Quiet Doesn't Mean Nothing Is Happening | 1 Samuel 13

Because I think I actually have a hard time reconciling in my brain because I do want to take control of, well, what is God asking me to take control of? It's never the thing that I think, almost, and it's almost always releasing it to him through prayer, like that is like you were saying, praying for your kids. That is an action that we can take. It's not just doing nothing. It's not just doing nothing. It's just probably something different, like God's asking us to control. This is the Crossroads Daily. No experts, no perfect people, just honest conversations about what happens when the Bible shows up in real life. Welcome to Crossroads Daily. My name's Caleb. I'm Alex. I'm Nico. I'm Kirsten. First Samuel, Chapter 13, Lucky 13, said this is where a Saul's been going pretty good. The first king of Israel has been doing some good stuff, it starts to go sideways in this chapter. Saul, my guy. I mean, I was rooting for the guy, but he makes a mistake, right? They get ready to go into battle. He's waiting for Samuel to come, offer sacrifice. He's waiting. He's waiting. He's waiting. He's starting to feel the tension and the stress. The troops are so scared they're running away. He's kind of losing control of the situation and he's like, "Okay, well, I'll just do the thing."

As soon as he does it, Samuel the prophet shows up and says, "Shouldn't have done that, bro. Guys, I'm not going to establish your kingship now because you didn't wait for him. You took control." One of the things that jumps out to me is Saul makes this mistake because he's in a time of stress. He sees stuff going sideways and it's not going the way that he wants. It is in times of stress where we really see what we're made of and where it's possible for God to remake us to build us a different way. What is your natural response to stress and does it allow God to come in or not? Like I'll say, my natural response to any stress is to just get it done, run through it all like a freaking rhinoceros. People get hurt. Things get hurt. It doesn't matter. But I got the thing done. Because I can be so focused on productivity that I miss the influence on the people around me. That's why I need a wife and kids to remind me that they're like, "Wow, you damaged all of us." That's my natural stress response and it does not leave room for God because I'm just doing the thing. I've said this over and over this week, but God is teaching me, "You've got to slow down, slow down. Slow down. What about you guys?" Oh my gosh, I struggle so hard with this. Even recently, I've been in a lot of just like stressful situations where I have a lot of tasks that need to get done and people, I made a joke to my intern the other day. I was like, "Lauren, why do people just not do what I'm thinking in my brain and not

saying it loud and they just know what to do because I'm thinking it and I'm not saying it out loud?" She's like, "You're crazy." Obviously, I said it as a joke, but I was saying it out loud because there's just scriptures about you'll produce the fruit, whatever vine you're attached to or whatever and I always think about that. I'm like, "I am not producing the fruits of the Spirit in my stress and anxiety and I'm still wrestling with why it's happening and how I slow down because as soon as you slow down, you start seeing all the things that are breaking and broken and not going..." I mean, I mean, it's all literally in a way worse situation, like people are dying and all the things. I can't imagine what I would do in a situation probably to have acted a lot sooner, but yeah, I'm just meditating and praying and God help me to be blind to those things because I know it's what he wants and it's so hard to do. Well, I also don't think that I always know when a wait season is happening, so I think me trying to take control of this situation is the thing that God wants me to do and then later on realize, "Oh, maybe I should have waited for you." For me, oftentimes, that means going to prayer first. We talked about prayer yesterday and I think when I'm stressed or when a stressful thing happens, things seem overwhelming, there's a lot of things to do. I also have that tendency of, "Well, I need to check all these things off the boxes and I need to do this and I need to do that and how can I can. do I need to wait on your Lord? Or do I need to do all of these things? And I don't even give him the option. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - Tell me what I should be doing because I don't often go to him first. I know that about myself now. So I'm better about it, but I don't even,

I still don't think it's my default. - Yeah, yeah. Something you said, number of thoughts came to mind, but when you had mentioned, like even recognizing what season you're in, I was reminded of a passage, just one of my go-to, I think it's in Psalms. And it says that God made known his ways to Moses and his deeds to Israel. And Israel, they knew God by his works, his deeds, things he did, Moses got to know God's ways, his patterns, his nature, his character. And I think that's something that God has really developed me in over some years of having to wait and going through seasons where it's like, I literally don't have another choice. Other than going back to my old life, this is just what I have to do. And God has used that season to anchor me in just this posture of waiting and what waiting well looks like. And I can't say I always waited well, but it was like continuing to just struggle forward in this direction. And I think now the way that plays out is I just, anything I'm dealing with, I try, my prayer is Lord, give me your perspective in whatever I'm dealing with. What is this season that I'm in? What is my stress behind this? Where does it stem from?

Like is this a season where you're moving me into something different? So it's like a shoe that doesn't fit anymore. And this is just an indicator that I've outgrown the season or has my posture shifted. And now I'm just no longer in this posture of humility right now. And it's like, I don't know how long I'm gonna be in this season. So I need to, if that's the case, then Lord, I need to get back to a place of humility so that I can be content in this season that I'm in for however long you'll have me in it. And so for me, that's the conversation. What stress does, it takes me to that conversation with God. Like Lord, I've seen your ways. I recognize that something is shifting right now and that this is a season. What is this? Is this something that you're ushering me into a new thing or has my posture shifted? And yeah, that's where. Yeah, that's where the question is. Yeah, I mean, Saul knew that he wasn't supposed to do that. He was not supposed to make the sacrifice. That's definitely the prophet's role. But he took control out of stress, right? What are areas in your life where it's tempting for you to take control or it's flip side of that or where it's difficult to release control to God? I think I still struggle with that often.

Not to just jump, but as you're saying that. Like struggling with just the outcome. I still at times hold the outcome in my hand. Like, okay, I'm still supposed to. And it's just like an ongoing battle where I'm like, okay, I'm God, I'm doing the thing again. I'm meeking again, right? (laughing) You feel me? Yeah, you feel me? And it's like, I recognize it because it's like, then it feels weighty, it feels heavy. It's like, I didn't call you to do that. I called you, what did I call you to do? And shift to just do that, be obedient in that, you know? And then seeing God bring support around you or wow, it doesn't even need to happen that way. You know what I mean? And just seeing it happen over time. But that's, I don't know, trying to control the outcome. It's, I still deal with that, yeah, yeah. You mentioned kids. I literally broke down in like a team meeting a couple of weeks ago talking about control and releasing that to God. And I looked at my three year old in the corner and just started crying and I was like, I just have to trust God with him 'cause I can't control him with this toddler. He really, the things he does, it says like,

he's been really into, actually this is adorable. Like, why? And I just like, well, why can't I punch my brother in the back of the head? Why can't I eat candy for breakfast? But like, that's not the control part. It's the breakdown after you say, "Well, you can't have candy or punch your brother because it's not okay." And he's like, (screams) And he's like, what are our three year olds? Oh yeah, they are literally walking examples of what we can't control. 'Cause like, it's not my mothering that's, again, that's I think why I broke down was it's not my mothering that is gonna fail him. It's me thinking that I can control him when like God's got him. Like, oh my gosh, I saw that in my life. Like, I was not parented perfectly and yet here I am. Like, I'm thriving and so it's just so fun having little walking examples like that in our home. It's fun. Totally totally. I know for me I I have three kids two of them have chosen to follow Jesus, and I really want my son my other son to do that I mean, I'm not incredibly stressed about it, but it's something that I can't control. Yeah, I Can have conversations I can pray for him. We do those things regularly I think God is doing to work in his life So again, I'm not necessarily stressed But it if it was up to me how we just already have it all done You know Jesus is very important to me faith is very important to me

And I don't want to invest it in my kids as well and I want to see them go even farther than I have And so the way that I let go of control is like I just got to trust God's timing Yeah, God's movement in his life to write his story with him because God loves my son even more than I do Yeah, I want to share a quick quick story. I don't know if I've shared it here before but Whenever parents I talk to parents with teenagers or even young kids, and they're like, oh, I'm like they're really stringing off the path I I had an interaction with my grandpa and then he was on his deathbed and He literally was like your grandma his wife who passed away when I was like four Prayed for you every day to know Jesus one day Wow, and I guys I did not start following Jesus until midway through college So it was a long messy path to get there, but I do believe I tell them I'm like pray for him like it is the best like tell me about how we pray Talked about prayer last week like the best thing you can do is just pray for them Yeah, and what a way to release control is like yeah I'd be like well poof if no one in my family followed Jesus except for that woman who I didn't yeah, hardly know Yeah, and God answered your prayer. That's a good example of controlling what you can control right? Yeah, cuz I think I I actually have a hard time reconciling in my brain because I do want to take control of well What is God asking me to take control of it's never the thing that I think Almost and it's almost always Releasing it to him through prayer like that is like you were saying praying for your kids And that is an action that we can take it's not just doing nothing right. Yeah, it's not just doing nothing It's just probably something different that God's asking us to control. That's right. You got another challenge about prayer So yesterday your challenge was to build a team that prays for you today How do you need to release control by praying about something or something in your life that you're trying to grip really tightly? You have control of today your challenges don't do anything about it physically Pray ask God to move whether it's a relationship. It's a job thing. It's a money thing. Whatever pray Ask God to move on your behalf and see what happens. We'll see you next time You You (upbeat music)