Beyond the Pavement

My faith is a Christian faith, and it is a simple one. I believe in Jesus as my Savior, and I seek to live my life according to the Bible. Some people outside of the Christian life see it as restrictive and joyless. But for me, that “narrow road” as it is called, is not dry, nor is it boring. In fact, I find it full of presence and possibility. 

People say they want to “live life” and experience all it has to offer. I wish that were how people understood the path of following God. I’m discouraged and saddened when I hear people say they are not interested in God’s “restraints and limitations.” It is hard to convince the spiritually blind that a life following God is the more compelling, richer choice. With him the possibilities are endless. With him the joy of living is at its fullest. 

Since moving to the southeast, I have heard people talk about getting “beyond the pavement.” They are actually saying, “Let’s get out of town, down by the river, away from daily life as we know it.” It means, let’s break from the routine aspects of life that are drying up the joy of actually living. 

The first time I heard that phrase, I realized that’s what I’m hoping for in my walk with Christ. I want to get “beyond the pavement.” There are routines to my faith that mean a lot to me: I attend a weekly gathering, I try to read the Bible daily, I pray, and I serve others. These are things I know and understand. But I want to know more of God. I want to hear his voice in fresh ways and obey him even if it takes risk. I want to brave the borders of the yet unknown that God has for my life. 

The Bible tells us that God is both accessible to be known, and a mystery yet to be fully understood. I want to experience both. We spend a lot of time seeking to know God, and we ought to. To approach life with open eyes as he reveals himself to us makes every day an adventure and a deeper experience. I want to know him. But, I don’t want to put him in a box. I mean, he still wouldn’t fit into the biggest box I can imagine! And I certainly don’t want to boil him down to a list of attributes and services. Nor do I want to be limited by words to express who he is. 

Now, make no mistake. I need the pavement. I need what I can already see of God. Lists and words do help me understand who he is. I need the local church I can worship with and serve, the teaching of Scripture, and community and accountability with Christian brothers and sisters. These things keep me solid and strong in the daily living of my life for God. But with these things, if I’m not mindful, I will miss out on the mystery and the undefined, indescribable presence of God that is “beyond the pavement.” If I’m not careful, my faith will become a mere routine that I barely think about with any depth. 

I want to experience that sacred wonder of his presence; to encounter the mystery of the one I call Father and Savior and Spirit. I want to reside in the space and tension of what we do know about God and what we have yet to understand ... and be able to rest there. 

Resting in a space of tension is not easy, and it is often avoided unknowingly—and sometimes knowingly. We spend most of our time trying to get out of spaces like this. In fact, it doesn’t even make sense to say “rest” and “tension” in the same sentence. But, that’s what I mean. In this space is growth. In this space is that peace that passes all understanding the Bible talks about. We are in the middle of what is and what will be; we are in the middle of what God has already revealed and what he will reveal. We are not sure what we will find in God, but we trust him and we know he is good. 

I don’t need a life I can orchestrate on my own common sense and a little bit of God’s wisdom; I want a life that goes deeper and travels wider than that. I want the life that Jesus talked about— abundant, gushing with love, and bursting at the seams with joy. That life that’s chock-full of grace and surging with a peace that passes all human understanding. That one. The life that is empowered and transformed to be more like my great God. 

So until that day when I see God face-to-face, I intend to love and pursue him with both my eyes and heart wide open. I commit to rest in the tension of mystery. I will not be afraid. I will live by faith, surrendered to his continuous, loving work in my life. For in this changing life he has given me, I will remember that I am not alone.