Worth Less Keys

Am I done yet?

That question prompts the thought of cooking meat.

For some meat-eaters, "done" is pink and tender; for others, "done" is pinkless and tough.

I eat meat. I usually order my beef medium well, somewhere between slightly pink and pinkless. All other meat, I eat pinkless, except for sushi.

I've been through these phases before when I feel I have nothing to write, nothing of value to share, wondering if I am "done" writing.

Why do I feel I need to share what I write?

"Need"? Is it a "need" for me to share these scribblings from my noggin?

The Way taught about "needs" and that, to receive anything from God, there are five keys a believer needs to know and apply.

• Key number 1: What is available
• Key number 2: How to receive it
• Key number 3: What to do with it after I've got it
• Key number 4: Have my need and want parallel
• Key number 5: God's willingness always equals God's ability

I once endeavored to believe these keys and act accordingly. If I wasn't getting an answer to prayer, and I knew God's will in the situation, then I must not be applying one of the five keys. I then needed to take a "check up from the neck up" and believe for God to show me where I was "missing it." Was I applying the five keys properly?

• Key number 1: I know what is available by studying God's Word which is God's will. All God's promises are "yea" and "amen."
• Key number 2: I receive by believing. To believe requires that I take action on God's promises and that I "confess" the Word. Doctor continually taught us that "confession of belief yields receipt of confession."
• Key number 3: If I'm going to receive, I need to know how to properly utilize whatever it is that I receive from God. God won't give me something if I won't properly steward it.
• Key number 4: To get my need and want parallel, I determine my need and then bring my desire to that same level. I always had a hard time understanding this key. How do I know if my "need" isn't actually "greed?" The majority of the world lives with much less than what I've been granted.
• Key number 5: God won't promise anything he can't deliver; His ability is always there to bring to pass His promises.

For at least 28 years, that was my mindset, or a mindset I would try to attain and maintain.

I no longer strive to live those five keys, and I seem to get more so-called "answered pray" now in my agnosticism than when I was that five-key believer.

I guess I'm not "done" yet.