"You can run on for a long time, run on for a long time, run on for a long time
Sooner or later God'll cut you down"~ Johnny Cash
It's a lesson that we all need to learn. Hopefully you can learn this one by watching others. But for me, the Lord has repeatedly retaught me this throughout my life (I hope it sinks in this time!). But what is the lesson?
Running on for a long time? Well, to me it means trying to go about life and do things my way, instead of the Lords way. How easy it is to be prideful and attempt to follow ones own path without yielding to the promptings of God. I look back on my life however, and see that the Lord will let me go off on whatever I want to, because He respects my agency. After a time (sooner or later) He cuts me down, or I go through a very humbling experience or trial. The beauty of it is that after the dust begins to settle, I come to see that God's cutting me down has allowed me to see things as they really are (to a point), which allows me to learn and grow. His cutting me down is in reality Him helping me come to a point of humility where I have the choice to let go of pride. If I do let go, then great blessings begin to flow into my life.
It may be difficult in the humbling situation because of the uncertainty of the future. But God has a pretty good track record as far as I'm concerned. A few examples? I have a big one for you! I ran on for a really long time, ten years in fact. Then, God cut me down (my poor choices are what lead to it, but God nudged enough to awake my soul) and I was as low as low can get. As a result, I came back to church and every aspect of my life has improved for the better. It was really difficult and it took quite a bit of time to get back on the right path. The blessings didn't come to me alone though. I was able to help my sister and parents back to activity as well. Then, I was able to help a friend of mine back to the church, and now he's on a mission sharing the good news as well! My life will forever be changed for the better because God loved me enough to cut me down.
The better way to go however, is to find humility before humility finds us. The Book of Mormon teaches this very plainly in Alma 32:16 "...blessed are they who humble themselves without being compelled to be humble; or rather, in other words, blessed is he that believeth in the word of God...without being brought to know the word, or even compelled to know..." We can humble ourselves, and in turn save ourselves from the pain that can come from compelled humility.
Thank you kindly, Mr. Cash, for reminding me of the blessings that can flow from God cutting us down. I am trying to be a little more humble each day by looking to the example of our Savior.
I consider myself a pretty competent person. I learn very easily (well, knowledge at least. Wisdom...not so much). I believe that I can achieve pretty difficult tasks. A portion of this feeling of ability comes from the knowledge that I am a child of God and that He has given me certain talents and capabilities. But there is a bigger thing that overshadows this. I tend to forget that what I have is from God and get off into the foolish notion that I am pretty cool. I get caught up in my abilities and start to think that, "Hey, I am doing pretty well here. I'm kind of a big deal. Look at how good I am at _______." I forget that I of myself "am nothing". That "in my own strength I am weak" (Alma 26:11-12). I start to do things my way instead of His way. That's when I really get into a pickle. Luckily, God knows what to do in situations like me. I think Johnny Cash said it the best in his repentance proclaiming ballad "Sooner or later, God will cut you down."
The amusing thing is, when I submit myself to the Lord, I prosper in every aspect of my life. When I start to get prideful and start to do it my way, thinking I can do it without His help, the Lord withdraws His support and I am left to myself. Things start to go downhill. What's the solution? Give up control. Submit my will to the Lord and stop being such an idiot. How do I ensure that I am always moving forward and that I don't get bogged down? Submit my will to the Lord. Give it all up.
Brother Lawrence F. Corbridge sums it up better than I could. He stated, "Just give up. Surrender your will to Him. Unconditionally. Withhold nothing. Turn it all over to Him; all of your desires, wishes, dreams and hopes. Be true and faithful in your head and in your heart, not just in your behavior. Trust in Him. Trust Him who knows all things. Trust Him who has all power. Trust Him whose love for you is perfect. Trust Him, who alone suffered, paid and atoned for you sins, and for your weaknesses as well. Trust Him that He will make of you, immeasurably more, than what you will ever, ever in all eternity, make of yourself. He will create of you a masterpiece. You will create of you only a smudge. You will create an ordinary man. He will create a God."
If we trust Him, we will be transformed. If we trust Him, He will guide us back to our Heavenly Father. If we trust Him, we won't be tossed to and fro', driven like the waves of the sea. My real issues come down to trust. When I don't trust that things will turn out the way the Lord promises, I try and take matters into my own hands and I end up getting less than what I want. Sometimes, I have righteous desires that of themselves are not bad, but they are not what the Lord wants for me at this time. That's when we really have to dig deep and let go of control, putting total trust in the Lord. It hurts, but it's worth it. I have to let go of what I want and seek the Lord's guidance and direction in my life, for everything.
Again, music is the only way that can say what I am trying to say. I couldn't find the not so loud version of the song, "Empty My Hands" by Tenth Ave. North, so here you go.
