“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.” – Colossians 2:9-10 

ALWAYS ONLY JESUS. This is something one of my favorite pastors preached one day which has stuck with me and is something that I’m still trying to wrap my head around.

We live in a chaotic world, and every day we are pulled in multiple directions, going from one place to the next, never allowing ourselves just to be.

This is extremely evident in my life, as I so easily find myself caught up in the daily routine of keeping up in my classes, my social life, and my work life. The worst part about this is that I end up forgetting the most important thing – JESUS.

Always only Jesus really wasn’t my reality.

How I Learned The Lesson of Being Complete in Jesus

To give you a little background, I am currently a sophomore at Ithaca College, earning my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre. This program is in Ithaca’s Theatre Department and it is rigorous, demanding, and ever-changing. So yes, I pay to go to school to learn how to act, sing, and dance but is not as simple as it may seem to the outside world. Every day, I am forced to be vulnerable amongst my peers and esteemed faculty members, and oftentimes it feels like it is more than I can handle. But it is in my weakest of moments where I’ve learned so much about how good our God is. I have learned He never gives me, and us, more than we can handle, and I have learned if we allow ourselves to rest in Him, He will never leave us to sink.

Last summer, I had hopes of participating in Summer Stock, a theatrical production presented by repertory companies for the summer season. I was very adamant about doing this program as I saw it as a great way to build my resume as well as practical experience. I desired so badly to move forward in the eyes of the world. However, that was not what the Lord had in store for me. I auditioned for three companies and was rejected by all of them. I didn’t understand why something I wanted so badly was not falling together. I felt as though all my peers were doing great things and I was just stuck. So, the backup plan was to go back home to California, and that is what I did. I went back with no concrete summer plans whatsoever.

Back home, I felt very happy around family and my closest friends, but I felt like I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to be doing. I wasn’t building my resume, or performing, or utilizing what I had learned throughout the year, but it was in these moments of doubt that I grew in my intimacy with God.

I was raw with Him. I told Him that I surrender. I told Him that if I don’t amount to anything in this world, that I would be okay with that. That I would be happy in knowing I am complete in Him.

I learned to find true joy in being, rather than feeling anxious about the things I wasn’t doing.

I learned to accept that I’m not in control, so there is really nothing I should be anxious about.

When It All Hit Me

In the moment, I did not see how God was working but by the end of the summer, it all hit me. God gave me this revelation of how I needed this summer more than anything, and it was a gift He wanted me to have. A summer where I just allowed myself to breathe and do things that I don’t have the time to do during the school year. I allowed myself to be spontaneous, take road trips with my friends, spend time with my family, go hiking with my dog, attend Bethel’s Heaven Come Conference, write music, color in coffee shops, go busking with my best friend, eat delicious food, and truly find my completion in Jesus – nothing else. Sure, I didn’t build my resume with tons of theatre credits or gain work experience that I can talk about down the road, but I found personal success in giving every part of my life to God, and that is what really matters.

Because of this revelation, I’ve come back to school this year so much more grounded. I’m not competing with people in my program. I’m not emotionally unstable when I’m not cast in something. I’m not as affected by what people say or do to me, and I’m not looking so far ahead into the future where I find myself anxious about the unknown. I have been finding myself focused on God, and who I am in Him not in the ups and downs of this world. I’m taking it day by day and allowing God to use me in the most menial things like smiling at a stranger on campus and being completely content with just that.

If we strive to find completion in the world’s eyes, we are not going to survive.

Jesus has already done everything for us by dying on the cross for our sins, and we simply get to rest and know we are complete in Him and nothing else.

To state it simply, the work is already done.

“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.” – Colossians 2:9-10

This week, I hope that you meditate on finding what it means to be complete in Jesus. Allow yourselves to be still and content in God’s presence, open to having Him reveal things to you in a way He has never before. Don’t worry about building that resume, or having that job experience to get you to the next point. Yes, have big goals and dreams for yourself, but know the Lord knows the desires of your heart far better than you know them yourself and He will get you where He wants you to be. Pray hard, and work hard, but be content in where you are!

 

Written By: Connie Bahng