But God

Do you ever have those moments where something clicks and finally makes sense? Of course you do, we all do. Well, I had one of those moments shortly after Christmas. I can’t quite recall what I was thinking about at the time, but I do clearly remember God speaking to me saying “you’ve put me on the wrong side of the ‘but.'”

Now, this probably sounds super weird, and maybe a bit crazy. So, first and foremost, I’m going to set the foundation with I do believe in God and I believe He speaks to us today. If this is not where you’re at in your journey, I still hope you keep reading because I do believe there is some encouragement in this post for you. Onward we go…

“The wrong side of the ‘but.'” What did that mean? Well, it actually is quite simple. When we speak (or think), we form statements based on our heart-condition (i.e. the lens through which we process life). We tend to start off a statement with the things we intellectually know to be true and then we throw in the “but.” What follows that conjunction is what we truly believe.

Think about that for a minute. What follows the “but” in our statements is what we truly believe. Well God, this is who you are but this is my circumstance. God, I know you provide but… God, I know you heal but…. God, I know you fight for me but… God, I know you love me but… Fill in the blanks as you will with this statement but the reality is you’re saying God is not bigger than your circumstance. It now defines you instead of God. Intentional or not, you’re looking through the lens of fact instead of faith.

This was my reality when God spoke to me. I was taking a current circumstance and limiting it to the extent of my own understanding. Cue epiphany! Does anyone remember Proverbs 3:5&6? We are to not lean on our own understanding but in all things acknowledge Him (God) and He will make our paths straight. So, I invited God to re-write my inner dialogue and I’m praying He does the same for you while you’re reading this.

Here we go. Compare the former statements against these – Well God, this is my circumstance but You are who you say you are. God, this is my circumstance, but I know you provide. God, this is my circumstance, but I know you heal. God, this is my circumstance, but I know you’re fighting for me – You’ll bring the victory. God, this is my circumstance but I know you love me and are for me. When we start putting God on the right side of the ‘but,’ we move from our own strength to His. We give Him the authority over our circumstance. We not only allow Him to be God but we invite Him in, from a place of beautiful surrender. When we chose to believe He is who He says He is, our feelings will come into line. It’s then that we are no longer defined by our circumstance but by our Father. How amazing is that! A simple re-phrasing can fundamentally switch you from fact to faith.

So, God’s question to me was a beautiful reminder that He is for me – just as He is for you. We can truly do all things through Him who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13). We need simply to trust Him to be who He says He is. We need simply to put Him on the right side of the ‘but.’