Life is often lived between a series of extremes: power and weakness, optimism and pessimism, success and failure. The pendulum swings between those extremes for many reasons, part of which can be our attitudes and the ways in which we approach life, circumstances and other people.
As we walk with God, we discover His unchanging nature in the extremes of life… and we learn to respond more to Him than to the situations that swirl around us.
Ultimately, consistency in the midst of extremes comes as we no longer allow a person or circumstance to dictate our response. When we’ve had a rough day at work, we have an opportunity to treat our family the same on that day as when everything has gone smoothly. When we learn to pull aside before arriving home and find our place of rest in God, we become more consistent in our responses of peace and trust towards others.
We mature in our consistency by embracing the blessings God has hidden in each circumstance.
When the extremes of life are upon us, take a moment to pause and ask the Holy Spirit about the blessings He has stored up for the circumstance before you, confident that they are present.
Start by listing all of the places where you are feeling tension. What are the things you’re not enjoying and what are the things you are struggling with? Make a list.
From a place of rest, ask the Holy Spirit to highlight the one He wants to explore first. Once you know what that is we can start asking Him questions that will draw out His heart, His attitude and His perspective.
What promises has God made to me that I can depend on here?
What provision and blessings are here to discover? Find one for every difficulty.
Who is He going to be for me in this place of tension? (Remember, tension doesn’t always mean something is wrong. It can mean something is happening!)
What opportunities do I have to practice His perspective here?
What is going to mature in me because of this situation?
Once you’ve identified the blessings and promises He has in that specific challenge, you can move on to the next one – and you can repeat this process as many times as you like. With each practice, your mind becomes more and more renewed and the constancy of your responses to life’s situations increases.
Work through your entire list and when you finish, you can sit back and exult in the realization that, “OMG! I’ve got all these promises!”
“I know what He wants to DO here, and here, and here! My life is going to be radically different! I’m joyfully taking responsibility for every single one of these blessings knowing I’m guaranteed to grow in consistency of my life with God amid chaotic extremes.”
Victory in our walk with God is NOT defined by the fact that we never know defeat. Instead, victory is experiencing the consistency produced by focusing on the incredible blessings God has given us for each area of tension or struggle.
Our process of maturity accelerates as we appreciate the blessings, gifts and provision available each day. The extremes of life invite us into a deeper relationship with the Father where our level of consistency can only increase.
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