2011: A Year to Learn the Lines on His Face
This fall has given me new eyes for hope and, really, how much my life and perspective has lacked the hope of Jesus. I’ve held onto my glass half-empty far too long. As I’ve been asking God His vision for my 2011, I naturally assumed the answer would be hope. My year to hope. My year to lay worst-case scenario expectations by the side of the road and pick up a new motto that says “I will hope.” Simple. Natural next step in my progressive plodding towards the throne.
But He said uh-uh. Not enough. Think bigger this year.
Hope is a bi-product. Beautiful as it is, in itself it’s not something to pursue. As I’ve asked God for His vision for this next year … for my family, my marriage, my children, my writing, my stance towards Him, my relationships … this was the phrase I got:
Pursue the lines on His face.
When I ran in Virginia, there was a small clan of us who would cut through the morning’s quiet with the pitter-patter of our stride on the pavement. Leaving and returning to my neighborhood for my run, I’d pass the others. I knew only a few of them, but I’d memorized the stride of each one. From one end of our main road to the other I could tell who was coming my way, simply by watching the way they ran. My friend Gigi had a determined stride. Older-man-with-a-pot-belly-clutching-a-nerf-football had a quick stride. Retiree-who-wore-the-same-jumpsuit-every-morning was slow (but steady).
I always thought it funny when I actually met one of these who I shared the early mornings with. The neighborhood chili cook-off, or a conversation by the pool would allow for an introduction to one of these stealth runners and I’d think, as they walked away, “oh yeah, I recognize that gait.” I knew their frame, but the few seconds that our paths crossed each morning didn’t allow me to really see their face.
I guess I’ve been sobered lately by the thought that I could live my whole life knowing the outline of God — only to have the intricacies of His character, His nature and His stance towards His people available, but unfamiliar to me. The Man I’ve pledged my life to offers me a close-up, that I could easily overlook in my own comfort with the broad strokes.
My time in eternity — for the rest of my life — will be built upon the relationship that I have with Him here. And I want to get as close as I possibly can. Front row. ‘Cause He’s just too good to put on hold.
Things like hope and faith and joy are inevitable at the discovery of this Man who knows everything I ever did and yet pursues me. And so I pursue Him. A close look in His eyes, if He will. A long stare at the beauty of His face. I want to study Jesus and stand ready to receive the life-change that is inevitable from a brush with His person.
The few moments I’ve gotten lost in descriptive from scripture like “fairer than the sons of man”, “grace is poured out upon His lips”, and “my beloved is white and ruddy” have made time stand still.
The face of this Man is limitless.
And this year, that is what I will seek.
Happy 2011 ~ can’t wait to see what You bring.
+++++++++
Here’s another blogger I’ve discovered, also naming her new year.
Sara,
Amazing writing (as always)…and a perfect read after my encounter with Jesus today. I was sitting in church, trying to prepare my heart to hear Jesus today, but the kids were squirming (well, scratch that, Payton was. Bunte was perfectly well behaved and ignoring Payton’s taunting and hitting.), and I was distracted. But suddenly the words of an old hymn hit me like a ton of bricks, louder and more clearly than the cries/whines of my little one. These were the words:
“Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.”
He was calling me…. in the midst of of the chaos of my life (both in the very immediate sense and in the long term), to look into His wonderful face. Oh, what freedom our Savior offers us! This old (but not so boring) hymn that I have heard a million times over, had new meaning for me today. Perfect for the New Year. I, too, wish to see the lines on His face.
May the New Year bring you nearer to Him,
Diana
Wow! This post and your words and your summarized story resound and resonate so soundly with me…..especially these lines…..
“I guess I’ve been sobered lately by the thought that I could live my whole life knowing the outline of God — only to have the intricacies of His character, His nature and His stance towards His people available, but unfamiliar to me. The Man I’ve pledged my life to offers me a close-up, that I could easily overlook in my own comfort with the broad strokes.”
I don’t know if I could put in a few short lines of this commentary how these very same emotions have been mine over the past few months, and I have felt discouraged often in the place I have found myself in relationship to Him when I thought knew Him “so well”. Thank you for sharing your own struggles with “our Dad.” I am the richer for your transparency!!
I am challenged, too, to pursue the lines of His face!!
Wow. Thanks for challenging me today. I had never thought about getting to know him better in this way.
I am so excited that you’ve joined THC. I look forward to gleaning more from you–you have such a heart for adoption, for your family, and especially for JESUS. I can’t wait to get to know you better!
A beautiful post that reminds us to seek the face of the Lord…not some vague outline
Oh, this is beautiful. For as long as I can remember, I’ve kept this question in my mind – kind of as a way to keep on keeping on: “You don’t want to get to heaven and find out you’ve missed something.” Now I know. I don’t want to get there and not recognize Him. Not recognize the lines on His face. The way He walks or runs. Thank you for not keeping this to yourself, but deciding to share it here with us.
Thank you for your comments — all of you. The content of this post has come alive for me this week in a very unique way …only to leave me more assured that He is limitless and I am only just beginning to know Him.
I LOVE reading all your posts. It’ll be fun to read your book, when you write that, too:) One of my close friends, who went to high school with you, just told me that I should check out your blog, but as it turns out, I’ve been following it for awhile. We are with IAN and are #23 for a boy and #44 for a girl.
Oh how exciting! Congratulations Holly — the waiting seems unbearable at times, but it will come before you know it.
So powerfully convicting and inviting at the same time. I totally get into the day to day broad brushed strokes too. My heart aches for that close up , even though I didn’t put that longing to words. Thank you for putting it to words, and for reminding me of my own heart here. Blessings! Glad you linked up at inCourage (that’s where I found your site
.
How beautiful! Your writing and that which you are seeking!
So grateful to have found your words today.
Sara .. I’ll be featuring this The High Calling on Feb. 3 as one of the best post from around the network for the month of January.
Check it out at http://www.thehighcalling.org
A more intimate pursuit of Christ. That’s a noble chase. Here’s hoping you capture Him more completely this year. Blessings!
We can seek to know the lines of His face…resting in the wonder that He knows every line on ours.
Yes, yes … to get that close. To see the lines, touch the skin, memorize the eyes, all of it. *All of Him.*
Thank you for this. Delighted to see it featured at The High Calling today.
oh my – this is beautiful, and sobering. I’ve been thinking recently how I don’t want to look at His face, I don’t dare, and yet we’re told to seek it…
Soooo glad David featured this one at THC. Congrats!
Sara,
“I want to study Jesus and stand ready to receive…”
Yes. Exactly. Thank you for having words for it.