Time To Take It Off The Shelf

 I heard some good advice way back when I was just new in my walk with the Lord. “If you come across something in the Word, or hear something preached, that you don’t understand, don’t get hung up on it. Don’t reject it. Just ‘Put it on the shelf’ and say, ‘I believe all of God’s Word, and someday God will reveal it, and I’ll understand.’” That’s very wise advice. …There are deep mysteries in God’s Word, and things you won’t understand until you’ve lived, and seen, and experienced, and grown in knowledge and revelation. A new Christian just needs to focus on being a DOER of what he DOES understand. Then when God gives you more understanding, be a DOER of that, and on and on… never stopping.It’s like a 3rd-grader getting excited about math, so he picks up a college math text, and it’s got all these Greek symbols and equations that are a total mystery. Put it back on the shelf. Just master the next lesson in your 3rd-grade math book. If you master your lessons in the order they’re given to you, you’ll get to the advanced stuff soon enough.

Well, I took that wise advice, and though I studied, and searched for understanding, there was a lot I had to put on the shelf. And sure enough, in time there a lot I was able to take off the shelf, and understand.

Then there came a day 30+ years into my walk with the Lord, when something came up that I wanted to put on the shelf, but I couldn’t, because it directly affected whether I would have eternal life or not. It was heaven or hell, and I knew I couldn’t wait for an answer someday. Someday might be too late. I got REAL serious with the Lord, and that started a process in my life of seeking God, humbling myself, seeking Him more fervently, humbling myself more, praying, fasting… whatever it took to get His answer. This went on for months.

When His answer came, it was a whole lot bigger than what I was asking, and one of those answers was one of those things I’ve referred to that shook me up. He showed me that much of what I had been putting on the shelf, was not because I didn’t understand it, but because I DID understand it, and just didn’t want to think about it, because it didn’t fit how I wanted it to fit. It made me uncomfortable. It didn’t match what I thought or had been taught. It would force me to make hard choices, and possibly huge sacrifices. He told me that each of these things He had spoken to me, I had known it was His voice, but had cared more about my comfort, and the praise of men rather than the praise of God, and had absolutely no excuse.

Do you know what that will do to you? I can’t go back. I can’t let Him down. I have promised Him, and I am going to keep my promise. I love Him, because He first loved me, and continued loving me even when I was guilty of these things as a Holy Ghost filled Christian. He didn’t destroy me or cast me off. He disassembled my heart, showed me what was wrong, FORGAVE ME, and is putting me back together with brand new parts. I LOVE HIM SO MUCH, and I can’t be quiet!