B1G 8 Chronicles (Part 8) - Conclusion
Making a commitment yet again
Every retreat ends with a challenge: what stand should you take now that you’ve heard all these things? The best part of learning is application, not knowledge retention. And as always, the B1G challenge stirs my heart, and I pray I’d move accordingly. When God moved your heart so much, how can you stay still? I guess the only response is to follow.
Give Him your alabaster jar: He deserves things of great value and of worth. You are to give it to him wholeheartedly.
And also offer Him your Isaac. To Abraham, Isaac was his promised son whom God asked him to offer as a burnt offering. Abraham did, and the Lord blessed his heart. At one point in life God requires us to give him our Isaacs – people and things he gave to us and we value. If the alabaster jar is something you willingly offer, this may not be unwillingly offered at once. But when he asks to take it away, what would you do?
I won’t write here what my alabaster jar nor my Isaac was, but whatever I wrote there, I wrote it in faith praying that I would be able to really these and that those aren’t just wasted words. As I wrote I looked back and remember what I wrote during the past B1G 7 and the B1G intimacy retreats – many of the things written there were already crossed out. He answered my prayers during those times, and I know he sees and reads what I was writing. Being reminded of that I was writing with high hopes that it won’t be a wasted time: God would enable me to let go of these things as I continue to trust in him.
The place was set up with candles arranged, leading to a narrow road. It was symbolic and accurate of what our walk with God is like – it gets narrower and harder as you go along, hence it’s always very tempting to go back.
“Do you know Isaac trusted his father when he knew he’d be offered to the Lord?” Isaac was a teenager when all these happened, and we he knew he’d be offered as a bunt offering, he uttered no complaint. The speaker further mentioned about what it’s like to be a burnt offering – it’s something meant to be fully bunt and offered to the Lord. It will be fully consumed by fire, and nothing will be left for the one who offers. I cried at that instant. Nothing left for me, even the things that I hold dearly as that what’s required. I lay this down with trust and with a broken heart – Yes Lord I lay these down. It is hard, but In the end I know I won’t regret making that decision.
Going back to my First Love
For some retreats may be just a yearly thing. For me, however, as early as now I’m looking forward to the next one. And I know as I wait, there would be more milestones in my walk with God outside a retreat site for he speaks and moves even on what you may consider as an ordinary life event, like prayer times. From the past two retreats I knew there are always fresh starts with your walk with God. No matter how long you’ve been waking with Him, it isn’t true that it is bound to be repetitive, boring and dragging. Rather it’s a relationship wherein you keep falling in love over and over again.
