don't settle for settling.

why do we settle so much? as people, we often know in our hearts what is best for us, even if it may not be what we want in our minds or flesh. i think that we do this for a few reasons.

the first reason is fear. a lot of times we will take what we can get because we are afraid that there won’t or can’t be anything better that would come along, so even if we know that something is not ideal for us if we want to walk alongside God, we settle. take, for example, someone you like. if you’re married…just think back to before it. first, you meet someone. generally speaking, your first impression of someone is physical attraction. so we’ll go with that for now… so you meet this person and you’re very attracted to them physically. as you hang out with them and get to know them you realize that they are fun to be around – he/she is nice, outgoing, funny, smart, goes to church and loves God and does all the things on your little checklist for traits a person should possess to attract you emotionally. then as you keep hanging out and talking, you slowly start to realize that maybe you were wrong… sure he/she is still very good-looking and fun to hang out with, but you find yourself feeling like trying to pursue anything is more like a job. you start finding this person to be difficult or immature or maybe they just play too many games (although i consider that under the immature part, to a degree….). i know for me at least, a big part of me would want to put up with all that crap and keep after it. i know it because i’ve done it more than once. but i doubt i’m the only one. you see we are settling for things that we bring into our lives out of fear that we can’t get anything better…that God won’t give us anything better or maybe that He won’t give us another chance at all. but what has God ever done to show us that He won’t provide?

and that brings me to the next and most important point i think.

trust.

as a rule, we don’t trust God. maybe it’s because we have been hurt by people and been betrayed in the past. we somehow justify in our heads that if we can’t trust someone we can touch, see, smell and someone we have tangible proof of their existence, then how can we trust a God who is beyond our understanding and comprehension?

it makes me feel stupid to say it because i am as guilty of this as anyone, but we have no reason to not trust God because He has never given us a reason not to. we make reasons up like spoiled children out of bitterness, selfishness and greed because we don’t get something we want or something we somehow think we deserve. we don’t deserve anything. everything we have in our lives is a gift from God. whether it’s things we don’t think about like waking up each day in a warm place that we live in or big things like giving us Jesus to die on our behalf, God gives us immeasurable and countless things each and every day that we take for granted.

there’s no reason to not have faith in God or not to trust that He will provide for us. it may not be in our timing and the large majority of the time it won’t be because we don’t see everything that factors in to the decisions and situations God allows and provides. we need to trust God and his plans and timing and know that He only has our best interests and happiness in mind.

the other day i was watching a nooma video called shells. it go toward the end and rob bell told a story that really hit me hard…

he talked about going to the beach one time with his family and there were all these shells everywhere. some of them were good shells and looked cool, but some were just fragments and pieces of broken shells. so they went around collecting them and all of the sudden he looked out into the water and saw a big, perfect starfish just floating there. his little son went to get it, but as he got out a little bit into the water he turned around and came back. they all yelled and encouraged him to go get it so he turned around and ran back out, a little farther this time, but then turned around and came back again. finally after more encouragement he ran all the way out to the starfish, but turned around and came back without it. finally rob asked his son why he didn’t get the starfish…what was holding him back from getting the best? his son said, “because my hands are filled with shells.”

friends, we need to drop our shells…the things that we settle for…broken fragments. we need to drop dependencies on people, alcohol, drugs, sex, money…we need to stop settling for what the world gives us and what we grasp out of fear. we need to empty our hands so we can grab hold of the best that God has for us. we need to empty our hands so we can grab hold of Him.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; those who seek find; and to those who knock, the door will be opened. Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” – Matthew 7:7-11

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” – Matthew 6:25-33

- david