Obeying the Call

 God's call on Abraham's life was unusual. He was called to follow God to an unknown destination. We learn in [Heb 11:8] that he went out not knowing where he was going. He was called to leave family and everything familiar even though he did not know the intended destination. He would have to follow God every single day in order to get to God's mysteriously unknown final destination. 

It was a step of faith. Abraham obeyed God's call by belief in the call. God called him to go and he packed up and went. I can relate. Abraham obeyed even though he did not have all the details spelled out. That did not keep him from responding in faith. God's call trumped all the questions. 

Can you imagine Abraham trying to explain to his family what he sensed God wanted him to do. I am sure there were raised eyebrows. I am certain well meaning loved ones tried to talk him out of such a foolish venture. Abraham heard God. The call was clear. He resolved to follow through no matter what the outcome would be. He was abandoned to the will and call of God. 

Not everyone who sits in a church pew is abandoned to the will and call of God. Some have their heels dug in singing, "We shall not be moved." That is not my approach. I lived the past twenty-five years surrendered to God and His call. I confess there were some times I got it totally wrong. There were other times it did not make sense. Even a few times when people tried to talk me out of obedience by faith. They thought it foolish. God came through each time. 

To live surrendered to God's call means living with no will of your own. It means following God even when you do not understand. It means doing things that do not make sense to the casual observer. When God puts a call on your life it would be foolish not to obey. Can anyone say Jonah? 

The call of God can be so strong and irresistible that caution is thrown to the wind as people submit and obey. Remember this. God's call seldom leads to comfort. He leads us out of our comfort zones and pushes us to risky ventures. Remember David and Goliath [I Samuel 17] or Jonathan and his armor bearer attacking enemy troops just the two of them [I Samuel 14] or even Paul taking the gospel to hostile territories [Acts 14]. 

How do we know when God is calling? I heard the following in a sermon the other day. I thought it worth repeating here. 

G- Glory - if you obey the call of God will He get glory from your obedience?

O - Others - what are others counseling and affirming about your perceived call?

S - Scripture - can your call be backed up with scripture?

P - Prayer - have you bathed the call in prayer and have God's peace?

E - Evangelism - if you obey God's call will it lead to other people getting saved?

L - Lifestyle - will your lifestyle be in keeping with Christian character and conduct if you obey the call?

The Rabbit Foot

 People all over the world believe in good luck charms. One of those is a rabbit foot. I do not know how that originated. Good luck charms are certainly not what is on my mind this morning. I have a far different tale to share with you. One that in all my years of walking with God I have never seen before. His creativity and ability do not cease to amaze me. Let me tell you what happened to me yesterday. 

Tuesdays and Thursdays are pretty busy up here at Spring Creek when Pinnacle Christian School is in session. They use our facility. About 125 students and dozens of teachers descend on this place. A couple of years ago we relocated my office right across from the Pinnacle office. It is grand central station. When I need to study on those days I often use my old office we turned into the church library. That is what I did yesterday morning. 

Around mid morning I left to go make a pastoral visit. When I approached the glass doors I noticed a rabbit outside sitting right next to the door. On closer examination the rabbit sat on a white envelope. I was a little surprised at first. When I opened the door the heavy weight of the stone rabbit impeded the door opening as easily as it should have. My curiosity arose. I picked up the sone rabbit to see the envelope on the ground. I was again surprised when I noticed my first name handwritten on it. I placed the rabbit in the flower bed and placed and picked up the envelope. I had to next go to my house to get the car keys. It was only then that I opened the envelope. I thought it might have bee a letter of some type. 

I have no idea who went through all that effort to leave an envelope underneath a stone rabbit. Especially when I was only a few week away from those doors in the old office. Somebody drove up there, got out of their vehicle, laid the envelope on the ground, found and placed the stone rabbit on top because it was a breezy day. All of this make my curiosity arise. Somebody went through a lot of effort. 

I don't believe in good luck charms. Why should I when I walk with God. My hope and faith are in Him in each season of life. He is there in times of adversity. He is there in times of prosperity. He is dependable all times in between the two. He is trustworthy. He has demonstrated His faithfulness in my life over and over again. If you are a frequent reader of these posts you know that. You have read about the many ways God has come through for my family in astounding ways. I love to tell those stories. I digress. 

You may be wondering what was inside the envelope. It turned out not to be a letter to my surprise. There were five one hundred dollar bills in that envelope. Shocking. It is true that Brenda and I are praying for His provision in a couple of areas. I never suspected God would deliver His provision under a rabbit foot. It makes me smile and chuckle on the inside. He prompted someone somewhere to be His vessel of provision to us again. It is simply amazing. I glorify God because of this. I praise Him for helping us again. I exalt Him for hearing prayer and answering in a most unusual way. It was not good luck. It was good God.