How Did I Get Here?

“How Did I Get Here?”

By Pastor Christine Caine

July 25, 2021

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

• Hebrews 2:1-4 (ESV)

As followers of Jesus, we must pay close attention so that we do not drift. All that we have to do to drift is nothing. We must check our markers. It’s easy to drift--we just have to neglect to do the right things, and we will drift. 

We see this in every area of life. One doesn’t need to have an affair for their marriage to drift. Our relationships drift when we neglect them and do nothing. We don’t have to do anything bad; we just have to do nothing. 

When we don’t do the things that we should, we will drift. As Jesus followers, if we are going to drift, we just need to do nothing. If we are not anchored, we are going to drift. Even if we don’t mean to or set out to drift. Jesus is our hope and our anchor, both firm and secure, no matter what is happening around us. Every anchor is attached to a boat through a chain, but if those links in our chain have gotten rusty or disconnected, we are going to drift. So many of us have disconnected from our only source of hope that is Jesus. 

The links of our chain may have been broken. Many of us have put more faith in the thing that was linking us to Jesus than to Jesus himself. Oftentimes because the thing that brought us to Jesus or linked us to Jesus did not pass the test, we somehow think that Jesus didn’t pass the test. However, we should thank God that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow because nothing else is. 

If we don’t pay close attention, we will drift. What are some signs that we are drifting? 

1. A blue check should not matter more than a heart check. 

Our power does not come from a social media post but from Jesus. Social media profiles do not build power; power comes from our prayer life and seeking the Lord. When we stop being obsessed with the Father’s business, we become obsessed with ourselves. We don’t need to be verified on social media; we are validated by God who died for us on the cross.

2. Your will is more important than God’s will. 

We are so obsessed with our own will, but our will is destructive. Everything is not about us and our self-actualization. It should be God’s will, not our will be done. Jesus was on his knees the night before his crucifixion praying, “nevertheless let your will be done.” We will flourish to the degree that we die to ourselves. We should not care about everyone else’s business more than the Father’s business. 

3. We no longer value gathering and start isolating. The writer of Hebrews said that the gathering of believers is important, and we should not neglect gathering together. We start drifting when we start isolating. It is time to do a heart check and start making gathering a priority again.

4. When we’re starting to conform to this world and no longer being transformed by the spirit of God. God is in the business of changing things. He heals, renews, and he changes things. Impossible is where God starts, and miracles are what God does. 

Our God is a God of miracles.. If we need a miracle, we need to know that our God still changes people, circumstances, and things. 

Reflection/Discussion Questions: 

1. Have you found yourself drifting away from God in this season or in the past year?

2. Are you driven more by your will or God’s? How can you recenter God’s word and his will in your life? 

3. Have you been struggling to value gathering over isolating? How can you start reincorporating and prioritizing gathering with believers in this next season? 

4. In what areas of your life have you conformed to this world? How can you invite the spirit of God in to transform you more into his image?