The Joy of the Journey: Simple

The Joy of the Journey

Simple

I recently had the privilege of being part of the Bridges Health Talent Show our church hosted. I really didn’t know what to expect going into the evening, but I walked away with my heart full.  What a joy it was to simply watch people love people. There was laughter. There was applause. There were smiles everywhere. People cheered each other on, celebrated one another, and simply enjoyed being together. As I stood there watching it all unfold, I found myself thinking, “This is what life is supposed to look like.”

It wasn’t complicated.  It was just love.  It was just joy.  It was people caring about people.  And it reminded me how easy it is for us as Christians to make life and even our faith more complicated than Jesus ever intended it to be.  Sometimes we need to get back to simple.

Jesus said in Matthew 18:3, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  There is something beautiful about childlike faith. Children don’t have to understand everything before they trust. They don’t need all the details before they believe. They simply reach out their hand and trust the person holding it.  I think God sometimes asks us to do the same.

I’ve learned through the years that some of my most meaningful prayers haven’t been the longest ones.  Sometimes all I have been able to say is, “Jesus, help me,” and He has.

In Matthew 14:30, Peter prayed one of the shortest prayers in the Bible when he was sinking beneath the waves: “Lord, save me”.  Three simple words and Jesus reached for him.  That encourages me because there are moments when I don’t know what to pray. Sometimes I don’t have the right words. But I’ve learned that God isn’t impressed by the length of my prayer. He responds to the sincerity of my heart.  Sometimes simple faith simply whispers, “Jesus, I need You.”

 That morning at the show also reminded me how powerful simple love can be.  A smile costs nothing.  Neither does an encouraging word. Sometimes people don’t need us to fix their problems. They just need someone to sit beside them, listen to them, hug them, pray for them, or remind them that they matter. Jesus said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35).

I’ve been in ministry long enough to know that people may forget sermons. They may forget announcements. They may even forget some of the things we worked so hard to accomplish.

But people rarely forget how we made them feel when they were hurting.  They remember love.

Maybe Simple Is Enough…That afternoon reminded me that perhaps we don’t always need something bigger.  Maybe we need something simpler. Simple prayers.  Simple love.  Simple joy.  Simple kindness.  Simple obedience.  Simple trust in Jesus.

Proverbs 3:5 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.”  I don’t understand everything God does.  I don’t understand every season of life. I’ve certainly had moments when I’ve wondered what God was doing.  But I’ve learned something along the journey:  I don’t have to understand God completely to trust Him completely.  As a matter of fact, I think that it’s me who complicates the relationship. Jesus came for one purpose: to simply show God’s love for all of His lost children.  It’s not complicated. It’s simple.

Blessings to all of those who work with such wonderful people at Bridges Health.