Tag: call of God

Not Everyone is Called to Stand in the Pulpit, But Everyone is Called to Serve

1 Corinthians 9:16
For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!

Not everyone is called in the same manner that Paul was called. It is certain, in fact, that most of us were not called to stand in the pulpit to preach the gospel. It is just as certain, however, that every one of us has been called to live the gospel and to serve our Master in the manner in which He has called us.

There will be no peace in our hearts if we take a different direction than the one the Lord set aside for us. Just as Paul was compelled to preach, we are compelled to proclaim the gospel through our obedient response to Our Lord’s calling on our lives. To neglect the calling of God on our lives shows contempt for the divine will of the Father and opens us up to the torment of a wounded conscience.

If we are gifted with a beautiful singing voice, we should be using it for God’s glory. If we are gifted with organizational skills, we should be using them to help with the administration of the church. If we have been given teaching skills, we should be leading bible studies. The list goes on and on. There are no skills that cannot be used by God for the advance of His kingdom. We should search for guidance from the Holy Spirit to find out the skill or skills that God has planned uniquely for each of us. If we neglect the calling that God has placed on our lives, we may not face His wrath, but we are likely to lose the gifts that He has blessed us with.

Let us make certain that we are not neglecting the skills that we have been given. Yet, let us lean not on our own perception of our skills when we seek to serve God. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to help us discover the unique skills that God has prepared for each of us. Let us be surprised by our new abilities and improved capabilities when we enter into a covenant relationship with Our Savior.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for giving us unique skills so that we can be vital parts of the Body of Christ. We pray that You will help us discover and develop our identity in Christ. May Your Holy Spirit guide us and train us in our calling. May we find peace of mind and great satisfaction in our service to Your Kingdom. We ask these things in the name of the Head over all things, Jesus Christ.

Following Our Calling Even When We are not Sure Where We are Going

Hebrews 11: 8
It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.

What an amazing example of living in faith is provided by the story of Abraham. It was a great step of faith for Abraham to leave his family and his homeland in response to God’s calling on his life. He did not even know where God was leading him. Yet he faithfully followed the path that the Lord laid out for him. And for his simple act of faith, he became the father of all nations.

Abraham was called out of his own country. He was called away from his family. He was called away from his father’s house. He was called from the only culture that he knew. It is not likely that God will ask us to follow a similar plan as Abraham. He is not likely to call us away from relatives, friends and acquaintances. He is not likely to call us away from the neighbors and neighborhoods where we find our comfort. In fact, it is quite likely that these are the places that He will call us to serve. But just like Abraham, we can be assured that we will be challenged in some major way by our calling.

In challenging each of us, God will ask us to take simple steps of faith. As we respond obediently, He will put before us the next step which usually will require a little more faith in Him and a little more of letting go of faith in ourselves. We may not become a father of a nation by yielding to our calling, but we will surely gain more than we ever imagined.

Let us step out in faith when we sense the urging of the Holy Spirit. Let us follow God’s calling even when we are not sure where we are going. Let us reap the harvest of our journey.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for having a unique plan for each of us. We rejoice in knowing that the reward that You have prepared for us if we respond to Your calling is beyond our imagination. We pray, Father, that you will give us the strength and guidance to follow the path that you have laid out for each of us. Even though we may not know our destination, Lord, may your Holy Spirit keep us steadfast in our journey to stand before you in the image of Your Son. We pray these things in the precious name of the author of our faith, Jesus Christ.

The Differentiator in the Lives of Christian Believers

John 14:16
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,

Belief in the ministry of the Holy Spirit is core to the life of a Christian. The Holy Spirit is a gift bestowed on the disciples of Jesus Christ that is not available to the world at large. The Holy Spirit is the differentiator in the lives of those who are believers. Nothing of kingdom significance is possible on this earth without the presence of the Holy Spirit. As believers, the Holy Spirit is our source of holiness and happiness. It is only through the work of the Holy Spirit that believers are able to fulfill their God-given calling in life.

One of the tragic misunderstandings of many Christians is thinking of the Holy Spirit as a force, a power, but not as a person. Jesus Christ paid a great price for us to have His Spirit within us. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit seeks to have a very personal relationship with each of us. The Holy Spirit longs to be our counselor on all issues big and small. The Holy Spirit stands ready to be our advocate in heaven and our defender against Satan. The Holy Spirit monitors everything that we do and whispers to us to keep us on our course of sanctification. And yes, the Holy Spirit will not hesitate to rebuke us harshly if we do not listen to His quiet urgings. Through it all, the Holy Spirit is forever with us to give us peace, comfort and strength in all of the trials of our lives.

Let us commit today to developing a deep, personal relationship with our Helper. Let us seek His instruction, His guidance, His comfort and His strength. Let us rejoice in knowing that He is our constant and unfailing companion.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing the ever present Spirit of Your Son, Jesus in our lives. We exalt the name of Your Son for giving His life so that we could have a personal advocate, intercessor, counselor and protector who never leaves us. We rejoice in knowing that the Holy Spirit is our source of holiness, happiness, comfort and strength throughout our lives. We humbly submit to His whispers and urgings. We pray that we will surrender to His perfect instruction. We ask that we may develop a deep and mature personal relationship with our ever present Lord. We ask all these things in the name of the One who asked the Father to provide Our Helper, Jesus Christ.

God Was Quite Pleased When He Called Us

Galatians 1:15
But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace,

When it pleased God, He called the apostle Paul to serve him. When it pleased God, He called each of us from darkness, blindness and ignorance into the light and knowledge of the Gospel. When it pleased God, He called us out of bondage to sin into the liberty of Christ. When it pleased God, He called us from the fellowship of men into fellowship of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. When it pleased God, He set us apart to have our names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. It was all through His grace. It was all in His timing.

When it pleased God, He called us from dependence on our own righteousness to trusting in His Son, Jesus Christ. As we learn to focus entirely on Jesus and less and less on ourselves, our eyes are opened to see how everything God does is done in perfect timing when it is pleasing to Him.

Unfortunately, even as we grow in faith and in knowledge of Almighty God, we continue to be limited by our weakness in the flesh. In the flesh, we expect God to show up exactly when we want Him to and in what manner we want Him to. In doing so, we often miss Him when He shows up in the birds, in the trees and in the smiles and words of those around us. The facets of Our Almighty God are beyond our understanding. Most of His good work goes unseen and unappreciated by us. It is the shallowness of our relationship that creates this phenomenon.

Let us strive to find a deep and inmate relationship with Our Savior. Through Him, let us find and cherish Almighty God in every moment that we live.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the never ending flow of Your grace in our lives. We rejoice in knowing that You have a perfect plan for our lives and that You will release it according to Your perfect timing. We pray, Father, that you will help us to turn our focus away from ourselves and turn our attention to Your Son, Jesus. We pray that the Holy Spirit will open our eyes so that the fullness of Your grace is revealed to us in every aspect of our lives. We ask these things in the name of the Resurrection and the Life, Jesus Christ.

Raised Up Anew in the Spirit

Acts 26:16
Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me.

These are the words that Jesus spoke to Paul when He struck him down on the trail to Damascus. Being the respecter of no man, these are the same words that Jesus speaks to every man. By the loving kindness, mercy and grace of Our Savior, each one of us have been taken down in the flesh to be raised up anew in the spirit to serve Our Lord. He is just waiting on us to say, “Here I am, send me.”

Saul was an enemy of the early church. He was doing all he could to shut down the early Christians. If God would use such a man for His good purposes, can He not use each of us? Just as the Lord lifted Saul from his blindness to be Paul, a beacon of light to the world, He can also lift us from whatever darkness is holding us down. He can change us into new men and women in Christ, witnesses to the way, the truth and the life that is Jesus.

All we have to do is respond to the One that is calling us to stand up and serve. He will give us our commission. He will equip us for our mission. He will lift us up from whatever may be holding us down. He will make us true ministers and witnesses to His Gospel.

Let us respond to the One that calls us. Let us learn to live under the power of the Cross as we take up the crosses that we have been given to carry. Let us stand up and boldly proclaim the Good News.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for taking down the old man and raising up a new man in Christ. We praise the name of Jesus who made it possible for us to escape the darkness in our lives and empowered us to be lights on a hill for the world to see. We rejoice in knowing that we will be bondservants to Our Savior for all eternity. Lord, we ask that the Holy Spirit prepare us for our work. We pray that the Holy Spirit will show us how to make our lives living testimonies to Your glory. We pray these things in the name of the One who calls us, Jesus Christ.

Stepping Into the Path of Service

Luke 9:61
Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.”

In the final passage in Luke 9, there are a number of verses which point out the costs of following Jesus. In essence, each cost mentioned really applies to the type of excuses we will come up with to delay following what the Lord is calling us to do.

One of the most common excuses for many of us is “I am not capable or I am not ready to take on such a task.” There is a faith gap that prevents us from believing that we can do what the Lord is asking of us. We question the calling because it goes against our natural instincts.

Other common excuses seem to come from our friends and our family. The world is eager to step in and divert us from any calling of the Lord. It is remarkable how quickly those around us can cause us to step away from what God has ordained for us.

When we finally move forward with what God has asked us to do, we find out it never was about our ability nor about our worldly affairs. It was about our faith in God. When God calls us to do anything, large or small, we should leap into action with confidence in the One who called us. It is through Him that the good work is done. We are only instruments of His love.

Let us block out the questioning of those around us. Let us shield ourselves from the attacks of the enemy. Let us step out in faith upon the path of service that the Lord has prepared for us for He has already secured our way.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for choosing us to be instruments of Your good work. We rejoice in knowing that we can share Your love with the world around us in so many different and powerful ways. We pray that You open our eyes and prepare our hearts so that we do not delay any good work that You have set aside for us. We ask all these things in the name of the One that determines our steps, Jesus Christ.

Avoiding Taking a Commercial View of Our Work for God

Luke 10:20
Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.

When Jesus sent the disciples out two by two, they all came back with stories of victory against the enemy. Jesus had to forewarn them not to be overcome by their success.

When following the Lord’s calling on our lives, the blessing and power of Jesus Christ will be ours to use to overcome the enemy in our lives and the lives of those that we serve. We must be alert to the fact that victory over the enemy and any type of fruitful service for the kingdom of God can be quite intoxicating. We must be careful not to call our victories our own for all the glory is for Our Savior. If our pride allows us to claim the glory, our fall is certain.

Further, we must not let ourselves take a commercial view of the things that we do for Jesus. That is, we cannot measure ourselves by the results of our work. Our work for the Lord is not about success. It is about the deepening relationship that we are forming with Him as His disciples. It is about the deepening relationship that we are forming with the Father. It is about our preparation to join Our Savior in His heavenly kingdom. As we rightly relate to our success in serving God, we shall become more useful in our service for Him.

Let us grab hold of the power given to us by Our Savior to overcome the enemy who attacks us and our loved ones. Let us give all the glory to the One who made the power available to us, Jesus Christ. Let us rejoice in knowing that our eternal resting places in heaven have been secured for us.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the power and blessings that You release in our lives through our relationship with Your Son, Jesus. We ask You, Lord Jesus, to show us how to become Your true disciples. We ask You to give us the power to overcome the enemy in our lives and in the lives of those to whom we bring the salvation message. We ask that You open the eyes of those around us that they may see and seek Your Spirit that lives within us. May we all be prepared for the time that we stand before You to hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” We ask all these things in the name of the One whose kingdom and power and glory are forever, Jesus Christ.

Looking for God in Our Daily Lives

Exodus 3:4
When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”

Moses was going about his normal business of shepherding the flock when he came upon the burning bush. He could not see anyone who might have started the fire. Moses could have run away in fear or he could have simply walked away thinking that this is no concern of mine. Instead, Moses approached the bush to discover more of this mystery unfolding before him. He heard a voice but there was no human there speaking it. But it was unmistakeable to Moses, He was being addressed by someone who knew him and knew His name. When the Lord saw that He had Moses’ attention, He called out to him and Moses responded, “Here I am.”

As noted, the first appearance of God to Moses was while he was tending his sheep. This seems poor employment for someone who was raised as a prince in the Pharaoh’s court. Yet Moses was well satisfied and God was pleased with him. God was pleased with Moses because he was learning the meekness and contentment that he would need in the calling that was awaiting him. He was also pleased with Moses because Moses was seeking God in his life.

Moses is a great model for each of us. He looked for God in his daily life and, more importantly, Moses was ready to hear and act upon whatever the Lord asked him to do. So it should be with us.

Let us look for God at all times. Let us expect to be surprised by Him showing up in the smallest details of our everyday lives. Let us be ready to respond to His calling.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for always being present with us. We exalt Your Name for being our ever present God. We pray that You will open our eyes so that we can see You in every detail of our lives, from the grandest places and moments to the lowliest of places and moments. May Your Holy Spirit prepare us to be alert to see Your presence and to hear Your calling. May we always be eager to be instruments of Your good work and vessels of Your perfect love and forgiveness. We ask all these things in the name of our ever present Lord, Jesus Christ.

When the Cost Seems So High

Matthew 26:42
Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”

Jesus Christ, the only perfect man to ever walk the this earth, fell on His face, cried out to His Father in heaven and asked to be freed of His upcoming duty. In the same overwhelming moment, Jesus fully surrendered everything to the will of His Father. In this same moment, we saw the two wills of Christ, the human and the Divine. Jesus could not turn from the supernatural plan that His Father had for Him, even though He knew how much it was going to cost Him in the flesh. Jesus knew He was submitting to God’s perfect plan for the salvation of all men.

It is certain that we will find times in our lives when we are nearly overwhelmed by the thought of what is ahead. Our flesh will be ready to give in to defeat. It is precisely at these times that we must fall on our faces before Our Heavenly Father and surrender to His will for our lives. At these times, there is no resource to us greater than our prayer for strength. It is in these times that we receive the supernatural blessing that we need to obey God’s calling on our lives.

Our Father in heaven has given us life. He sustains our lives everyday. God, Himself, made the ultimate sacrifice by sending His Son to die for our sins, so that He could grant us eternal life with Him. Our full surrender to the Father is the only appropriate response that we can offer to His calling on our lives.

Let us go to the Father in prayer for the strength that we need to surrender to His plan for our lives, especially when the cost to go on seems so high. Let us rejoice in knowing that we will receive all that we need to overcome anything that is blocking our way to our destinies in Christ.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for giving us life in flesh, sustaining our every breath and granting us eternal supernatural life through the atoning sacrifice of Your Son, Jesus. We rejoice in knowing that the obedience of the Son to Your will paid the complete price for our salvation. We pray that we will find all the strength that we need to completely surrender to Your will. May we bear the fruit of Your will as we walk in obedience every day of our lives. We ask all these things in the name of the One without sin, Jesus Christ.

The Peace and Comfort that Comes from Serving God

Luke 19:42
If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.

As Jesus weeped over Jerusalem, He spoke the words in Luke 19 to the Jews, who He knew would reject Him and His offer of salvation. Because they rejected His offer, He transferred His offer to the willing Gentiles.

This principle is carried out in a different way in our daily lives. Jesus prepares us to do His work and asks us to be obedient to His calling. Sometimes He will give us simple urgings in the spirit to do something nice for someone, to pray for someone, to forgive someone or to ask forgiveness from someone. Often His urging may be for a simple act to bring a smile upon the face of another. At other times, His bidding will have much more significant impact. Whatever He asks of us, if we accept His call, we will be given greater things to do for Him. We will experience the peace and comfort that flows from serving Him. If we do not accept His bidding, we will miss the peace He offers and we will miss a portion of the bigger plans that He has for our lives. Sadly, He will move on to find the one who is willing serve Him readily.

Let us not miss the satisfaction of living in the peace and comfort of the Lord. Let us eagerly accept and carry out any task, big or small, that the Lord is asking us to do. Let us discover how simple acts of obedience bring complete peace and comfort into our lives.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for allowing us to serve You. We rejoice in knowing that You are pleased when we are obedient to Your urging. We pray that You make us sensitive to the work that You call us to do. May we find joy in even the smallest tasks. May it all bring honor and glory to You, to Your Son and to the Holy Spirit. We ask all these things in the name of the One that gives us peace at all times and in every way, Jesus Christ.