The road Emmaus (healing)

"Whatever calls our name louder than the voice of JESUS needs to be identified as an obstacle.  Life is busy and days are short.  We don't take the time we need to let our souls breathe."  ~Mended by Angie Smith~

I have a tendency to read the a quote like this and immediately categorize what could fall under "whatever."  My flesh clings to rigid logic and doesn't trust GOD's fluid movements.

There was a season of life, a stage of maturing, when it was good for me to be dedicated to my commitments.  I learned how to work hard, accept sacrifices, and share grace.  But I am entering a new season of life in which I am challenged to wholeheartedly follow GOD's movements...above anything and everything else.  It is uncomfortable to cut the ties anchoring me to rigid commitments.  It is scary to trust the sensors in my heart to detect GOD's voice.  It feels more secure and practical to "meet (or exceed) known expectations."  But I am realizing this is slavery too; it's not the freedom GOD planned for me.

In her book "Mended," Angie Smith explains two of JESUS' disciples were walking towards Emmaus and they were sad because they didn't fully believe JESUS had risen from the dead (full story in Luke 24:13-32).  Angie shares that Emmaus means "warm springs," and these springs were used for healing purposes.  As the story continues, JESUS catches up to these two disciples on the road to Emmaus; they didn't recognize HIM right away and HE stayed with them until "their eyes were opened."  

As my eyes are opening to the emptiness of tradition (for the sake of tradition) and the immaturity of many ideas, I find myself traveling towards my own Emmaus.  My tired, defeated, scared body saunters down a beaten path unsure of what's ahead but desperately hoping for any amount of healing. 

Speaking through other, more seasoned, people, song, and writing GOD has made it abundantly clear that, just as HE did with those two disciples, HE will catch up to me on my road to Emmaus.  The opposite of mindless slavery to commitment is to rest.  I am learning that it's the only way to open the deepest caverns of my heart that yearn for daily uninhibited adventures and warm secure trust with GOD.  

Angie ends the chapter with, "Throughout the day, pause in busy moments and remind yourself that you need only to be consumed by HIM.  Not the carpool line, the endless to-do list, the dishes, or whatever else is distracting you.  Ask HIM specifically to focus your mind on HIM, and ask HIM to make HIMself bigger in that moment than everything around you.  Enjoy this sweet Emmaus, friend."

Right now, at the beginning, it seems contradictory to call it "sweet" Emmaus, but I know that I am tired of feeling defined by my ability to appease social obligations, demanding work schedules, and the chains of guilt.