Living the Enoch Life

From the first time I heard about the Bible character named Enoch, I have been fascinated by him. There are approximately only 5-6 verses in the whole Bible where his names in mentioned. All that we know about Enoch are about that many details: 1) he was the son of a guy named Jared. 2) at age 65, He was the Father of Methuselah, who actually died in the year of the flood (Methuselah's name actually has two parts which mean death and sending). 3) "Enoch walked with God 300 more years and had other sons and daughters" - so altogether Enoch lived 365 years. 4) Enoch WALKED WITH GOD. 5) God took Enoch away and he was nowhere to be found. which means he didn't die. THAT'S ALL WE KNOW ABOUT ENOCH. He's also mentioned in the Hall of Faith - Hebrews 11, but it doesn't add any more information about Him. But it does make the point that it takes FAITH to walk with God like that. And to walk with God = please God. Enoch found favor with God and pleased Him because he, to borrow Jeremy Camp's expression, walked by faith. THAT IS THE LIFE I WANT TO LIVE. Today I spent a long time pondering Enoch's life, and I kept looking up at the ceiling of my friend's house where I'm staying and I said, God, how did he know to walk with you? Did someone teach him? Because of the hundreds of people that are mentioned between Adam and Noah, only 3 are mentioned to have found favor with you: Abel, Enoch, and Noach. THAT'S IT. So in a crooked and perverse and evil world where "man's heart is evil from youth," 3 people pleased You. HOW DID THEY KNOW TO DO IT? AND HOW DID THEY DO IT? With pressure from ALL sides to be like everyone else? And I felt God saying to me, "It doesn't matter HOW they did it. What matters is that they did it." It all began to make sense when I realized that Faith requires us deciding to believe. And deciding to live for Him. They decided that they were going to walk by faith and please the Lord. Why or How isn't important. The ACT OF DECISION made the difference, and God rewarded their faithfulness. I am so selfish. I am crooked and perverse and evil from youth. I desire my own happiness above anyone else's. But I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. I am a NEW CREATION. I have the best of both worlds: The ability to make the decision that Enoch and Noah made (OT), and the grace of God that comes from receiving the gift of salvation made possible by Christ's death on the cross (NT). And so I don't know how I'm going to walk by faith. I don't know how I'm going to battle my evil nature every day. But I know that I CAN DO ALL THINGS IN CHRIST WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH. I live my new life by the strength of Christ because I am a CHILD of the KING. And he has given me LIFE ABUNDANTLY. So this me allowing the whole virtual internet world to keep me accountable. Because I am going to live the Enoch Life and walk by Faith all my days. I will FAIL. Noah failed (he got drunk). Abraham failed (he lied and let Pharoah take his wife, twice). The people God found favor with were still "evil from youth." But God found favor with them anyway, and He used them. And I have been given blessings beyond what I deserve. I live in America and I have my physical needs taken care of in abundance (shelter, food, clothing,). I have been given a wonderful education, and I can read, write, do arithmetic, and be creative. I have been given many talents and I have learned many skills. I have a WONDERFUL FAMILY and FRIENDS and support system. And the KICKER is this: I DON'T DESERVE ANY OF IT. But God has given it to me anyway, and I so every day I will choose to trust Him and obey Him and give back to Him. I don't have any income right now. But I will trust God to take care of me. I don't have any job prospects right now. But I will trust God to take care of me. I don't have a boyfriend or any guy interests on the horizon. But I will trust God to provide that in His time. (Definitely not in the near future; I need to concentrate on student teaching and just walking with God). God is working on my heart and bringing me back to Him. I have recently been living the Gomer life. Now, I want to live the Enoch life. I'm in the desert. God is speaking gently to me. And I am realizing that HE is the one who is taking care of me and giving me what I need. I want to stay in the desert and just let God do a work in me for a while. I have about 3 weeks before I start student teaching. These next 3 weeks are going to be amazing as I surrender every day to God's will. I can't wait to see what God does in my life! My life verses now consist of the following: Genesis 5:21-24 Isaiah 26:8 Hebrews 11:5-6 God, you are FREE to do whatever you want in my life. I surrender to You. I choose to walk with You and live by faith. In your Holy and Powerful name, I claim the NEW CREATION you made me to be. Amen.