“But Jacob replied, “You can see that some of the children are very young, and the flocks and herds have their young, too. If they are driven too hard, even for one day, all the animals could die. Please, go ahead of us. We will follow slowly, at a pace that is comfortable for the livestock and the children. I will meet you at Seir.””

Genesis 33:13-14

I’ve always excelled at understanding software. Not all the logistics of development, code writing, and database design. But implementing and troubleshooting software has usually always been pretty easy for me.

Now I will say, that for the generation just younger than me, software is a no brainer. But hey, considering I took computer lit classes on a TRS – 80 DOS machine in 1986, I figure it’s a win for my ancient brain.

But one thing I’m not so good at is teaching others how to use it. I find myself irritated and frustrated when others don’t understand what I’m trying to show them. (Marriage counsellors all over the world would have a hey day at my house). Because what seems so easy for me to understand, is still a mystery to others.

And I think sometimes our faith can be the same way. We are all at different places in our spiritual journey. Some of us have walked with Him for a long time and are still drinking milk. Some of us are new to the journey but filled with wisdom and understanding. And those who are further along in the journey, no matter how long they have been on it, can sometimes forget how hard it was to get where they are today.

We all know that software helps us to work smarter and not harder. But with our faith, we have to work smarter and harder to be an effective witness for Christ.

We have to work harder because walking with Jesus isn’t just about knowledge. It’s also about transformation. It’s harder because we have to be willing to let our stubborn and long-term characteristics be transformed into spirit filled attributes. We have to live smarter because we must have wisdom in how we use our transformation to influence others. And because our journey will always be transformative, we must remember that everyone changes at their own pace. If we try too hard or push too hard before they are ready, we might just push them away.

I am trying to put this into practice for myself as I remember that with every person I come across, their journey is different than mine. Whether it’s software integration, Bible study, or just spiritual conversations. Some are way ahead of me. Some have not even begun yet. Some are right there with me every step of the way. But if we are going to be effective in teaching and exemplifying Christ, we must slow down and wait. We must meet people where they at. Just as He meets us where we are at.

Here are a few things I’m trying to remember when I’m irritated or frustrated –

• Be patient, just as Jesus is patient with us
• Don’t underestimate your postitive (or negative) influence
• Don’t try to impose or push too hard
• Let God lead you. Don’t move ahead of Him
• Pray that as you lead and teach, whether in Word or action, you BOTH will be transformed for the good of Christ.

We can’t make a difference if we are not different than everyone else. So as we take what we know about us and take what we know about Christ, let’s not drive people too hard to keep up with us. Let’s let them follow at their own pace, developing them as they go, and meet them at the same cross that was lifted for us all.

#SaturdaySoulSearch