STOP THE WORLD…

…I wanna get off.

Ever get that dizzy, off-kilter, queasy kind of feeling about life?

I do.

Actually, I get it literally. I have a tendency toward getting motion sickness. I can't read in the car (look out, always look out), I don't do twisty mountain roads very well, I get rather green at the gills on boats, I can't do rides at amusement parks or carnivals that spin me in circles (the teacup ride at Disneyland?? Can't even look at that ride!), I've never slept on a waterbed, I can't even watch my sons do video games on their TV.

Seriously, I get a little nauseous on high heels.

So, I had a moment the other night.

Our church had a huge Harvest Festival on Friday night. It was packed!! Lots of rides and games and food. Kids in costumes. Pony rides. A petting zoo. A ferris wheel. And a few twisty rides.

But, the thing that got to me the most was the obstacle course. I would have avoided it completely, except…

Let me explain.

My oldest son had volunteered to work at the festival. He just didn't know what he'd be doing. About 5 minutes before his shift started, I got a text message from him – "I'll be at the obstacle course."

Well, "The Hub" and I had trouble locating the obstacle course. Why? Because this wasn't your average obstacle course on the ground. This was a huge blow-up obstacle course. You know those *Bounce House* things they have? Well, this was along the same lines.

By the time we figured it out, my son had already started his shift. There he was, in jeans and red shirt, with a bandanna around his neck, and a tiny "Howdy Doody" cowboy hat on his head (I tell you what – that boy is a good sport for the Lord!).

He was given charge of helping/lifting kids up and over the 7-foot tall climbing portion of the course…while standing on a constantly undulating base of air mattress madness.

I watched for about 15 minutes, and then I couldn't take it anymore. I was queasy. I told him we were going to leave. Shouted, "How are you doing?"

He motioned that he was dizzy – but didn't have a chance to finish his thought – because Cinderella fell at his feet about the same time that Batman body-checked him.

I motioned, "I love you!"

Dizzy, off-kilter, queasy.

That's how I felt. And I was reminded of this feeling in a spiritual way at church this morning.

Our guest pastor talked about Saul's encounter with the living, breathing Jesus. How it wasn't a calm and serene scene. It wasn't necessarily pleasant. It didn't play out like this:

"Psst."

"Oh hey, Jesus."

"Hey, Saul, how's it going?"

"Pretty good. Yourself?"

Nope.

This meeting was unmistakable, unsettling, disorienting.

"Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?"

And this encounter with the living, breathing Jesus left Saul blind, weak, and

re-named. Paul had to be led by the hand into Damascus. For three days he couldn't see, and he didn't eat or drink anything.

His world had definitely been stopped.

But, this is what REAL encounters with Jesus look like.

And when we meet, truly meet, the Risen Lord – we are stopped in our tracks. The meeting is unmistakable, unsettling, disorienting.

Because Jesus isn't asking for a nice and quaint "Hey, how are you?" meeting. He's seeking to change your life. He's saying...

"I'm not here to make what's clear in your life better. I'm here to do something completely different and it's going to be troubling to you."

Because, after all, dying to self and losing your life for His sake involves some disorientation. When we are re-purposed for the Lord's purposes we can expect to be a little (or a lot!) dizzy, off-kilter, queasy.

But, is there really any other choice?

There is.

The safe path. The secure road. The selfish complacency. The "I'll serve You in the way I choose, Lord" kind of way. Convenient, easy, uncomplicated, comfortable, painless. A life that we can control.

But, I don't want that anymore.

I want Jesus.

And life with Him, no matter how disorienting, is a life correctly oriented.

Yeah, it might be a bumpy road, up and down, and I just might get a little "motion sick" from time to time. But, I'd rather follow Jesus on His grand adventure than stay safe in a puny small-faith life.

Jesus – stop my world – I want to get on Yours.

Do you want to meet the Risen Lord in a new and powerful way?

"And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18, NIV)

Linked today with:

Joan at SHARING HIS BEAUTY

Laura at BRAG ON GOD FRIDAY

Michelle at HEAR IT ON SUNDAY, USE IT ON MONDAY

BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"