“Are you going to hide here, or are you going to go where I am sending you?” the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart.
I faced a big decision. Stay in an easy, secure, comfortable, familiar, beautiful, and virtually risk-free ministry location. Or pray big, pack up my belongings and beloved special needs ministry dogs, and head off for my next major ministry location on the road for Jesus with a stop along the way. Hmm, what to do?
My flesh would have held onto the former in a heartbeat. But I no longer live to please my flesh. I live to love and glorify God. So as extremely hard as it would be on my flesh, I knew what I needed to do. Humble myself, deny my flesh’s craving for comfort, ease, familiarity, and what appeared to be super low-risk, take up my little cross, and follow Jesus (Luke 9:23).
This message isn’t merely about when God calls us to something really big in a new geographical location. It’s about the lifestyle of following Jesus.
See, believing in God is not merely an intellectual exercise in which we simply repent and put our faith in Jesus as Lord. It’s a way of life. If we really believe He is Lord and in His death and resurrection, whereby we receive God’s forgiveness of our sins and the promise of everlasting life with Him, we are to bear fruit of a life lived for Him. Our faith is to show forth works. Our lives are to show forth that we no longer live for self but that we live for Christ (2 Cor. 5:15).
Every day, we face choices and decisions regarding whether to follow our flesh, the world, and the devil – or whether to humbly, lovingly, and faithfully follow the Lord and His will for us.
Whether God calls us to Africa to serve there, to walk across the room and pray for a spouse who has just been mean to us, to share the Gospel message to three friends at school, to pray and fast for the world for the next three days, to call a bunch of people who could use love and encouragement, to cook for a neighbor just widowed, whatever the case may be, will we strive to please our flesh and do what makes us happy, content, at ease, and comfortable, or will we forsake all for the Lord and follow Him?
If you are clear about what God is calling you to do whether it be something this very day, or something really big down the road, whether small or humongous, please say YES and with love, joy, and thanksgiving follow the Holy Spirit as He leads you forth!
““…but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.” Acts 26:19-20 NKJV
“Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance…And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”” Luke 3:8-9 NKJV
“You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS ACCOUNTED TO HIM FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.” James 2:19-24 NKJV