Cheese 'n Crackers vs. the Banquet

Note: This is a repost from 2007...




For those of you who know, I'm a cradle Catholic. I LOVE being Catholic, I love the traditions, I love the history, I love God. But there are times where I feel like I'm not being spirtually fed, and in times such as these, I pray, and sometimes, I go to a different church just to get another perspective. This Sunday, I was led to Grace Community, a non-denominational church. I know that some of my Catholic friends may scoff at the idea of going to a church of a different denomination, and they are entitled to their own opionion. For me though, it's not about religion, it's about the relationship, and the message that I got this Sunday, was not one that I think I would have gotten out of Mass.



Anyways, Pastor Scott started off the message asking us if we were hungry...not spiritually hungry (as one would expect at a church service), but physically hungry. He said he knew that sometimes us churchgoers get hungry in the middle of worship, and that he knew there were times when he wanted a snack in the middle of church...but who does that? Eat in the middle of worship??? uhhh NO WAY! The next thing I knew, the ushers were coming in with boxes of cheese and crackers for everyone in the congregation. Seriously, they were passing out little packages of cheese and crackers. Now, I did not open my package, although I was starving, but those around me were tearing into their packages like a starving monkey on banana cake.



Pastor Scott then starts talking about a variety of things...he talks about the Prodigal Son, he talks about inheritance, he talks about if God created the world in 6 days, the Heaven must be beautiful because He's been working on that for 2000 years...we must live in a garbage dump (I found this particular thought very profound)



But what got me was the following:



We work so hard at building our lives...but are they really ours to build? All the things we have, all the things we ask for, they mean absolutly nothing if it's not what God has in store for us...if it's not God's will, then what's the point? Of course, God gave us free will, so we always have a choice, but when it all boils down to it, are we settling for the cheese and crackers that we earn ourselves, or are we waiting for the banquet that God has for us? Think about it. Think about all that has happened in your life. Is it God-inspired or is it something else?



This is what I learned...if I want to truly live God's will, I have to hand EVERYTHING in my life over to HIM. Me being the control freak that I am, have to hand it all over...I can't keep grabbing it back when I think I can handle it on my own (ie: my dating life). How else is He supposed to work in my life if I do that? Seriously, in my life, do I really just want the cheese and crackers? Or, do I want the banquet? Quite frankly, I want the banquet. I want it all. I want whatever God has in store for me, and in order to do that, I have to let Him have control. I have to hand it all over, and just trust. I have to let go and let God.



Don't you think it's time you did?