God is a God of the Present

You are a Christian. You are a priest. You are a leader. You face temptations.

Henri Nouwen was in this category as well, and he was asked to speak about Christian leadership in the twenty-first century. He writes this:

But after having said "Yes" to the invitation, I realized that it was far from easy to come up with a sane perspective on Christian leadership in the coming century.

I wondered how it would be possible to look ahead of me, when I considered that nobody in the fifties could have forseen the situation of most priests [and Christian leaders] today.

I came to see that I should not worry about tomorrow, next week, next year, or the next century. The more willing I was to look honestly at what I was thinking and saying and doing now, the more easily I would come in touch with the movement of God's Spirit in me, leading me to the future.

God is a God of the present and reveals to those who are willing to listen carefully to the moment in which they live the steps they are to take toward the future. "Do not worry about tomorrow," Jesus says, "tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34).

You may not feel like you are a priest, or a leader, or a very good Christian, but you are quite aware of your temptations. Your way out of your temptations will be how you blossom as a Christian, become a helpful leader, and a caring priest. You may just want delivered from your temptations without all the leadership and priest stuff. I'm not sure that's the way it works.

God is still God in your present circumstances - no matter how confusing or disappointing or fulfilling. No matter how you perceive your situation, there is still the desperate need to listen carefully to Him about your next steps into the future. Your temptations can be an ongoing burden to you, or, when you get in touch with God's Spirit, they can be the gateway to a new day. Welcome to the way of becoming a Christian priest and leader.