Get Out Of The Way

I recognized something this weekend. I need to get out of the way more often. Let me explain. In my job as a youth minister there is a lot of planning and strategy. Sometimes I imagine the best possible setting for God to move. Is the music right? Was the message good? Are the lights too bright? God will surely move if the lights are a bit lower. And so on and so on. While planning for events is important, this mentality is obviously completely ridiculous. The funny thing is that I know this, yet I still fall into this trap sometimes. And then it happens. God totally blows my mind and shows me that I should seriously ask for His input more often. God is HUGE--so much bigger than I can comprehend. I finished a teaching series on Sunday night. As I was closing the evening, I told students that I would be available to answer questions and that they should see me if they had any. Honestly, I thought the teaching was ok but nothing to write home about. It's at times like that in which I think that if I had been more inspiring--well--maybe God would've moved. Ha, ha! Time for The Mind Blower to do His thing! A new student approached me as others were leaving. He said he needed to talk to me and then he proceeded to tell me about how he was searching, looking for truth, and that he was going to keep coming because he felt like our group was a place that he could do that. After we were done talking, I asked God to forgive my short-sightedness. Honestly, there are things happening with the students in our youth group that are beyond my comprehension. Lives truly being changed --that's what I'm seeing. I'm trying to get out of the way. Seems that planning is fine, but over planning (when you think you have to be on top of your game or God won't move) just puts God in a box that He's gonna obliterate anyway. Thankfully!