The Next {Obedient} Thing
Our daughter is almost three years old and happily falls into the category of “Frozen-obsessed little girl”. While I’m doing my best to introduce to the other amazing Disney movies, Frozen has a special place in her heart. I believe we’ve seen the movies 3 billion times and listened to the soundtracks 1 zillion times - give or take.
Selah truly loves the music. She will sing Let it Go at the top of her lungs and loves my Oscar-worthy rendition of Olaf’s When I’m Older. But there is another song that has always caught my attention. Selah calls it “Anna’s Sad Song”.
SPOILER ALERT AHEAD! This is not a drill. I will ruin the movie for you if you keep reading. You’ve been thoroughly warned.
There is a pivotal scene where Anna comes to believe her sister Elsa is dead. It is heart wrenching and leads into Anna’s solo song, The Next Right Thing. The lyrics are unashamedly honest of what deep and heavy depression in a crushing situation feels like. But while everything in Anna wants to keep her on the floor, she starts to encourage herself to do the next right thing. Here is what she says:
“I won't look too far ahead
It's too much for me to take
But break it down to this next breath, this next step
This next choice is one that I can make
So I'll walk through this night
Stumbling blindly toward the light
And do the next right thing”
While I fully understand that Anna is a fictional character in a fictional world singing about a fictional situation, I also understand that what she has just said in this song is profound. I think about it probably once a day, if not more.
Why do I think about this kid’s movie so often? Because the concept Anna so beautifully sings about is one that I struggle to grasp on a daily basis.
Counter to how the song goes, I always want to look too far ahead. Whenever I am at the beginning of a difficult season, a challenging circumstance or a hard decision, I want to know all of the details of how it will work out. In fact, my imagination is at its best during those times as I play through all scenarios (mostly worst-case) that could happen as I work through whatever is in front of me.
But as the song aptly points out, it’s too much for me to take. It’s a burden I can’t bear. Despair, my mortal enemy, shows up strong when my heart is weak and vulnerable from allowing the weight of my worries to overtake me.
Do you ever find yourself in this situation? Maybe you’ve just received a hard medical diagnosis and are looking ahead towards the long road of suffering that awaits you. Maybe you find yourself in incredibly challenging circumstances where you’re asking tough questions that may lead to major life changes. Maybe life is mundane and routine and you feel stuck, hopelessness setting in as you look towards years of mundane moments.
If this is where you currently are or if you can relate, let’s take a moment to pause the catchy song above and look to the true words of hope Jesus gives to his disciples:
“Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me.
“These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 14:23-27
In this passage, Jesus has gathered his disciples together and has begun telling them he will be leaving them soon. Amidst their questions, Jesus promises something incredible. Though he is leaving for a time, he is sending a helper – the Holy Spirit. This helper will be with us always in our day-to-day, minute-to-minute sanctification to remind us of our Lord Jesus Christ. And what is the marker of this gift?
Peace. Not a kind of pseudo peace the world gives. The peace we find in the world is often in the form of escapism, distractions, worry, self-motivation, a boost in self-esteem – all of these are insufficient to truly walk through the troubles of life. But God’s peace? It guards our hearts and surpasses all understanding. (Philippians 4:7)
Jesus tells his disciples to not let their hearts be troubled or be afraid. What does he tell them to actively do? Keep his commandments. Obey his words.
This is where I see the connection between Jesus’ words and the sweet little nugget of light found in a Disney song. When you find yourself in peril, don’t let your hearts be troubled as you look at the road ahead. Don’t be afraid. Just do the next right thing – walk in obedience to our God:
“Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him.” Deuteronomy 8:6
“Blessed are all who fear the Lord,
who walk in obedience to him.” Psalm 128:1“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58
We aren’t called to bear the weight of the world. We are called to cast our worries on God because he cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). We aren’t called to live in our own strength because God is our strength and our refuge and is very present in our time of need (Psalm 46:1). We aren’t called to be the one who saves the world, Jesus has already done that! (Acts 4:11-12). We also aren’t called to control everything and make it work out for our good, God does that for those who love him according to his purpose (Romans 8:28)
But we are called to obey. We are called to glorify God in all we do (1 Corinthians 10:31). Whatever you are facing today, take heart. What does the next step of obedience look like? Is it a hard life decision that will honor God? Is it forgoing the temptation to despair and instead allowing God to renew your mind by holding fast to his truth? Is it walking through hard circumstances faithfully, glorifying God in every action, word and deed?
Search through his words and see your call to obedience. Trust that he is a refuge in all times. Take the next breath, the next step, the next choice and do the next { obedient } thing.
