The reality that the Lord has called us to greater things often catches off guard. We find ourselves completely unprepared for the journey ahead, realizing that we alone cannot overcome anything without Him, our Protector, Comforter, Strength, and Life. He brings us to a place where we see that we must lay everything down. Our willingness to do so allows Him to capture our hearts and consume our everything thought and action. We see the present us. The people that we are now, completely unprepared for the call on our lives. God sees the mature and prepared us, the ones He is shaping and molding.
This is where we can get ourselves into trouble. If we do not understand that God must prepare us and shape us, we might try to do things on our own; a problem I see many people face (myself included). We get excited about the future and decide to rush into the call He has. I believe He understands the passion we have, laughs because we are trying to do it again on our own, and waits for us to realize how silly we are for thinking we could.
I cannot imagine being the person I am today without the Lord’s help. He alone healed my wounds, renewed and restored my mind, continuing to do so daily. The desires, the call He has placed on my life is bigger than I can imagine. It involves more than I can comprehend both in physical and spiritual senses. Am I ready? Probably not right now. Is He teaching me daily who I am and what I am to be for others? Yes. Is He guiding me on the paths of righteousness He has set before me, calling me deeper? YES.
I am not saying in any way that I’ve got this whole relationship with God down pat. I don’t. I am discovering the need for Him I have. Some weeks when I seem to make a million commitments and do not stop for a moment of precious quiet time with Him, I realize how much I need Him. How much He loves me. He is passionate about me, about the desires He’s placed in me, about the people He has placed in my life.
It is amazing how God changes up the way He encourages and speaks to my spirit. Sometimes it is through the Word, other times in the midst of prayer or writing. Lately, it has been through words of encouragement from other people. Anyways, that was a random digression. I really just wanted to express the thoughts I had on the call He has for us.
He does not want us to live in the future but for the future. What I mean is He delights in our daily growth that prepares us for future endeavors. Ha. Endeavors might not be the best word, but its only one I can come up with at the moment. We must share in daily, present relationship with Him. We cannot hope to obtain something deeper with Him without action. We cannot move without Him moving first nor speak without Him speaking first.
We must be willing to live a Psalm 46:10 life. A beautiful quote by A.W. Tozer from his book Pursuit of God is: “Whoever will listen will hear the speaking Heaven...Religion has accepted the monstrous heresy that noise, size, activity, and bluster make a man dear to God. But we may take heart. To a people caught in the tempest of the last great conflict God says, ‘ Be still and know that I AM God,’ and still He says it, as if He means to tell us that our strength and safety lie not in noise but in silence.” I am not saying that every moment with the Lord will be in silence. We must have communion with Him daily, celebrating His goodness, and praising His name. Many times though, we do not wait patiently upon the Lord for an answer but assume that the first opportunity that comes our way is what the Lord has for us. This may be true in some cases, but I believe more often than not that we are simply not waiting for the best. We are settling for the good things and not waiting.
Let us be diligent in the things He has placed in our lives now, not squandering away precious time. Let us be a people that live a Matthew 6:33 life. Let us be patient, waiting for the best, opening our hearts and minds to His Kingdom.
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” -Matthew 6:33
Take a moment this week to wait on the Lord; let Him teach you, mold you, and guide you.
A few verses on waiting:
Psalm 27:14
Psalm 130:5
Isaiah 8:17
Proverbs 8
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