Is Your Mind Made Up?

I woke up today with a gospel song from some years ago that says, "Since I've met the Lord my mind is made up, to go with Jesus all the way. I'm on the right track, there's no turning back, I'm all satisfied with God." I haven't heard that song in probably 15 years, so I don't know what triggered it in my mind, but nonetheless, it is there today.
After I took Ashley to school I came in and sat down with a cup of coffee and was going to watch the news before starting my day, but I could not get that song out of my mind, so I spent some time just meditation on the Lord and how good he has been to me. I'm like anyone else, I have problems, I have bills, I have stress... you know, LIFE! But in it all and through it all, I know that I am blessed! I don't say that lightly, I know, I am a blessed man. My family is blessed. I am on the right track and there is no turning back... I am satisfied ALL satisfied with God!

It hit me, that there are a lot of people who are not satisfied with God. They may say they are, but their actions say otherwise. I am convinced that the "Christian" who is in and out of church, up and down in their walk with God... the problem is that they are not satisfied with God. Maybe I should say it this way, they are not settled with the fact that He is God and they are not, so they are trying to tell God how it should be done, rather than submitting their lives to his will. They are "in church" when things are going good (read: when things are going the way they want them to go) but when God is trying to change them, to change their direction, they begin to blame God for their problems (dissatisfaction) in life. The real issue is that they want be in charge and make all the decisions and keep God on a shelf like a magic lamp and take him out when they are in a bind or need (or want) something.

Let's be honest, we all have times we get dissatisfied. Come on, admit it, we do. But when dissatisfaction comes, we need to learn to recognize what it is and figure out where we have gotten off track. When we stay "on the right track" then we will always be satisfied. Understand, satisfied does not always mean over-joyed... but satisfied. For example, those who know me well know that I am not a winter person... certainly not the kind of winters we have where I live. Days like today when I got up and once again, it has snowed over night... I am not "over-joyed." We've had snow on the ground here continually since before Christmas. In fact, my house and yard is still decorated for Christmas because we cannot get the stakes out of the ground. I'm tired of looking at the Christmas stuff! Those who know me, know that if I were going to choose of my own accord where to live and be in ministry, I'd be down south, near or on a beach! Now understand though, that while I may want that, I know that I am exactly where God wants me to be, that this is HIS plan for my life and ministry, and I am satisfied with that. I joke about it all the time, but I would not leave Galesburg for anything at this point in my life, because this is the "track" that God has me on, and I want to stay on his track, not mine. Only when God speaks will I give serious thought to change. Notice the word "serious." The reason I added that is that I am still in this human body, and my body (flesh) looks at the snow and feels the cold and I think about my friend in Florida who spent yesterday on the beach with his family (and taunted me with it!) and my flesh begins to rise up and say, "I can preach in Florida. There are sinners in Florida." And I have to take those thoughts captive and put a stop to it, or I will find myself very quickly becoming dissatisfied with my life and my God! Again, I submit that so many people who are "in Christ" talk themselves into becoming dissatisfied... and the next thing you know they are out of church again. This is were we get the up and down, in and out church goers. They've not learned to be satisfied in their walk with God. When they do show up, they'll tell you that life is getting better. What they really mean is, "things are beginning to go the way I want them to go." They have never recognized that the "trouble" in their life is often there because they have gotten off God's track and are straying too far away, and that is when life gets chaotic because God is trying to prod them back to where they need to be.

I don't know about anyone else, but my mind is made up. I'm going to go with Jesus all the way.