Obedience to God

I originally wrote this Sunday, September 21st on my Ruebee page but decided to post it here as well.
This Sunday was a wonderful day for me. I went to church and one of our beloveds who travels to distant places to work with the oppressed people there, gave the sermon this morning. It was about being obedient to God’s purpose for your life and your calling. Her calling is to go into a country that is ravaged by war to help those who are oppressed. This is very dangerous business and she admits that if given a choice she would not go but God has called her to do it and she is obedient. One of her points this morning was that obedience comes out of a desire to please the Father because you love Him. Not because you necessarily want to obey.  He equips her with all that she needs to accomplish His plan.  People ask her all the time how she can be so brave and do this and she pointed out this morning that obedience comes when we are in a loving, living relationship with the Father and know that we can trust Him. Trust is the cornerstone of being obedient to the Father. We must know with certainty that we are His beloved children and He wants what is best for our lives. She further assured us that if someone had told her 10 years ago that she would be literally risking her life to go to a war zone to teach and help people who might want her dead, she would have thought they were crazy. Yet, she spent six months there last year and will spend at least three this year. It is difficult during her final days here preparing for her trip but when she is settled onto the plane she says that she feels His presence surround her completely and she knows that she is fulfilling her purpose in this world. She explained that obedience comes when we have Him on the throne of our lives and believe that He has a plan for our lives and that His plan is best.

Not all are called to be missionaries in foreign lands but we are all called to something. Daily we are called. We are called to help those who are in need in our own communities and to reach out to the lost and broken. We are called to teach children and clean churches and sit with a sick friend. We are called to send a note to someone who is in pain. We are called to reach out to the single mom who is holding up the line at the grocery store because she is trying to decide what she has to put back because she doesn’t have quite enough money to pay her bill. So often these thoughts come to us to help, to go, to do and we dismiss them because we are busy with the business of this world or we feel someone else will help or we don’t feel confident in our ability to help . But when we do that, are we choosing to be disobedient to our Father? Not responding when God calls on you will not keep you out of heaven but it will keep you from meeting your full potential and receiving all that God has planned for you. So, the next time God calls you to move out of your comfort zone and obey His plan for your life, what will your answer be?

My friend will leave this week and will take a young woman with her who has also been called. I would ask that those who read this post would spend some time in prayer for these faithful women of God. Please pray for their safety and their strength, courage and continued obedience and trust in our Lord. Pray for their safe return to their families and for success in the work that God has planned for them.