The shortest nerve in the human body is the first cranial nerve, the olfactory nerve. It hit my first nerve first. The smell was different, and yet reminiscent. It reminded me that I was in a place I did not want to be. I was outside of my usual element and this time, I was in a dormitory for homeless men. It was different from my visits to the prisons, or even the mud huts and slums of Kenya. I felt this was a bad fit for me. Then God reminded me, of course if I felt comfortable, that I was in the wrong place. ‘If it fits Michael, it shouldn’t.’ If I felt at home, normal, within my element as I watched the dozens of men around me, then I had missed the mark.
Serving Jesus should always have a sense of being ill at ease. I should always be wondering if I am in the right place. The moment I feel ‘this is perfect for me’ then it no longer is.
If God allows me to put Him or His will for me in a box, bag, case or cabinet that makes me feel comfortable then He is no longer God.
I pray that God will not allow me to feel so comfortable and at ease with the sights, sounds and smells around me that I can perfectly ‘predict’ His present will for me. If it feels good to me, it may very well not feel good to God.
If it fits, if it smells good, then maybe it shouldn’t.