Lord, You want me to do what?

My Utmost For His Highest

 

‘…the strictness of the rejection that He demands of me allows for nothing to remain in my life but my Lord, myself, and a sense of desperate hope. He says that I must let everyone else come or go, and that I must be guided solely by my relationship to Him.[…] We put our sense of loyalty to our relatives ahead of our loyalty to Jesus Christ, forcing Him to take last place. When your loyalties conflict, always obey Jesus Christ whatever the cost. […]This man had reservations about going. The exacting call of Jesus has no room for good-byes; good-byes, as we often use them, are pagan, not Christian, because they divert us from the call. Once the call of God comes to you, start going and never stop.’ CHAMBERS

 

Chambers is speaking to Luke 9:57-62.

 

"As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” He said to another man, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Do you remember how the disciples responded to Jesus’ call to follow Him?  They left their nets, immediately ..

 

Matthew 4:18-22 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them,  and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

 

Have you ever felt that tension?  Obeying the Lord or rejecting Him for the “normal life”?  Would Jesus really ask you to leave your family to serve Him?  Wouldn’t you be a poor excuse for a parent if you left your children or your grandchildren to serve God in some strange place?  What if you missed a funeral of a loved one because you were in another land.  Don’t those seem like good reasons to say “Lord, I want to , but not now … there are things that I must tend to.”  Don’t you think the Lord already knows your circumstance?

 

Now before you start packing your bags, you must first be certain it is the Lord and not the emotion of the moment.  Is it something you want to do or something that the Lord has called you to do?  You can discern that through the Word, prayer, circumstances and others.  If you are married, certainly your spouse … assuming your spouse is a believer .. and walking by faith as you are.  Amos 3:3 asks the question, ‘How can to walk together unless they be agreed?”  The Lord will not speak to you and not your spouse … Charley’s interpretation of the Word … Now I did not say that it would not be challenging .. but you will both know that is the Lord’s will.  If one goes and one stays, they are both serving the Lord, but in different ways.  Oswald Chambers went to North Africa as a chaplain with the British Army and died from disease there .. leaving his wife and children behind .. yet his wife went on to compile My Utmost for His Highest and other works based upon Chambers sermons, writings, and lectures. That couple has deeply impacted many Christians over the years.

 

The bottom line is that you cannot reason your way through the Lord’s call … it’s spiritual and above human reason .. it requires faith and trust and obedience.  What is the Lord saying to you today?

 

‘Without Him I could do nothing, without Him I’d surely fail, without Him life would be hopeless, like a ship without a sail.’  Jesus is our sail and the Spirit is the wind … heave anchor .. and point your ship out to sea.  Then marvel at what the Lord does through your obedience.

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)