There is a quote on my refrigerator from Oswald Chambers, that devotional chaplain from the last century who is often obscure, occasionally brilliant, and quite well-known for his collection of daily thoughts entitled My Utmost for His Highest. I read the collection through, two years in a row, and copied these sentences down verbatim that capture the whole of it: “There is only one relationship that matters and that is your personal relationship to a personal Redeemer and Lord. Let everything else go, but maintain that at all costs, and God will fulfill His purpose through your life.”
I liked it at first because of the sense of direction, and simplicity. If you want your life to count for God, if you want to know what His will is for you, just devote your time and attention to cultivating a relationship with Him, and you will become what He wants you to be. It boils everything down into a nutshell of what matters most. And I liked the paradox of letting all else go, in order to gain the One Best Thing; like Jesus said, “If you cling to your life, you will lose it, and if you let your life go, you will save it.” (Luke 17:33, NLT)
After awhile though, I began to see how the principle applies to so many things. Get that one thing right and you have answered a whole slew of thorny questions. I encouraged women to “stay close to Jesus,” praying it for the people I love. Carrying grief around like a weight on your back? Stay close to Jesus, because He can give peace and comfort. Wrestling with temptation? Stay close to Jesus and value Him above anything else on earth. Worried about the future? Stay close to Jesus, who knows every one of your days already and can lead the way. Angry with a friend? Stay close to Jesus who knows how it feels to be mistreated and gave back love and forgiveness. Baggage from the past? Stay close to Jesus, at the cross where He took it all.
When I stay close to Him, everything else arranges itself around Him in perfect order, whether or not I can see it at the time. It’s the only way to live well here at all. The only thing that matters. It’s that simple.
“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” (Jim Elliot)
“Well, I’ve carried this a long time,
in a well-hidden bundle on my back,
but I’ve realized repentance is weightless,
so I’ll leave my burden on the tracks.” (Weightless, Christa Wells)