Ain't None of it Small Stuff

Something that Oswald said the other day makes me wonder if I have some kind of "God complex". He was discussing the importance of trusting entirely in God, completely, to the point that even if common sense tells you it's crazy, that you should still follow God, not common sense. His entreaty to us was that "when God brings you to the venture, see that you take it."

I want to always "trust God in the venture" but I find that so often, I don't see God bringing me to any venture. I go in through a day and out. There is laundry and bills, jobs and transporting kids. There is house to clean and boo boos to tend to. But venture? According to Dictionary.com a venture is

1. An undertaking that is dangerous, daring, or of uncertain outcome.
2. A business enterprise involving some risk in expectation of gain.
3. Something, such as money or cargo, at hazard in a risky enterprise.

At first glance, I assume that I missed the boat to "venture". I'm still here on the shore of "everyday".

Several years ago I remember seeing a book called, Don't Sweat the Small Stuff... And It's All Small Stuff. I remember thinking that that was a fairly good philosophy to de-stress your life, albeit, overly simplistic. But now I've come to realize that it's not overly simplistic; it's downright wrong! I'm not saying we need to sweat everything, worry about it, lose sleep over stuff. That's wrong too. What's wrong is to assume it's all small stuff. My "God complex" allows me to think that it's the "small stuff" I can handle...without God. But now I'm starting to see that in reality, there is no small stuff. No small stuff...all venture.

God placed me in a life that is a dangerous undertaking of uncertain outcome. There is risk involved. There is the risk that if I attempt to make it through mending boo boos, paying bills, doing laundry and loving people separated from God, that I will mess it up. When I rely on my own common sense and my own strength to accomplish life, I will eventually become stressed out, depressed, and hopeless that I can do anything worthwhile.

In Psalm 73, the psalmist declares that when he tried to live life focused on material issues, separated from God and his strength, his heart was grieved and spirit embittered. I've felt that way when I've put on my God complex and attempted to get through the venture of life in my own strength and common sense. Like the psalmist, I was like a brute beast before God; ignorant, struggling stupidly against forces I had no understanding of. Like a silly monkey who can't figure out how to get the nut out of the jar when his hand is in a fist. But the psalmist goes on to remind me that God doesn't leave me to my stupid common sense. He stays right beside me, holding my right hand (my dominate one...the one that gets me into the most trouble) and provides me with his strength and counsel. My heart and flesh will fail but God is my strength and portion forever.

As for me, it's good to be near to God; to stay near him in the venture of life. The venture becomes less risky when it's his counsel that guides me instead of my own common sense. And when I realize that it's all venture and no "small stuff", it's a whole lot easier to drop the "God complex" and latch on to the Real Thing.