My senior year in college we got a new professor and I was excited about the opportunity to be in her class. The first assignment was to write a one page summary of my own personal theory of Christian Education. Over the next week I meticulously crafted my masterpiece. She didn’t grade mine. Instead, she asked me to discuss it after class. I was so proud of my creation that I assumed her response would be good, even though I had taken a more creative approach. What she told me was that I would not receive credit for my submission. It was so confusing that she couldn’t grade it. Throughout the remainder of the semester, if I could show enough improvement and growth then she might not count it against my final grade.
This was a complete curveball! I loved learning and took my classes seriously. Now I was off on the wrong foot with a new teacher and my GPA was in jeopardy. I considered all options including dropping the class. A few days later, and slightly more rational, I reluctantly settled in for the challenge presented.
This class ended up being one of my very best. I needed the challenge. It was emotional and uncomfortable and I learned more than I had in most classes. There was a definite moment where this teacher was a real threat but she ended up being the great opportunity I had hoped for.
In the gospels we see that while some would recognize opportunity in Jesus, others would see a threat. The disciples followed while the religious authority decided to destroy Him.
“At that, the Pharisees got together with the supporters of Herod to plan how to destroy Jesus.” Mark 3:6 CEB
Are there times where God is seen more as a threat than an opportunity? God’s call isn’t always compatible with our plans. Those “redirecting” moments can definitely be a threat to our “way”. We respond by either wanting to eliminate or retreat from (fight or flight) God’s call. As followers, we should recognize the value of the challenge and see that even when we perceive God to be disrupting our plans, He is actually providing even more opportunity.
Ramblings of a Faithjunkie 