HOKEY POKEY

*the following was sent to the faithful subscribers of the [subversive underground] list on 3/28/06

HOKEY POKEY by Keith Giles

"You put your left hand in, you take your left hand out..."

We do this all the time in our spiritual life. We surrender to Jesus on
Sunday, and we take it all back on Monday morning. We mean well. We intend
to serve Jesus with our life, but the daily pressures of life wear on us and
we end up returning to the old patterns of life.

The good news is, God knows that we're dust. He knows we're weak. He
understands that the flesh is willing, but the maturing of our spirits takes
time.

"If we are faithless, He will remain faithful, for He cannot disown
Himself."- 2 Tim 2:13

God is patient with us, and because of this we still have hope.

"...you put your right foot in, you take your right foot out..."

I've been tested lately about some of the same things I've been through many
times before.

Why does God keep putting me through these tests of faith? I look to the sky
and ask, "Haven't I already learned this lesson three times before? I
thought I passed this. Why are we having to go through this again, Lord?"

A dear friend reminded me the other day that God's purpose for allowing
challenges in our life is to draw us nearer to Himself. "We just want God to
fix it, or do it, or make it better, but God wants us to take His hand and
walk through these things alongside Him," my friend said.

Still, I'm weary of putting my faith into action again and again. I'm tired
of wondering if God will work this miracle and save my family (again), or if
this time we'll have to endure the pain.

God whispers to me, "Seek first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness,
and all of these things (food, shelter, daily needs, etc.), "will be taken
care of as well."- Matt 6:33

So, I do my best to seek the Kingdom of God. I try to focus on Him instead
of on my own challenges. But still I find myself drifting back to the
question; "What if this time God doesn't rescue us?"

"...you put your whole self in, you take your whole self out, you put your
whole self in, and you shake it all about..."

God wants all of me. He wants all of you. He wants my time. He wants my
heart. He wants my trust. He wants my entire life. He wants my "whole self
in".

Surrender to Jesus is, in reality, a gradual exercise in trust. It would be
wonderful if that one time I went down front and bent my knees on the altar
was enough. I wish it were true. Maybe for someone else it is true, but for
me, I must confess, I'm still daily learning to bend my knees, surrender my
heart, and trust Jesus with my life...with my entire life.

Maybe, in some strange way, the Hokey Pokey really IS what it's all about?

"You do the Hokey Pokey and you turn yourself around. That's what it's all
about."

Peace,
Keith
****