| devotional by: Bobby Bishop |
Added: 04-23-2008 |
Drawing Near
“Come near to God, and He will come near to you.” James 4:8a
I’m always amazed by how God reveals Himself to me in my everyday life. Those moments of clarity become gems I make sure to hold on to and write down because such moments grow me closer to Christ.
As a rap artist, the path God has taken me down is an admittedly rocky one, for which I’m grateful. He’s shown me time and time again that His intention is for me to draw inspiration from service to my community, and translate that into words and music. As much as I travel, my key moments of growth in my faith the past seven years have almost always been in the midst of street work.
My occupation (during the week) is working for a human services agency. Part of my job is to monitor and ensure that at-risk children are safe in the midst of neglect and abuse. It’s taxing, especially for a guy who’s a minister and refuses to stop believing in people! I’ve been on a case the past few months that ultimately landed me on the stand testifying against a family, giving an hour-long testimony unraveling the reasons why I felt they were presently unfit to care for their child. The testimony involved details of neglect and substance abuse, and it was a daunting task to say the very least.
This brings me to my God moment. On the day of my testimony, I was sitting on my side of the courtroom awaiting my call to the stand, and in walked the family against whom I was about to testify. Traditionally, a defendant sits on the other side of the courtroom, right? Expecting cold glares and scowls from this family, instead I was greeted with warm (however nervous) smiles from them, as they sat down next to me. I was speechless! Immediately, it occurred to me that this is how my God sees me: a man guilty of mistakes that often result in pain and discomfort, but all overseen by a Maker who wants me to seek and trust Him in the midst of difficulty and pain (even if I’m lying in the bed I made for myself). As we seek change and healing in our lives, His desire is that we align ourselves with Him, trusting Him all along the way.
“Father, as your children, we make mistakes. The process of healing can be painful and discouraging, but we commit to seeking and trusting in Your care and guidance in our lives. Amen.”
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