Type A and Faith

Lately I have been reading this book in my spare time...

Crazy Love is a book by Francis Chan. I have had this book since my freshman year of college, but somehow have never gotten around to reading it despite all the great reviews I hear. Anyways I just finished chapter 4 which talked about lukewarm Christians. On page 78 he says...

" Lukewarm people do not live by faith, their lives are structured so they never have to. They don't have to trust God if something unexpected happens-they have their savings account. They don't need God to help them-they have their retirement plan in place. They don't genuinely seek out what life God would have them live-they have life figured and mapped out. They don't depend on God on a daily basis-their refrigerators are full and, for the most part, they are in good health. The truth is, their lives wouldn't look much different if they suddenly stopped believing God."

Wow. This was so convicting to me. I am the type of person that likes to have everything planned out, definitely a type A personality. When I plan out everything that I need to do, whether it be my day or my future, there is no room for faith. I can go through my day knowing exactly what's coming (at least I think I do) and not have to rely on God very much. This is not how I am called to live as a Christian. It's not wrong to plan ahead, but I need to make sure I am making those plans with complete reliance on Christ.

"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand." Proverbs 19:21

Last night as I was praying, I prayed that God would shake up the structure in my life, make things not go the way I had planned them. Little did I know how quickly He would answer that one. This morning my boyfriend and I were supposed to go get breakfast at Panera. We had planned to leave at 9:30, but when I called him at 9:35 to see where he was, he informed me that he had slept through his alarm and was getting ready as quickly as possible. I was not a happy camper. The internal battle began-"I know I should get over it and continue our little breakfast date like it never happened, but I really don't want to do that...it's a lot easier to give him the cold shoulder for a few minutes." God definitely was testing me and showing me that He does indeed answer prayer, even when I ask for things that are not necessarily "fun" for me to learn. This morning I did not respond like I needed to, I got over it yes, but I could have been nicer and gotten it over it quicker than I did. Thankfully, I have a God that is patient with me and is willing to forgive me and give me grace even when I sin against him again and again. Even the situation this morning was not a big deal, it still showed me how I need to rely on God everyday no matter what the situation is, little or small, I am called to live a life of faith.