Sunday Stories, An uninvited God
The Uninvited
Invite him in they said. He is the rock that you need. Your life will change they said, but I was happy as I was. Why do I need the lord in my life? It is going simply fine. I wrestled with inviting him into my heart and soul for a long time. I go back and forth from I do not need him, to please lord take this burden and be with me.
The lord and I have had an on-again, off-again relationship. I am not proud of that. It is just a fact. I come to him with everything in my life, but then I take it back ten minutes later because I think he did nothing in those ten minutes to help me. I invite him in, but I am keeping him out. I want him to rule my heart, but my mind races with anxiety about what he will truly do with my broken soul.
I was raised in the Catholic church and was told that God was my savior. Everything I did was wrong, and my life was in the gutter since I was born. I needed to repent. I was lost with all the Catholic church. I did not feel the Lord. I did not feel anything except like I was a lost sheep wandering for years.
I went to youth services with friends at different churches. None of my friends truly knew God, no one invited him in. They went, they sang, they met to discuss sports, school, and boys or girls they liked. It was a world filled with everything other than the Lord. No one invited him into their lives. They all felt he would meddle with what they wanted to do in life. I struggled to find my own path.
As a grown-up, I became a Methodist. It was a welcoming church. I felt seen, heard, and welcomed. If strangers could welcome me, I could welcome the Lord into my life. My friends said my life would change and that I would be limited to what I could and could not do, but soon those friends were doing things I would never do, and I turned to the lord. This time though I came on my own. I was not told I needed him, I felt I wanted him. I craved learning all I could and took Disciple classes one and two. I discussed the bible. We muddled through the words and delved into the meaning. We all, in this new church, invited the Lord into our lives every single day.
I bowed my head one day. I prayed my heart out. I did not have the right words, but I have love in my heart for the Lord. I was safe, I was loved, I was accepted as my sinned self. I invited him into every aspect of my life. I wanted to serve an accepting, non-condemning Lord. He invited me into his fold. He called me and said, “I am here, just invite me in”, and he has been guiding me every single day since.
I am not perfect, but I am perfectly loved. I am not without sin, but I am forgiven. I struggle daily with making the right choices, but I know always that HE is my ROCK! He has changed my world. He guided me to serve him, to spread his word, and let him be the lead in my life. If I struggle, he lifts me up. If I am sad, he will listen. If I have burdens on my heart, he hears them without judgment. He is my Lord, my Savior, and my God.
I invited him in. I let him into every aspect of my life and my life is not perfect, but I have the Lord with me wherever I go, whenever I need him, and no invitation need be sent. He is always with me guiding me to do better every single day. He invites me to talk with him every day. He speaks to me every day if I just sit and listen.
God needs no invitation. Nor do you or I to be in his presence. He is waiting on us to come to him, for us to worship him, for us to accept him as Lord and let him into every nook and cranny of our hearts, lives, and souls. When we invite the Lord into our lives, our lives are filled with acceptance and love. He is our father who loves us without conditions. I invite him into my life every day and pray with all my heart that I lift him up in all I do in his name. May your invitation be present in your heart and may you know the love that the Lord has in store for you, take this as your invitation to come to his table and be in his presence.
I hope you feel his presence today and every day. I pray you said me too! Because sometimes I feel alone in my thoughts. If you have felt him, prayed to him, said me too, reach out and let me know.
Happy Weekending to you!
your Friend, Debbie
xoxoxoxox
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