Going Through the Motions
You’re in the driver’s seat of your car and you’re in your driveway. You’re looking around completely surprised that you made it home because you do not remember any of the trip. Huh…good thing your car was on auto-pilot and knew the way home, right? I have had this happen to me a few times and I am always amazed when I realized I made it home. How can you honestly drive from where you were to your house, not remember doing it, and not get yourself, or anyone else, in an accident? It boggles my mind.
Or how about those nights when you’re sitting on the couch, the only light is coming from the kitchen, it’s quiet, everyone is in bed. The “where did the day go?” questions start swirling in your head: What did we do today? Did I spend enough time with the kids? Did I interact with them, answer their questions? I made dinner….right? Do I have things ready for tomorrow? Did I even do anything on my to-do list?
Honestly, I feel like I have been on auto-pilot a lot these last couple of weeks. It’s not a good feeling looking back and realizing that I wasn’t engaged in life. I was just doing everything like I have always done every day. I wasn’t present in what was going on. I was going through the motions. I’m not sure if it’s a coping mechanism for my depression or if it’s something else. I do know that it’s not healthy for me, my family and those around me. I didn’t completely check-out on life, I just wasn’t playing a starting position. (Sports analogy, must be football season is here.)
We were not made to sit down and watch life pass before our eyes. We were not made to be bystanders in our own lives. God designed us to praise him, “…the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.” (Isaiah 43:21 emphasis mine).
We are told to follow God’s commands, “Walk in all the way that the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land you will possess.” (Deuteronomy 5:33 emphasis mine)
He created us to do good in him, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10 emphasis mine), “…who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” (Titus 2:14 emphasis mine).
He wants us to take care of those in need, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” (Matthew 25:35-36 emphasis mine).
We are instructed to go and make more and better disciples, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19-20 emphasis mine).
If you notice in the verses above, I have highlighted some words. Take a quick look back at those words, what do you notice about them? Yes, they are all verbs…actions…things we are to be doing.
This list could go on and on, and would make another great devotional just touching on a few of the things that God created us to do. Just read the book of James, he beautifully describes how God created us to live like Christ did. Again, I say, he did not create us to be removed from life, to be hands off and distant from that which happens around us. I know things can get overwhelming. I only have two children and they are 10 years apart, so it’s like I have had two ‘only child’ seasons in my life, yet their schedules and activities have been, and are, time consuming and feel like they are so draining. Yes, being in the car, driving your children from lessons to practice to after school events to a friend’s house to the doctor and dentist appointments to the store, for that last minute project they just told you about, can be very draining. (How did you like that run on sentence? Frustrating, right? That’s how it can feel sometimes when you’re in the middle of it.) It is very easy to zone out and go through the motions all day long. I don’t blame you one bit, Lord knows I do it.
The problem with zoning out repeatedly, with our daily activities, can lead us to zoning out in other ares of our lives: our friendships, our marriages, our family relationships, our jobs, our relationship with the church body and God. Ouch. I say that because I am aware that I have done that.
I love lists. I am a great list maker. I have a lot of sticky note in an array of colors on the ready. Lists keep me ‘focused’ and organized…we’ll use that word loosely here. I like doing a task, heading to my list and crossing it off. I feel accomplished, satisfied with my ability to do the simple things in life, ya know, like laundry. I have come to realize, over the years, that there are certain things that should not be on our lists. Loving our spouse and our children…that doesn’t need to be on our lists. Feeding ourselves and our family, not a to-do list item (although if you are new parents, or have ever been a parent, you know that this can very easily go on the to-do list so that you don’t forget it in your sleep deprived state). What about Bible studies? Prayer time? Devotionals? Quiet, alone time with God? Should those be on our to-do lists?
Our pastor has said many times, and I’m paraphrasing here, “Our relationship with God and our going to church should not be something that we check off of our to-do list.” And how true is that? Yet, how many of us do just that? How many times have we had a horrible, awful week, grumbled when the alarm went off on Sunday morning, dragged ourselves to church and then found ourselves filled with love, peace and praise? How many times have we cried in our seats, thanking God for the blessings that we missed during the week? How often have we celebrated the friendships we have in the church body? How many times have we walked out of the church looking forward to another week only to revert back to the way we were living, acting, thinking and speaking before attending church that Sunday?
Or how about the opposite scenario? I drag myself out of bed on the one day I can sleep in. I begrudgingly head to church. I smile and make small talk. I pray, I sing the worship songs, I listen to the sermon and then I leave. I just go through the motions while I’m there and then I go about the rest of my week like I have done the previous weeks. Hmmm…that doesn’t seem any better does it? Here’s the thing about this scenario, while it may appear to others that we are doing the appropriate things and saying all of the right word while at church, God sees right through us and sees deep down into the very core of our hearts.
“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6) The prophet Hosea was speaking to the northern kingdom of Israel, instructing them to open their hearts. God can see their ‘meaningless sacrifices’ and wants their hearts instead. In the book of Mark we see Jesus talking with one of the teachers of the law about the most important commandment. Jesus said, ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31) The teacher agreed with Jesus saying, “To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” (Mark 12:33)
David writes, “Sacrifice and offerings you do not desire, but my ears you have pierced; burnt offerings and sin offerings you do not require. Then I said, ‘Here I am, I have come, it is written about me in the scroll. I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.’ “ (Psalm 40:6-8)
Later one David says, “You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” (Psalm 51:16-17)
In the above verses we are shown that our sacrifices, our ‘motions’ are not what God is even interested in. He is interested and invested in our hearts. How are our hearts as we go about our day? How are our hearts as we interact with those we encounter? How are our hearts as we pray and attend church? If we are just going through the motions in our relationship with God he knows. If our hearts are just not in it, how can we receive all of the blessings God wants to give us? I know there are days that are packed with so much outside noise that we can’t hear ourselves think. I understand that there are moments when zoning out is helpful and almost needed. I get that there are times when our hearts ache and it feels impossible to open it up to one more person…but God is not one more person!
If all of this seem overwhelming, confusing or completely undo-able, don’t worry! Jesus came to help us and set our hearts free from the ‘sacrifices’ we try to give while our hearts are not in it. “Unlike other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once and for all when he offered himself.” (Hebrews 7:27) Jesus is our perfect sacrifice and he offered himself up for our one and only sacrifice.
“…Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” (Hebrew 9:28)
Christ died for you. He died for me. We do not have to live our lives overwhelmed by everything that we have to do and then zone out because we can’t do it all, or we can’t do it ‘perfectly’. We can call upon Christ when life is so hard we want to check out. We can lean into him, knowing that he sacrificed himself for us. We can look to him as an example of how our hearts should be, not to be reminded of our sins, but to be reminded of what he did for us!
My prayer for you is that you will open your heart to the One who sacrificed himself for you. May you see how tender he is with your broken and hurting heart. May he show you how to live life, not just watch life. May Christ fill your heart with peace and strength for those seemingly impossible days. May he guide you in giving your heart to God so you are not just going through the motions.
See you on the front porch.