Proverbs 20:24- Obedience Does Not Require Understanding

          Even though I am fully aware of my leaving in August, it is still very strange to tell others my future plans.  I know I'm going to Uganda, but it still blows me away for some reason. At Central, graduation for the high school seniors was this past week and we spent sometime on Sunday listening to them talk of their future plans.  When I was in their stage of life (three years ago) I had my next 10 years mapped out....90% of what I'm doing now is not anywhere close to the plans I had then.  

         Several of the seniors have not committed to a life plan, a major, or even a school yet, but are simply waiting for the blanks to be filled in on God's timing.  I'm not disappointed in  not following the plans I had leaving high school, in fact where I'm at now is so much better than what I had planned anyways. As my plans changed over the years I did not understand why, and I still don't, but I listen to the One leading me anyways. 

As I was spending time in the Word this morning I was reminded of the fact that it's okay to not understand what you're doing or how you got there.  

"A man's steps are from the LORD; how then can man understand his way?" 

 

Thankfully we are not required (or expected) to always understand, but to simply obey.  Obedience after all, does not require understanding, but action. 

My Decider

At Central we just finished a series titled: "One Word".  We were all given a small stack of post-it notes to write down simple words that describe who God is to us.  With that being said, I should explain that college is a weird place to be in life. You're on your own with a million different directions and possibilities.  There are so many decisions to make that you develop this fear of one wrong choice determining the rest of your life. 

I ate lunch with a friend who is in the same boat as me earlier this week and as we talked, a new word came into mind.  Decider.  We have all these choices to make, but the truth is God takes care of all that for us! He is our Decider.  Below is my own version of Psalm 23 that has led me to a greater trust in our Savior. 

The Lord is my decider, I shall not choose on a whim.

 He makes unsurpassed plans for me; Ones I could never fathom. 

He restores my focus in times of distress.  He leads me in paths of purpose

 for His name’s sake. 

Even though I walk in blind paths, I will fear no direction,

for You guide me with Your Word and hand,

 they bring me to commitment. 

You prepare the ways I go in the presence of the confused;

You anoint my feet with trust; my ways are boundless.

Surely your light and truth shall lead me all the days of my life

 And I shall live in Your will forever.

God Knows Everything

I know the title of this post seems ridiculously obvious, but I somehow find myself always needing this reminder.  The past few weeks have been full of frustration for me as I prepare to make major decisions about life post Uganda.  It's crazy to realize that only a semester of college is left for me once I get back...that means really figuring out what I'm going to do with my life.  There are so many places I could go and things I could do, but the real question here is not what I am going to do, but why I'm going to do it and who is leading me there. 

My biggest fear is that I will end up in this incredibly ideal situation, but miss out on what God wants for me.  As I was spending some time praying for guidance today I was reminded of this simple truth: God knows everything.  So maybe my "decisions" are not a matter of deciding, but waiting.  Waiting for God to point out the direction, the answer, the plan....for some reason He does this in small steps.  I guess it wouldn't be waiting without those steps! 

As I wait and listen, listen and wait, I long to see what God is going to do, because lets face, He already knows.  As I wait, I find comfort in knowing that He already has it covered.  No matter what plans we have for the future, God is still the one calling the shots!

"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand." Proverbs 19:21

Trust Him.

All the way, right away, with a happy heart

Obedience, a theme painted all throughout the Bible and our day to day lives.

  As I have said before, I like to have things planned out, organized, and ready to be done before I can even rethink the upcoming events.  I have realized that my plans are all too often trumped by something bigger, better, and more radical in God's scheme of things.  I never planned to spend a semester in Uganda.....I planned to fly through four years of college and do something with my life, but that's the problem.  I focused on future tense things instead of considering what I am doing in the now.

In James we are told not to brag about the future because we claim it as our own instead of listening for and obeying God's voice (or even considering His plan).  When I planned the next several years of my life absolutely none of what I am doing now was listed.  As God pointed me in a different directions than what I had planned it frustrated me....I knew this would make things harder.  But we aren't promised an easy route.  We are just told to be obedient to His call.  The best definition of obedience I have ever been given is "all the way, right away, with a happy heart".  When God tells us to do something we are to obey....it's as simple as that.  "Anyone, then who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it sins." James 4:17

Being someone that wants to know the layout for my entire life, I often ask God what He wants from me, but the truth is I already know.....we have an entire book dedicated to instructing us in how to live.  We ask not because we do not know, but because we are hoping somehow God will change his mind to match what we have already planned for our own lives.

" He has showed you, O man, what is good.  And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God". Micah 6:8

When you commit to something you do it all the way, when it matters to you, you do it right away, when you realize it's worth, you do it with a happy heart regardless of what the request or instruction is. When God speaks, I want to respond in obedience, not regret.  Obedience, after all does not require understanding, but action.


All the way, right away, with a happy heart.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSGAnIIyaqw

Four letters that change my life continuously

L.O.V.E.

It's a word we hear in all the new songs, a phrase we hear a mother say to her child, a way we live.  Love is a word that scares me to death.  It calls for commitment and sacrifice. When I say I love someone I am expressing my utmost dedication to them......I might as well say "I will do anything in the world for you and your happiness".  I have been working my way through the book of Hosea for the past week or so and am continuously blown away by this perfect picture of love that God portrays to and through Israel (Gomer).

When God calls us to do hard things we think He has traded us off for something better or completely forgotten about us altogether, but God tells Hosea to go and marry a prostitute even though the two of them are completely aware of her unfaithfulness. In the same way, I think God has us experience difficult circumstances.  In Hosea's story, he searches out Gomer multiple times in hopes of her finally being faithful.  This is to show the reader how God is constantly in pursuit of us even when we are disobedient or literally run from Him and His plans for our lives. 

After getting my acceptance letter for Uganda love took on a new definition for me.  I'm sure we would all say we love God, but do we love what He is doing in our lives?  Uganda is a hard thing for me.  (It's not God telling me to go marry a man-whore, but it's still not easy!)  Going means leaving everything.  My friends, my family, my work, all my future plans......all the things that I value and enjoy.  Do I love God to the point that I am willing to give all of this up for a semester in another country?  I don't know if the better word here is "love" or "trust".  The two words are becoming one in the same for me.  If we love Him then wouldn't we trust Him? 

Hosea trusted and loved God enough to be obedient to the point of marrying a prostitute.  God did this all to show how He dearly loves His people (that includes you and me).  "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings" (Hosea 6:6)  Love of God requires action; mercy, obedience, and trust.  We do these things because He loves us.  Obedience does not require understanding, but it does requires trust.

"Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth"  1 John 3:18

Never say "Never"

Since October of 2010 I have been prayerfully considering going to Uganda for a semester.  This all came about as a joke at first, but the more I poked at it, the more I felt led to really consider it.  Life does strange things to me (well, to everyone I guess....but I can only speak for myself).  There are three things that I remember saying that I would  never do in life:

1. Work at a BIG church.

2. Go to Williams Baptist College.

3. Spend a portion of my life overseas.

If you know anything at all about me, you know that the first two have been a HUGE part of my life for the past three years.  The third, has had an even bigger impact without even taking place. 

           When Uganda started to become a real consideration I freaked.  I didn't want to leave Williams for a semester.....I didn't want to leave my Central kids and church family.  The truth is, I knew it was going to be uncomfortable, hard, complicated and a lot more difficult than just staying in Walnut Ridge and finishing school.  This would ruin all my plans.  As I started the application process I knew that applying would not guarantee that I would get to go, but at least then I could "prove" to myself that I was willing to go.  

I am supposed to find out about Uganda on the 17th of this month (10 days from now).  I haven't told many people about this possible next step in my life because I wanted to know for sure that I was going before I told everyone, but I am not writing this to announce my decision or the direction of my life.  I am writing this to explain what God has taught me through it all. 

I think that as believers we are all called to go. To go everywhere, not just Walnut Ridge or Jonesboro, or even just Arkansas, but to all nations.  We are called to live uncomfortably so that others can taste and see that the Lord is good.  How we spend our time and money is a reflection of our hearts....ouch.  I have become so used to having all these "resources" to myself...all these things that could be spent on others.  

In the waiting time to find out about Uganda I have thought quite a bit on not only how I spend my time, but why I spend my time in this way.  If Christ calls us to do hard things then why has my life seemed so easy over the past three years? I'm not saying applying to spend a semester in another country is hard for everyone, I am simply saying that life as I know it right now is easy.  This leads me to believe that something is not right.  I am praying to go, but willing to stay....yet another thing I thought I would never do.