Chap Clark always “brings it.” There is not one time when I have heard this man speak that the Lord did not move in my heart. The second season was no different. Chap built on what was said in our first session. He took the 4 P’s and boiled them down to three; Possessions, Identity, and Conformity. Possessions have the same meaning as above, identity was the same as personal appearance, and then he combined performance and popularity into conformity. Chap took this one step further to explain that not only do we desire to be popular and that we are on a performance treadmill; but we are forced to live up to other’s expectations even when they are not realistic. A major symptom of these three is that we build walls around our lives and do not let other in.
The challenge for me is when Chap asked this very simple question, “What does God think of me?” In John 4, Jesus has an encounter with the Samaritan women at the well. Jesus invaded her life knowing exactly where to go. Knowing exactly what walls to tear down in this woman’s life, and He does the same to us too. I know I have walls in my life, and if I do not deal with them, Jesus will! In fact Jesus is already dealing with them. The great things is when Jesus invades our stories and deals with our walls, we are not rejected, punished, or even shunned. We have the same reaction as the woman – she goes and tells the whole town about Jesus because she is excited that she does not have to live with those walls in her life anymore.
I am learning that when Jesus invades my life and tears these walls down, I am free to hope again because I do not need to live up to other peoples expectations of me and I do not have to run on the performance treadmill. I can live for Jesus without any hindrances, with a reckless abandon. I am free to hope in a future that He has laid out for me. I am free to love my Savior again without any guilt. I am free.
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