An Uncaged Bird: Finding Freedom and Joy to ObeyExemplo

Flying Forwards

I loved being a student so much that I kept re-enrolling, even after graduation! I know it sounds so crazy, but I enjoyed the projects and presentations that many of my college classes required. For me, each accomplished assignment gave me great satisfaction and sense of worth! I found the grading process invigorating—proving my skill and enabling me to pass one lesson and onto the next. 

Living obedient lives, however, is not so cut and dry. It’s an ongoing ordeal. We will never come to the place where we’ve mastered what the Master is producing in us. No matter how long we’ve been following Jesus, no matter how tough our past has been, or how promising our futures seem, there will always be spiritual stepping stones placed before us and new heights to venture into. Each of these everchanging circumstances require our obedience because we are not in control. The Lord is. 

Flying forwards in our faith requires obedience in both simple and complex ways. This requires more of us than just accomplishing a task. It’s about learning that faith is found in our obedience, and moving forward with the Lord is a moment-by-moment existence. Sometimes, we don’t see progress. Sometimes we feel like failures, but there is purpose in the process, and God is working all thing together for our good (Romans 8:28)!

I want to remind you that our call to obedience is not to accomplish personal perfection, but rather for Christ to perfect Himself within us. That’s why we sojourn on from challenge to challenge and from glory to glory (2 Corinthians 3:18). We aren’t going backwards. We aren’t at a standstill. The Holy Spirit is always moving and always working. We are never defeated in our obedience—even when it looks the contrary. It seems backwards to love our enemies or to give out of our lack. It makes no sense to trust in what is unseen or to raise our hands in the midst of our pain. Truth be told, it can seem backwards at times—foolish even, but God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8). What He asks us to do may not make sense to us in the moment, but as we trust and obey, we are propelled forward in faith which will position us to spiritual heights where we can look back and see the goodness of God in each situation that He brings us through!

Keep in mind that even Jesus had to learn obedience. In His human form, it wasn’t natural. It was a developmental process that He had to go through, and the perfection of His obedience wasn’t accomplished until after the cross (Hebrews 5:8). All that we go through, the Lord understands and offers us mercy to help us as we trust in Him (Hebrews 4:15). Obedience isn’t always easy, and it doesn’t always make sense or come naturally, but it does produce spiritual stamina in our lives and reveals God’s love to us every step of the way.