"People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can't find them, they make them." - George Bernard Shaw
resources
- Colossians 4:2-5
- seizing opportunities
share your thoughts
- Do you agree that your destiny is determined by whether or not you seize the God-ordained opportunities presented to you?
- How do you live in prayer mode?
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2 comments:
If you are living in a town where you are able to get reasonable employment, and rent a place for less than half your income, and there are unmet markets (whether in business or ideas) then yeah, you can "make the most of your circumstances." If, on the other hand, you are living in a village which is being used as a basecamp by guerillas, or bombed by an airforce, or if you live without running water or medical care, then no, I don't think you can make much of anything of your circumstances. It seems (despite the Shaw quote) like a peculiarly American outlook to think that we are in control of our destinies. It sure doesn't seem very biblical or Jesus-following. I have no idea whether my dreams will come true or I will be run over by a bus and not get to watch my kids grow up. But because I know in my heart that God is with all of us forever, I can deal with that.
I think the easiest thing for us to miss is recognizing what God is up to in our lives. Learning to listen for His voice, learning to allow God to show us what it is He wants us to do is certainly part of the walk, the journey...
I know from my own experiences (and the bible) that God uses imperfect people with imperfect lives, in imperfect circumstances, and leads us into His plans, not ours.
I saw people in Africa seizing God opportunities with deep faith. People and children who were sick, suffering and (from my American perspective) with few resources doing God's work. Helping each other, sharing with each other, encouraging each other... building houses and churches with and for each other...
I think this is the one of the points of Shaw's quote... circumstances are self-perceiving, they are the obstacles, the limits we place on what God is asking us to do. God is never going to ask us to do something that we can't do with His help. But if we set out on our own, thinking we know what needs to be done, we know what we need to do.. then... circumstances can be blamed for failures, difficulties. Then we wait for, blame, complain about circumstances.
That's why prayer is part of this... in my opinion. Seeking God's Will in what we do through prayer, through listening and trusting what we hear are key to being able to recognize opportunities that God has directed us to.
Personally, I've returned to prayer mode.. errr, returned to obedience in disciplining myself to be in prayer mode. What I'm learning is that God will use me, will present opportunities for me exactly the way I am now in exactly the circumstances I am in and maybe even because of the circumstances I'm in.. all I have to do is listen and say yes.
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