God's fuzzy floaters and a lesson about pride.

I used to believe that when I entered a situation that might need God's help that I, being a Christ-follower and trained in prayer and scripture, was the chosen one, called to be the illumination that ushered in God's presence (because obviously God was not working there before my arrival). It's funny the things I have believed in my time Thank Jesus that my high horse is getting shorter the older I get. The other day I got a cool download. The place I work has a few classrooms in it for a program that deals with what we call 'behavior kids'...Basically these are the 'bad kids' that can't be in a regular classroom. Sometimes you hear outbursts coming from down that hallway. I happened to hear one such outburst and just as a passing thought wondered how much of the stuff that happened down there was spiritual as opposed to emotional and mental (though I think those things tend to overlap a lot since it's all connected). I had a quick flash of the old theological snob who thought 'if only they knew Jesus the way I and my fellows do they would be able to deal with that' (oh, brother).

That was quickly replaced with both a gentle rebuke and a new way of approaching things. The rebuke said 'I am everywhere, always working in people's lives to free them - I don't need heroes as much as I need team players'. And then I understood that if/when I ever enter a  spiritual intervention (for lack of a better phrase) situation that I look not for Papa's absence but Papa's presence - where has he already been at work with this person/situation, etc? I got a picture in my head from the film 'Avatar'. In that film there are these little white fuzzy things that float down from the 'spirit tree' and land on characters that are being healed. I saw something similar, and they represented prayers that other people had already prayed for a person or situation, or breakthroughs Papa has already made. I realized that each prayer or good thought or Holy Spirit work is always with a person, floating just nearby or on them, a part of a larger healing effort going on in the 'spiritual realm'.

My job is to see those and figure out/listen for where I can add to those, pull them together, stir them up...Whatever might be needed. And I also realized that I can look to see who already involved might also be doing the same thing. All of this might happen in the matter of seconds. On the outside, it might not look all that remarkable or different than how someone else might handle it, but that is, underneath, what should be going on. If I go plowing in somewhere with the idea that my faith is the bomb and nothing can or has happened in a given situation prior to my arrival, then I risk disrupting the often gentle work of the Spirit with my pride.Sure, there may be times when I am the 'first human responder' and those fuzzy floaties might be sparse, but I can be assured that God has always been with this person. And He is the One I need to look for.

Selah.