A Good Stretch

A Good Stretch

If you’re anything like me, you need a good stretch once in a while. Sometimes I’ll stretch my calves on the way up the stairs, on a fence, or handrail while I’m walking. Other times it’s before I even get out of bed just hips and thighs, cracking my back or arms extended over my head. I can function without stretching but things start to tighten up. My body feels stiffer and confined until eventually, I can’t do the things I used to without a bit of discomfort.

Stretching Isn’t Just For People

I’ve suddenly found myself with an abundance of vegetables and herbs. The reason – I let them stretch. When I saw that they needed a bigger pot, I transplanted them into much larger containers, and boy did they let their roots stretch! Now I’ve got more tomatoes, peppers, and such than I know what to do with. Abundance! Every time I turn around there’s so much abundance! There is no sense in getting a bigger pot if you aren’t stretching every day to grow into it.

Faith is Stretching

I have a confession, I often fall into the trap of, “I’ll figure it out,”, “I can fix it,” or, “What am I going to do to solve this problem.” Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with being self-sufficient or proactive. The problem lies in when we don’t trust God: when we don’t allow God to come in; and, when we see that we are flailing but refuse to tag Him in. This made me think about my own life. The more I rely on my own way, will, or whatever, the more likely I am to get caught up in the stress and fear of trying to make everything happen myself. My faith withers.

God Asks Us To Stretch

God repeatedly asks us to put our faith in Him. When Moses spent a little too long on the mountain getting the Ten Commandments, the people began to falter and asked Aaron to make them the golden calf to pray to – even though God had just rescued them from Pharoh! Moses was literally walking down the mountain with God’s instructions as they were worshiping some idol they created themselves so they could feel more in control of the situation.  God put His people in situations over and over again precisely to force them to rely on HIm. When the people stopped stretching their faith muscles, they would fall right back into worshiping gods of their own making.

Just Like Me

It’s easy to point at them and think – How silly! God had shown them so often how He would provide for them. Why don’t they just have faith!? But it’s easy to say – not so easy in practice. I also need to stretch my faith to grow into my bigger pot and stop relying on my ability to live, provide, or move. Rather than becoming stiff-necked, disobedient, or stuck in a too-small space that God never intended for me – I need to branch out, stretch my wings, and have faith in the Waymaker instead of trying to make my own way.