Just Be 30 Day Challenge Michelle Gott Kim

Just Be 30-Day Challenge

September 3, 2020 Michelle Gott

Just Be Steadfast – Day Three
Webster says ‘Steadfast’ means firm in purpose, resolution, faith, attachment; fixed in place; indicates undeviating constancy or resolution
Synonyms: faithful, unwavering, unflinching, unswerving, sureness
God says in Proverbs 4:26 ‘Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways (NIV).’
Isn’t being steadfast difficult today?! That is not a popular word; it was so much cooler to fly by the seat of our shorts just a brief moment ago. Life turned on a dime and it was easy. ‘Hey, no adulting today! I’m ditching today and I’m going to go play; I deserve a break! How ‘bout you? Ya comin’? Nah, my job? Nah, it’ll be there when I get back. I’m not wasting a single second. I’m gonna shop til I drop. Nah, I don’t need it; I want it. I deserve it! No one is ever gonna make me have a plan! I do my own thang, whenever I want, wherever I want, however I want.’ Do any of these statements sound familiar? If you haven’t said them then I bet you had someone close to you voice similar sentiments in your presence.
Is it possible that God is homeschooling us in this season, and the subject this semester, is about being steadfast and consistent; a ‘you-can-count-on-me-Bob’ type of person? The luxury and sensationalism of erratic behavior and capricious unpredictability has been today’s mantra – if it was our variable, our choice. The uncertainty of this very moment splinters our resolve because we deep down want to be in charge and now we are smashing up against our own humanity, glaring down a barrel of mandates and policies.
The pattern has changed, and I don’t mean weather patterns. How many times have you gotten all the way inside of the store just to be sent back out to your vehicle to obtain your mask? I remember years ago, my first cell phone. We’re talking twenty years ago! I was not used to that little piece of black plastic that cost more than my monthly house rent. Ah, well, I can do without that! I’m not going back to get it. There’s no one that needs to reach me that badly. It’s kind of nice being incognito for a day! Do you recall?
Would you leave home without it today? I surely would not. In fact, I have turned my–and everyone else’s—world upside down, to own, find, possess, carry, have that little piece of black plastic in my possession. What if Walmart and Costco and King Soopers were to say to you today, ‘You cannot enter our store without your cell phone on your person.’ What would you say? ‘Uh, duh! It’s right here. Wouldn’t leave home without it! Can you hear me now?’ We are not accustomed yet to wearing our masks, so we are not accustomed to carrying our masks, but what if it became as vital as our cell phone, so we don’t leave home without it? If, for no other reason, than it pays to be prepared, and it shows Christ, to be steadfast.
I never thought the new fashion statement this year would be how decorative my masks are; even that I had more than one and in different colors so I could match my outfit! I never thought that a common part of my everyday conversation would include concepts like social distanced and safer at home and stay in place. I never thought that something we can’t even see, that is invisible, would be the stealer of lives and jobs and a demolition force. I also never knew I would need the steadfast and faithful presence of my God as much as I need it right now.
What is your prayer today? Mine is, ‘Lord, I recognize I have moved off track during this season of unknown. I thought it would always be straight forward, but the path is anything but, right now. I don’t know what to expect, Lord, and my family is watching me, expecting me to make a way clear for them. Lord, I desire; I need to be, steadfast in my relationship with You, and if I can’t do it for myself, I at least need to do it for my loved ones. Plant my feet on Your solid ground that I may not waver from what You are calling me to be and making me to be. And that is faithful.