Simply Believing in Him

John 7:38, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.”

A longtime friend of my sister’s came for a visit recently. While chatting with her she mentioned this blog and asked, “What are you going to do with it?”

To that I replied, “Nothing.”

This blog, though I wanted it to be something, was never intended to be about what I want. In my very first post I wrote, “There is no real reason or compulsion for beginning this blog. Oh sure there is plenty to say, but how much of it is really worth hearing. Perhaps though, there will  be one individual who will find their way here, and somehow read one life changing thought. If not, then these words have at least been immortalized and cast out, as Christ would say, as seeds. Seeds to provoke thought, to stir a spirit, to compel action, and to propel us all to new levels in Christ.” And that statement is as true today as it was then.

Later the theme came to me. “Shameless surrender in hopes that we might know Christ more.” And though different people want me to write less preachy material, some would like more stories of encounters with others, most offer no comment at all, the writing is not here to “draw” an audience of following. It is here in the nakedness of surrender to show my life as a Christian. Not just the ups or the downs, but all of it… my thoughts, my struggles, God’s answers and even God’s silence. It is here as an articulation of lessons and encounters with Christ, all so that someone else besides me can understand their own relationship to Christ.

I would be a liar to say that I did not have unspoken desires with regards to the results of this act of obedience. I had hoped it would lead to opportunities of ministry and itinerary preaching. I still hope that my children will retain it, and read it into posterity. I thought it would produce some income… I laugh at that. But for the most part it is just a simple act of obedience, to write what I feel like God says to write. Not His exact words, just the subject matter.

And so, outside of some simple stats and the immense pleasure of knowing that I have obeyed what I feel God is asking me to do, there is very little reward from this effort. I have not been overwhelmed with testimonies of affirmations that this collection of words has benefited anyone deeply. And that is just fine with me. Oswald Chambers’ words said it almost perfectly what this blog is about, and what I am going to do with it. He said, “A river reaches places which its source never knows. And Jesus said that, if we have received His fullness, “rivers of living water” will flow out of us, reaching in blessing even “to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8) regardless of how small the visible effects of our lives may appear to be. We have nothing to do with the outflow— “This is the work of God, that you believe. . .” (John 6:29). God rarely allows a person to see how great a blessing he is to others.”

What I am going to do with Propel is simply let the river flow.