Last weekend, I was saying my prayers and was concerned
about someone who goes out of their way to do things against me. I used to eat
over things of this nature, but now I try to turn them over into God’s very
capable hands. In my prayer, I asked God to be on my side. That got me to thinking. Am I an “I Want Christ on
My Side Christian”?
Asking something like this of God is like asking a parent to
love you more and give you your way instead of your sibling. Fortunately for
me, God sees beyond my selfish ways and shows me what I was asking. Just like the
impartial parent who can’t say they love one child more than the other, giving
one child everything they want, but neglecting the needs of the other, God is
there for all of us, Christian and otherwise.
Christ is there loving us even when we don’t know Him and His
abounding love for us, just the way we are. He loves us even when we can’t be
there for ourselves. He loves us even when it feels some people are contrary
and are spiteful to us. He also loves us enough to want us to be in healthy
relationships. He never lets us down, although we don’t always get things the
way we prayed for them.
I had to realize that I needed to change my prayer and my
focus. Instead of asking God to be on my
side, I needed to ask God to allow me to be on His side and for the willingness to let Him do it. Fortunately
for me, He always knows the big picture and what is needed. 2
Corinthians 4: 8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are
perplexed, but not in despair; 9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but
not destroyed.
Since
this is an example of the positive influence God has made on my walk
with Christ, this may not reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verses.
