Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established. Proverbs 16:3
Sometimes
we have good ideas or we may feel led by God to do a certain thing and yet
it is not panning out for us the way we thought it would go. Could it be that we forget that it is God who
is in complete control and if we want to be successful in Him, we not only
submit our plans to God, but we commit the works of our plans to Him. Whatever we do, we do it as service to God
who will guarantee our success. Have we
set God as the center of our life?
That’s a concept that we often fail to grasp and hold onto. Many of us, including myself, are controlling
when it comes to our life and won’t relinquish that hold to anyone. And as an adult I understand that, but God is
not anybody – He is the sovereign one that is always moving and working –
oftentimes – behind the scenes; the landscapes of our life. And
because we don’t realize that, we think we’re fighting the enemy when in
reality we are striving against God operating in our lives – orchestrating
things according to His will.
It
takes faith to believe that when we put God in charge of our work, then what we’ve
planned will take place. The other piece
to this is that even when control issues are not the problem, we come up
against the feeling of unworthiness because of things we may have said, done or
thought in the past. But let me assure
you God lets us know through His word:
It's
because of the Lord's mercies that we’re not consumed, that his compassions fail not. They’re
new every morning: great is His faithfulness towards us. Lamentations 3:22-23
As
long as we’re breathing, don’t ever think that you’ve done so bad or waited too
late to live out your spiritual desires or act on the plan that God has given
you. Sometimes we need a ‘God’
moment or an ‘aha’ moment or a ‘come to Jesus’
moment; whatever moment it may be, we should do our due diligence, like the
prodigal son and repent of any wrongdoing – for not trusting God; for striving
against Him – and confess and ask God for forgiveness and return back
to your rightful place in God; that place where you got off the path in your actions
or your thoughts so you can get back on the right tract. Just think about it; if you don’t know where
you went left, how can you get right? If we know where we went left and don’t go
back and correct it, we’re still not right.
As long as we’re breathing and receiving of the new mercy that God gives
every morning, we have the opportunity to get on the right tract.
You
may be thinking ‘but I haven’t done anything wrong’ and yet things are not
coming to fruition. I still say hold on
and wait on God; commit your thoughts to Him and it will come to pass according
to His will; if it is to be. Remember, it’s
our work that we commit to God but we do it according to His will. No time is ever lost in waiting for God to
reveal or execute His plan for us when we’re sincere in our efforts, faithful;
loyal to God. By patiently waiting, by the mercy of
God and the truth of His word, iniquity
is purged: and in this meantime, we move further and further from
ungodliness [Proverbs 16:6] and position ourselves to move forward in
God.
All
along the way, as we traverse this journey, leaning on God each
step of the way, we stumble, we faint, sometimes we fall, we repent, we get
back up, sometimes we fall again and we get back up again, but we’re transitioning
ever more into the image of God; that time was not wasted as God matures us in
Him; as we’re being converted. We can
look at men in the bible who despite what they went through; what they
experienced, how they waited on God to show up, lead and guide them in the way
that they should go.
Men
like Joseph who waited in prison for two years, but then emerged to save a
nation. He was being transitioned from
the spoiled son of a rich daddy to a man of integrity; so that when he was set
in a place of power and authority and God’s chosen was in need of help, he was able
and willing to provide the necessary aid without deceit, malice or anger.
We
can always look at Moses, a man who was swathed in luxury from infancy to
manhood; how he fled his home and waited in the wilderness of Midian for 40
years, but emerged to lead a nation in a great spiritual exodus from slavery to
freedom.
These
2 men walked carefully before God. They
developed a relationship with God just as we should. The bible tells us that we should be careful how we live; to be mindful of our steps. We
shouldn’t run around foolishly like the world does. Instead, we’re to walk as
the wise; those that reverence God. We
should make the most of every living, breathing moment we have because these
are evil times we live in. We need to understand and be confident in God’s will
so that we don’t live thoughtlessly. [Ephesians 5:15-17]
We
can’t and shouldn’t wait until we feel like we’re perfect in our own eyes, we
should begin right now, today,
Ø
BEGIN RIGHT
WHERE YOU ARE:
√ Obey God daily in the little things of everyday
life
This is hat Samuel had to tell Kin Saul about his
disobedience: . . .Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt
offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey
is better than sacrifice, it’s hard to obey God when we’re not clear on what He is saying
but we still have no excuse because He also says and to hearken than the fat of rams. (1 Samuel 15:22) Hearken means to listen carefully, to give due
attention, to give strict mindfulness to.
What
do I get out of that in terms of obedience is this: Religious observance (in this case, the burnt
offerings) without obedience is empty before God. The best sacrifice we can
bring to God is a repentant heart. I
found in His word where it says:
For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou
delightest not in burnt offering. The
sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God,
thou wilt not despise. Psalm 51:16-17
and
not only that, our bodies surrendered to His service for obedience:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that
ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is
your reasonable service. Romans
12:1
If
we’re not faithful over the little things God gives us to do right where we
are, He’ll not entrust a greater call or ministry to us. That’s bible, read Matthew 25:14-30 regarding the management of the talents.
We
can take that parable and apply it to our everyday life. All we have to do is simply look around our
city with "spiritual" eyes and think what God has commissioned us to
do. Ask God to show us those in need of the Gospel. This is something we, as believers, should
always be doing; increasing the talents.
Be
willing to go and be used anywhere by God.
God placed a desire on Nehemiah’s heart but Nehemiah was beholden to the
King and couldn’t just pick up and go where he pleased, but his desire was so
great that He asked the king:
. . . If
it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that
thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that
I may build it. (Nehemiah 2:5)
This
was determination and a willingness to do what God had purposed for him. He was unwilling to let anything stop him –
no matter what the obstacles were; and there were many. He didn’t stop, he continued on.
This
might mean leaving our own area and going to another area to spread the Gospel.
It might mean just walking down the street to share the Gospel with someone in
need. We do all this while we’re waiting
on God to show up in our work.
√ We should start or continue to study
the word of God and seek Him concerning our call.
. . .
but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do
according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way
prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Joshua 1:8
√ Spend daily time in prayer.
Ask
God to stir up the giftings inside you. If
you know your spiritual gifting, exercise it or them as God prompts you.
For the
gifts and calling of God are without repentance. Romans 11:29
Seek
further training to prepare yourself.
Whatever area of your calling you feel you are lacking in, seek to
improve in it.
Ø
RECOGNIZE
THE CORPORATE CALL OF GOD:
Remember
no matter what our particular calling may be, every believer is called to share
the Gospel with others right where they are. Concerning
the specific call on your life, there are certain principles by which we can be
sure of the calling God gives us.
Ask
yourself these questions:
*
Does
what we desire to do agree with God's general plan as set forth in His Word? Is
it Scriptural and does it contribute towards the goal of reaching the world
with the Gospel?
*
Do
the circumstances of our life agree with the leading of God? Let me caution you
here not be led by circumstances alone, but examine these in
terms of what you believe to be your calling from God.
*
Does
the Holy Spirit bear continual witness with our spirit that this is the will of
God? Lack of peace in our spirit is often a warning sign that we are making a
wrong decision.
*
Are
we still "called" when there is no challenge of adventure or glamour
connected with our call? If called to an insignificant task or field of
service, are we willing to go?
*
Are
we willing to pay any price to fulfill the call God has given us? The price may
range from obtaining further education to dying a martyr's death. It may mean
leaving home, family, and friends. Are we willing?
Ø
KNOW THAT GOD HAS ORDAINED YOU
Jesus
has chosen us to be part of His plan for reaching the world with the good news.
He has ordained that we bring forth spiritual fruit from the harvest fields. As we see things from a godly perspective, we
can understand what Jesus meant when he said:
. . . I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and
bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: . . . John 15:16
Let
me conclude by saying this: Everything
that we do is for the glory of God, the promotion of the Kingdom of God and the
winning of lost souls to the Kingdom.
Say not
ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you,
Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to
harvest. John 4:35
Everything
that we desire to do for God should be based on this premise and most
assuredly, everything God has for us to do is based on this premise. He has promised to supply anything we need to
enable us to complete the task:
Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and
ordained you, that YE should go forth and bring forth fruit, and that your
fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, He
may give it we. (John 15:16)
Commit
your ways, your plans, your very life to God and wait on Him.
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