God feels for His unrequited love.

Chasing Buzzards

There is a very interesting story in the 15th chapter of Genesis. It really doesn't get talked about much, but I have been thinking about it alot recently. In that chapter, Abraham has met with God, and he is offering Him a sacrifice. Abraham slaughters several animals and lays them out for the LORD. But it is verse eleven that really caught my attention. It says this: "And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away."

I find this interesting for two reasons.

First, is the fact that there are even vultures in this story. Why was God so slow in accepting this sacrifice? Why did He wait around so long that the buzzards got there before Him? Abram was acting in faith; he had brought this gift to the LORD, and God was doing nothing. Sometimes, when we act in obedience, it takes a while before we see God move. It isn't always an instantanious fire like with Elijah on Mt. Carmel. Sometimes it takes some time.

Second, is the action of Abram. He had already given these animals to God; if the vultures got them, what concern was that of his? Abram recognized that offering things to God often requires more than just laying them down at His feet. We can say we are surrendering to God, but what do we do after? Are we actively fighting to make sure that our lives are sacrficed to Him alone. When we give up to Him are we chasing away the buzzards that would devour our offerings?

See, the truth is, when we do surrender to God, we usually will let other things steal that offering from Him. We give Him our time, but we don't chase away things that steal it. We give Him our relationships, but we don't actively battle the things that destroy them. We give Him our lives, but we don't drive off the vultures that pick away at our souls. Maybe God hasn't moved as fast as we would like. Maybe we don't have a clue where He could be. But, through it all, we must remember that our offerings are for Him alone and drive away the buzzards that would steal them from Him.