The Plateau

The last 10 days have been a whirlwind of moving, getting organized and stepping over flattened boxes and discarded packing paper. To say our new house is organized would be an understatement of gargantuan proportions. But we are getting there, slowly but surely.

So too am I making progress in this struggle that I am in and have been in since the beginning of January. While things are not perfect yet, I am getting there -- just not as quickly as I would like.

Today in an email to my friend Hope, I was telling her how I felt that I had hit a plateau of sorts and that I didn't seem to be moving beyond this new normal of 80% to 90% days. We all know what plateaus are like, don't we? We feel like we reach a point where we are not going up or going down, just staying in one place - stuck so to speak - on a flat plain where the status quo becomes a new normal of sorts.

I am on a plateau right now -- but that has me thinking... what exactly are plateaus for? And what is that God wants me to LEARN while I am on that plateau?

In my mind, a plateau can be many things:

1) A place of rest and relaxation
2) A place of contemplation
3) A place that gives us a good vantage point to see other spots where we can look to for our next journey.

Let's have a look at how we can apply those three to our lives.

Rest and relaxation:

Scripture reminds us that God IS our rest and relaxation in every storm. What Father - what master - does not allow His children or servants to rest during a battle? What general, in a war, does not allow his troops some downtime so that they can regain their strength?

So too does God allow US the rest and relaxation we need to re-charge so that we are ready to be used for HIS purposes. We are not much good when we are battered, weak and weary -- yes, it's true that through HIS strength we are made stronger -- but I don't believe that God wants us to be in such a state of readiness to battle that we don't take the time He gives us to re-coup... to embrace Him... to find shelter in Him... to pray... to consider... to find rest in His arms.

Matthew 11:28-29: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls".

We rest on a plateau called Jesus Christ -- a plateau given to us by God the Father. But how often do we truly rest? I sure don't... I don't know how to. I have a mind that is always going, always worrying, always wondering. I have a body that defines rest by sitting on a couch, scarfing down chips, watching TV. Is that rest? Probably to some extent -- but our rest has to be found in Christ. That doesn't meant that when we are on the plateau we shouldn't watch TV or enjoy the things around us... however, we are not on that plateau alone. Christ is with us. So too is our Heavenly Father -- don't they deserve our attention while we are there?

I think - I know - that if we take our rest in Christ on that plateau we will find that our burdens and weariness will dissipate and we will find "rest for our souls" as Christ promises. But first we have to allow God to shut down our minds to the outside so that we can focus on Him.

Even Jesus needed rest (Matthew 8:24). Why would we think we are any different when it comes to spiritual rest in Him?

Comtemplate:

Have you ever seen those pictures of someone sitting on a peak, silhouetted from the back, gazing up into the sky or out at the vastness of the land below? Thinking, wondering, taking it all in.

Do you do that? Do I do that? How often over the course of your day - whether you are setting up camp on a plateau or walking through a valley - do you stop and look around you and take in the breathtaking majesty of everything that God has given you, surrounded you with or made you privileged to see or feel?

Psalm 46:8: ""Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

Psalm 37:7: ^"Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him..."

I'll be honest -- I'm not good at contemplation. I am even less adept at "being still" as Scripture reminds us to do. I'm not sure I even know how to be still. I can't seem to shut my mouth or my mind long enough to hear what God has to say or even to take in the breathtaking beauty of His creation.

But take it in we must and allow ourselves not only to contemplate what He has done - and is doing in our lives - but on the plan He has for us to glorify His Kingdom and to sow His children so that He can reap!

The problem I find with me is that I don't know how to contemplate - oh sure, I know how to think about the things (read: worry) that are going on in my day-to-day life... do I need to get the car fixed, how much money do I have in my bank account... will I be able to finish my work on time... the list is endless, but fruitless. These things don't hold the same degree of importance as the things of the Kingdom, and yet we get caught up in them don't we? We get tripped up by the rocks on the plateau - rocks that we are not obligated to trip over but which we seem bound to find, despite the fact that God has given us a great vantage point by which we can take stock of where we are at and move forward from there. It's our choice to wander, worrying, along that plateau, stubbing our toe, fearful about tripping over another rock. God asks us to sit and wait and too often we take that as an invitation to stumble and worry.

Scripture gives us a pretty clear idea as to how we can contemplate the greatness of God from whatever plateau we are on. Obviously, the first instance listed above is to "be still". Be silent before God. Let Him speak to you. You've sat in a room with someone where you were both just comfortable to be silent. It's okay to be the same with God. At some point He'll say what's on His mind. As well though, you can contemplate His greatness by appreciating the provision He has given you, the beauty of His creation and everything and everyone you are surrounded with.

It says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18: "... give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus". That doesn't just mean in pleasant circumstances but in ALL circumstances.

Remember that the next time you get stung by a wasp up there on that plateau. Give thanks for that too. You'll be blessed.

The other way is to dig deep in to the Word of God -- it seems so obvious but do we do it?:

Joshua 1:8: "Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."

Psalm 77:12: "I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds"

Psalm 143:4-5: "So my spirit grows faint within me; my heart within me is dismayed. I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done".

Meditate = contemplate. Dig into God's Word from the vantage point of your plateau. You'll find it not only will give you rest but, like a road map, will point you on the best course to manoeuvre those distant valleys and high mountains.

Aren't paths made easier when we follow direction? Take the time up on your plateau to chart out that direction with the best guide: God and His Word.

Take a good look from your vantage point:

Depending on the plateau you are on, you'll able to see valleys, canyons and mountains... all of which we will walk through in our own lives. Perhaps than a plateau is God's way of letting us see the broader picture and to let us get our bearings before He gets us to climb up another mountain or journey through a deep valley.

Take a breath then, and look around.

So what if you are having a 1% day or a 100% day - take in your plateau and the surroundings. Get acquainted with the spot that God has allowed you to get to. If you reach a plateau, have you not climbed and journeyed a long way? Don't you have the right to set up camp and rest? Of course you do -- God wants you to rest and renew, to contemplate and to prepare for the journey ahead.

Sometimes God needs for us to get a spot where it seems like it is flat and the earth holds no adventure, before He directs us to a path to begin the next stage of the journey. Put it in to perspective from a wilderness point of view: do you think that the best guide in the world started out on the most advanced paths? Of course not. They started scaling a hill, than a foothill, then a cliff face and then a mountain. Step by step. Little by little. In the beginning, they took frequent rests and learned how to pace themselves. We need to do the same. Use the plateau. Pace yourself. The journey is long, the valleys are deep and the mountains can be treacherous. You'll need the energy that God gives you on those plateaus -- and you can be sure that He will tell you when it is time to move forward:

Deuteronomy 1:6-8: "The LORD our God said to us at Horeb, "You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Break camp and advance into the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the mountains, in the western foothills, in the Negev and along the coast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the Euphrates. See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore he would give to your fathers—to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—and to their descendants after them."

He knows the best path off those plateaus -- but we need to trust that He will direct us in HIS time, not in our own.

Friends, thank you for continuing to pray for me during this time. It means more than you know. I must say that as much as I have written above about plateaus, I find it tough some days and frankly I just wish I didn't have 80% days. I know how hard you all are praying for me and how, with every prayer, God pours out more of His strength and direction on me and my wife. Thank you. We praise God for each of you whenever we think of you.

Today is a day for me when the plateau sucks and when I can feel the rocks -- but I know that God wants me to rest for a time in this spot until my weariness is gone and I am ready to move forward.

Keep praying. Because I can see the sun rising from my vantage point on the plateau... and I am longing to move forward into its light.