Tis’ So Sweet

Tis’ so sweet to trust in Jesus, was the song we sang as we closed out the Sunday service. I repeated the lyrics to myself as I sat on the plane, flying home from Oklahoma. When we trust Jesus to do what only He can do, He always shows up and exceeds our expectation. Pastor Bill Johnson said, “you never forget the taste of His kindness,” and this weekend, I tasted His kindness once again. 

I had the privilege to speak the good news of Jesus for the last three days. My tank may be empty, but my soul is on fire. Again, I am overwhelmed by the goodness of God, His great love for His people and His wonder-working power. Marriages united, people healed, set-free and saved. A woman was freed from grief and shame that she was holding on to her for way too long. A young girl said she wanted to be brave for Jesus and felt the power of the Holy Spirit come upon her. Woman were released into their giftings and callings. People were encouraged to fight the good fight in a dark world. I witnessed other amazing sisters-in-Christ bringing amazing words for our other sisters! There was an answer to the call, a fire ignited, and a passion to serve God with our whole hearts. Last week I said, the harvest is ready, and the workers are coming. This week I got to witness it!

It is so interesting to me that we saw the power of Jesus working in lives and got to be a part of His bigger picture, and yet, I feel tonight the cost. I have talked about when we share the gospel it will come at a cost, but I find the more I step out in faith, the more I understand that. After being witness to all the good, my mind started to wonder. What if I didn’t say enough? what if I should have prayed more? Did I do enough, God? I’m sorry if I did something that wasn’t from you. I started to feel weighed down by the burden and I found my flesh wanted to take some things into my own hands; doing the opposite of what I preached about all weekend.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

The truth is, yes, I will offend someone, yes, I will say stupid things at times, yes, I can ALWAYS pray more, yes, I will get tired, and yes, there is always going to be something more that I can do. But God doesn’t put that on me or any one of us, it is something we take from His hands and choose to carry on our own. God reminded me, His yoke is easy and His burden is light. We stand in faith doing only the best that we can do, recognizing that we have to lay things out of our control back down at His feet…daily. I feel only a sliver of the cost from this weekend, but He is worth every cent of whatever it can be. He is worth being rejected. He is worth the humility that comes when we make ourselves vulnerable, and He is always with us through it all. I am only experiencing a tiny sliver of that cost, but I believe we should prepare ourselves for more. Are we ready to stand up for Jesus, spreading His good news for all to hear? 

Today, I thank God for all His goodness, for pouring His love on His people, and once again, I am amazed at the power of Christ, and His great love.