The test of my religious character isn’t what I do in exceptional moments; it’s what I do when nothing tremendous or exciting is happening. My worth to God is revealed in my attitude to ordinary things, when I’m out of the spotlight. Am I able to walk faithfully with him then?
It’s a painful thing to learn to walk faithfully with God. It requires getting our second wind spiritually, because before we’ve taken three steps we find that God has outpaced us. God has a different way of doing things, and we have to be trained and disciplined into his ways before we can keep up. When we do manage to get into God’s stride, the only characteristic that manifests itself in our life is his life. Our individual person is lost in union with him; his power alone is evident.
In the book of Isaiah, it was prophesied that Jesus would “not falter or be discouraged” (42:4). Jesus was able to keep pace with his Father because he never approached things from his own viewpoint, only from God’s. We have to learn to do the same, and the way we learn is by soaking in spiritual truth. Spiritual truth is learned by atmosphere, not by intellectual reasoning. God’s Spirit alters the atmosphere of our way of looking at things, and things that were never before possible begin to be possible. We begin to see from God’s viewpoint, to understand his ways, and to fall into his stride.
Getting into the stride of God means nothing less than union with him. It takes a long time to get there, but keep at it. Don’t give in, even if the pain is bad just now. Get on with it, and before long you will find you have a new vision and a new purpose.
