On Obedience: Lessons Learned
I recently followed through on something God called me to do years ago. While the process was slow and often confusing, I am grateful for the lessons learned along the way.
Firstly, God lit each next step AS I WAS TAKING IT. Part of the reason I was confused and seemingly slow in my obedience, is that I was wanting certainty before taking action. But faith doesn’t work that way. Most often, we learn to trust God through trusting God.
Each time I “put myself out there,” He was quick to show up and send someone who had a bit of wisdom, or a pertinent piece of information to share. When I thought I was waiting on God, it seems He was waiting on me to trust Him by lifting my foot off the floor of certainty to step into “the beginning of God.”
Secondly, Satan has also been there EVERY STEP OF THE WAY, whispering “believable lies” like only he can. There has been no shortage of discouragement, and many strange happenings I am still wrapping my head around. Would I keep going in spite of the doubts swirling in my mind? Did it make sense to persevere when it looked like I should give up? Let me tell you: it was FIERCE.
Again, the Lord’s faithfulness abounded – he sent more help and people who encouraged me to keep going. That’s the thing with following God – sometimes things don’t look like they will add up, until they do.
Another lesson I am pondering presently: could the intensity of the spiritual warfare I faced be a sign that there is more at stake than one day hearing “Well Done.” (Though, that is plenty of reason in itself!) Wouldn’t there be less resistance if it didn’t matter? Perhaps God will use my book to help many marriages? Or maybe it is more about what God will call me to next, now that this has been checked off my to-do list?
It may be that it has nothing to do with me! What if the “bigger thing” is in the obedience of one (maybe you?!) who will take his or her own steps of obedience faster for having witnessed mine? I may never know, but it is so fun to wonder about!
Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.
James 1:2&3 (The Message)
