Confessions of a Fellow Struggler

What He Called Us to Be

^{by Rob Kerby, Senior Editor}

“Discipline is such a four-letter word,” writes Joanna Weaver in At the Feet of Jesus: Daily Devotions to Nurture a Mary Heart. “Not only does it have negative connotations; it requires W-O-R-K! My idea of discipline tends to be more like that of Phyllis Diller, who once defined exercise as “a good brisk sit.” But as my derriere will attest, sitting only makes the problem grow. The sad truth is, if we want to be what Christ has called us to be, we will have to stop being spiritual couch potatoes and get into the gym of the Holy Spirit. For that is the only way to “work out” what God has so generously “work[ed] in” (Philippians 2:12-13).

What He Called Us to Be

“I think most of us suffer from the ‘Fairy-Godmother Syndrome’ when it comes to cooperating with transformation,” writes Weaver. “We don’t want to be challenged; we just want to be changed. Don’t tell us to work out our salvation, God. Just wave Your wand, sprinkle pixie dust, and voilà! We’ll be what we’ve always wanted to be – Cinderella Christians complete with a new gown, glass slippers, and a glistening coach to ride in to the ball. Unfortunately, if we haven’t experienced a true holy makeover, the heat of trials and the harsh reality of life will strip us down to our rags and leave us to find our way home barefoot and weeping. Wondering if all we experienced when we came to Christ was just a dream.”

What He Called Us to Be

“Like a fisherman who baits a hook and dangles it in front of a waiting fish, Satan uses counterfeit love, false security, and tin-plated success to lure our hearts away from God,” writes Weaver in At the Feet of Jesus. “Because the hook is usually hidden and we’re slow to feel its pain, we can fool ourselves into thinking the temptation is harmless. That we can get away with sniffing without touching. Touching without tasting. Tasting without chewing. Chewing without swallowing. Yet in the end, nothing could be further from the truth.”

Excerpted from At the Feet of Jesus by Joanna Weaver. Copyright © 2012 by Joanna Weaver. Excerpted by permission of WaterBrook Press, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.