I began the Bible fresh for the New Year. I dove into God’s perfect creation and His gift of free-will to His beloved people made in His image. I saw human’s embrace of sin and the consequent corruption of God’s perfect design. After Cain killed his brother, Abel; Eve gave birth to Seth, the son of redemption. Seth began his family, and the Bible then reads something that I thought interesting: “And as for Seth, to him also a son was born; and he named him Enosh. Then men began to call on the name of the LORD” (Genesis 4.26 NKJV) (emphasis added).
This verse struck me because the wickedness and judgment of people is quickly covered in the subsequent chapters. If people were calling on the name of the Lord, why did God cause a flood to erase almost the entire population from the face of the earth? How did Noah find favor and grace with God to be the seed of God’s redemption plan for humanity?
Finally, I read four little words and found my answer: “Noah walked with God” (Genesis 6.9 NKJV) (emphasis added).
I’ve come to the conclusion that many people call on the name of the Lord, but very few people make it a priority to walk with the Lord on a daily basis. I know this because I used to be one of them. I loved God with my words, my hopes and my intentions; but my thoughts, actions and decisions over the long haul revealed that He had very little hold over my heart. I wanted to love God from a distance because I was scared to let Him into the crevices of my life. If I loved God with all my strength, mind and soul; I would have to give Him complete control and confront my own selfish nature.
Intimacy with God ignites the most romantic, heartbreaking, fierce, loving, tumultuous, exasperating, fulfilling, difficult, revealing, joyous relationship that even the best films in Hollywood couldn’t capture. Walking with God is not always easy. Yes, it is beautiful, exciting and rewarding; but, nevertheless, it takes a lot of faith, trust, sacrifice and obedience. Merely calling on the name of the Lord would be so much easier because it can be dictated by our standards, timetable and needs. However, calling on God without really walking with Him would eventually lead to our stagnation, idolatry and ruin.
So as I walk with God, I’m reminded that like any relationship there are seasons of pressing, refining and breaking; but there are also seasons of growth, renewal and victory. And the one thing that I’ve learned that makes my load lighter and the yoke of faith with Christ easier to bear is that it’s not about who I am, but about who He is. And He is perfect in every way, and that truth gives me peace, hope and joy. If I could just tuck myself into His grace and remain in the fold of His love, I would find the strength to walk with Him to the end of the earth and back.
“If we only have the will to walk, then God is
pleased with our stumbles.”
C.S. Lewis
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