What if you are the problem?

My buddy Chris Eller told me about an orphanage he helps to sponsor in his home town of Asheville, North Carolina. The director of this orphanage has given his life to parent  children who don’t have anyone to love and care for them. He parents them, provides food, shelter, clothing, and coaches them through their homework. He’s Dad to a large number of children.

One boy at the orphanage learned a powerful lesson. His parents had both been killed in a car wreck and the boy had no one, so he came to the orphanage which happened to be located across the street from the high school. The boy was an angry young man, and the director would send him to the gym to run when he displayed inappropriate anger. One day he came home from school angry. He was sent to the gym to run. He came back from his run and swore at the director. He was sent to the gym to run. Exhausted, he came back to the director who asked “Why are you so angry.” The boy replied, “Because I made the basketball team over there at the school, and I don’t have basketball shoes. I’ll be damned if…..” and the director sent him back to the gym to run.

Chastened the boy returned to the director physically exhausted, and with his head down—obviously humbled, and the director reached under his desk and handed the boy a new pair of basketball shoes. The teenager sobbed. It turns out the director knew along along that the boy had made the basketball team, and had gotten the shoes as a gift for the young man. He was just waiting on the boy to get into a receiving posture so he could give him the gift.

How often is it that way with us? God has something He wants to do for us personally, or for the team on which we work, or the church in which we serve, or the community in which we live. But before He can do THAT THING for all those people, we have to be in the posture to receive. Don’t misunderstand, I don’t me US WE, I mean YOU! God can’t do what He wants to do for you, and through you to bless others, until you are in the right posture to receive from Him. Meanwhile everybody else is waiting on the blessing that is to come until such a time as YOU get into position, or learn your lesson, or whatever.

One of the core values on the team I lead is Learning & Growing. Wouldn’t it be something if God were holding back some blessing for our team until some team member learned whatever lesson He’s trying to teach them? Wow! That would really bring focus onto Core Value #1: It’s about the people depending on us. I must learn my lessons quickly and grow to full stature so that I’m a useful channel through which God can bless the rest of my team.

Think about what your teammates, church, family members, co-workers, small-group have been praying that God will do. Is there any chance that you are blocking God’s ability to deliver the gift He’s got wrapped for the others who are depending on you? Are you the problem?