No such thing as a shortcut

So maybe this is one of those "Duh, Carly. Why did that take you so long to figure out?" sort of things, but what I've really started to realize is that ...wow... there are no shortcuts for walking with the Lord. Did that blow anyone else's mind besides mine?

So David and I changed what our diet looks like back in August (#shoutout #nutritarianlifestyle) and we've been loving it! But one thing about eating healthy is that if in, say, one week you chose to replace one all-too-american-cheeseburger-and-fries meal with a salad, you're probably not going to make a lot of progress on any health or fitness goals. Just taking a diet pill or juicing things doesn't get you to where you want to be (at least not in the best and healthiest ways possible). I didn't log on to talk about physical food, though. Here's my point: Walking in a daily relationship with God is exactly the same way.

Just like food, which takes a conscious choice every single meal, learning to lean on Jesus takes a conscious choice every single moment. This seems like bad news for people like me who really take a lot to get motivated to do something that is so constant.

Here's what I'm good at (or starting to get good at):
     Reading my bible most days of the week
     Praying for other people on a regular basis
     Going to church
     Going to bible study (we call it "Gospel Community" at our church, or "GC")
     Hanging out with believing friends
     Admitting how much I stink to my accountability partner (or "Fight Club" partner)

And here's my struggle:
     Meaningfully connecting with God on a daily basis
     Remembering how much He loves me
     Recognizing how He passionately pursues me (even though I don't deserve it!)
     Remembering how much and how desperately I need Him because I can't do it
     Remembering that He is pleased with me because when He looks at me, He sees Jesus' good and perfect deeds, not the mess I continuously make of myself

And I can't help but notice that everything in the first section is something that you can cross off of a to-do list, while all things in the second section involve my heart at a deeper level.

There was a time when my relationship with Him was so incredibly rich that I felt like I didn't lack a thing. And I've been through seasons where I don't know what to do except go through to motions until something happens to change the connectivity issue. And when I'm in those seasons, I feel so powerless to change it at all. (Which is probably because I am powerless...but God isn't!)

And the issue that I've realized lately is that there are no shortcuts to being connected to God in a meaningful, life-altering kind of way. What it's going to take is an intentional, consistent letting down of the barriers that surround my heart that I've grown accustomed to just leaving up. And I don't think I have that issue with other people, just with God. I think, in part, because He scares me. He could ask me to do anything, and I would have no choice but to go along with it. There's a lot of "safety" in distancing yourself from the Creator...but then He can't create new things inside of you, or through you for that matter. #thestruggleisREAL, especially when it comes to wanting Him more than I want my comfort.

So I want to "commit" to Him. I want to commit to daily seeking His heart. I want to know Him richly again. And there are no shortcuts. #whew #herewego

#sorryforthehashtags #Ithinktheyrefunny

Carly W