Taking The "Hard" Way
Saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” Luke 22:42 (NKJV)
The longer I live, the more I understand the benefit of doing things God’s way. Human nature is to take shortcuts, to try to do things “the easy way.” And while it appears on the surface that following God in all things is hard or difficult, I can assure you that in the long run His way ends up being the best. Our shortcuts and “good ideas” look promising at first glance but end up causing more problems and difficulties. And going our own way does nothing to grow us as believers.
Nobody welcomes hardship or difficulties. As we see by our Scripture verse, Jesus Himself saw the pain ahead and asked if there was any other way to accomplish His assigned purpose. However, Jesus never turned from God’s will, but instead said that if the cup of suffering could not be removed that He would honor the will of His Father.
Surrender is a word that often carries negative connotations. It ellicits images of waving a white flag in defeat and shame. However, when we surrender our will to God, we move from a losing strategy to one that will always win. When we do as the Lord directs us, even though it may appear to be hard, the end result in increase and improvement. We grow by enduring hardships and persevering until we see the manifestation of what God has promised. And what we may not realize is that we can cause more problems for ourselves and others down the road when we take the “easy route.”
It may appear to be hard to disclose everything we earned on our income tax return because our refund may be smaller or we may owe taxes, but honesty that costs us something shows God we hare ready to be promoted. It may seem difficult to walk away from relationships we have had with some people for a long time. However, if those relationships are destructive and detrimental to our faith, then temporary loneliness is worth the longterm gain. I could give you dozens of examples of surrendering our will to His but you get the idea. When we put Him first, God honors our sacrifice.
Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. Matthew 7:14 (NKJV)
The Bible refers to the path of the believer as the narrow road, meaning it is the one that most people do not choose, probably because it looks more difficult. But never forget, God is walking the path with us and will never forsake us as we put His will in front of our own. And time and again He proves that His way is always in our best interest. The “easy way” is not really the easy way. God’s way is.
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:29-30 (NKJV)
