A few nights ago, I wanted two Oreos. I mean, I wanted two Oreos…BADLY. In fact, I could toy around with “Am I hungry?” and justify saying…”Well, sure.” Or I could justify eating the Oreos by drawing on my vast dieting knowledge “I haven’t had many calories today , so surely the two Oreos won’t make a difference in my weight…”
I had forgotten that THIS IS NOT ABOUT WEIGHT! This is about my heart. It is about WHO WILL I HEED?
Do I really want to obey the call of the Oreos over the call of God?
Saying it like that really makes it sound as absolutely ridiculous as it is! But, SHOOT, those Oreos sure sounded GOOD!
I got the Oreos, I got a mug for milk. Then it hit me…again…”Child…will you choose something I have not given you the freedom to enjoy with my blessing?”
OUCH. I knew without a doubt I didn’t have the freedom to eat those Oreos.
I did something weird. I didn’t debate. I didn’t think about it or rationalize.
Weird for me…
I put the Oreos back and went and brushed my teeth and went to bed.
Go figure.
It occurred to me that this is a HUGE difference. When I hear his voice so clearly as I did in that moment, I didn’t argue with him. Hmm…I think there is a key there. I just did it.
The best thing is I know that the cookies aren’t the issue. It is listening for and heeding God’s voice. It is choosing to practice having a soft heart. I am still pretty amazed that I did that. I hadn’t felt so drawn to something in a while and so clearly heard his voice telling me I was making a choice to hearken the voice of the Oreos or hearken to HIS voice.
I wish it would be that clear all the time.
I think the more I respond to Him willingly…the more I…*submit* to Him, the more likely I am to do so again. I trust that the work He is doing in me will continue (Philippians 1:6).
Thank you, Lord, for helping me to choose you over…erm…gulp…sigh…two Oreos. Sounds so crazy… :-/