Yes, I was living for the Lord &
loving Him but I wasn’t fighting spiritually like I once did. For 2 years I let
the “stuff” of life distract me as I encountered several personal trials. I
would find myself fighting the wrong battles or not fighting at all. It took
everything in me to hold onto the vision, dream & calling that the Holy Spirit
planted in me years ago. But since last Feb. the Lord has kept challenging me
to press on and not give up. So I made a decision to no longer give in to man’s
ideas & follow the Lord.
As I continued on this journey it wasn’t
easy as tough decisions had to be made, yet at the same time ministry
opportunities were opening up and restoring the hope of the original calling.
Then in Oct. the journey took a twist I never imagined. I had been praying and
fasting and the Lord had really been stirring some things up inside of me. My
husband was gone on a men’s retreat from a Thursday to Sunday. That Thursday I
drove past a church sign that would have a great impact on my life. I was so
drawn to this sign! I couldn’t get away from seeing it. The next day I drove to
the sign & wrote the website address down and continued on with my errands.
When I got home I sat down to look at the
web site. I began to read about the vision of people being inspired to draw
closer to God and see their bondages broken, encouragement to find freedom from
the struggles of life, and salvation for all. As I read this web site I wept as
the Holy Spirit overcame showing me the very vision within me was at this
place. The sign I saw was for IChurch.
Two days later I visited IChurch. By the end of the service I knew I was stepping
into something supernatural that the Lord was setting up. There’s not enough
space here to tell all the details but the bottom line is they were praying for
God to send me to them at the same time I was praying for God to take me
where-ever and do with me whatever He wanted. Oh my, I never dreamed of the
whirlwind that was about to happen. Friends were even sending me e-mails
saying; “God is about to bring a suddenly in your life”. I wish I could share all the details in this
blog but let me just say that after more prayer and fasting God moved us to
commit to sharing in the vision at IChurch. God confirmed this with 2
Corinthians 16:9 (NLT) “There is a wide-open door for
a great work here, although many oppose me.”
Now let’s get back to where I started and
share some more scripture. In the beginning of this blog I mentioned about
Pastor Chu teaching our bible study. I am not going to give you the whole
thing, but just highlight some scripture he shared. First he shared from Judges
11 about a man named Jephthah whom the Lord had called to be a
warrior but he never fulfilled what the Lord had for him because he let people
and trials take him away.
The next scripture was Psalm 73:1-28. In verses 1-20 David was bemoaning the
blessing of the wicked around him and questioning God about his own trials,
even questioning whether it was worth going on with God. Then in verses 21-28
David turns his trust back to the Lord having his vision and hope renewed. The
Psalms are the most read book in the bible because so many of us relate to
David. He was a man after God’s heart but like us he often struggled with who
God called him to be but he wouldn’t give up and would always find the grace
and mercy of the Lord available to him giving him victory after victory.
The last scripture was a familiar one but
stronger than ever as I heard it read. Phil. 3:12-14 12 Not that I have already attained, or am
already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ
Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count
myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching
forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the
goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
In closing let me break this down for you
a little since I feel this is right where I’m at in my life right now and a
place we all need to find ourselves at some time.
I’m not
perfect: I have made mistakes along the way & I still miss it at times. But
I keep getting up. (v12)
I
haven’t arrived (apprehended), but I am forgetting the past and pressing on. (v13)
Most
importantly, I am pressing toward the call of God so that in the end I can hear
“well done.” (v14)
Friends, I challenge you. Do not give up
on the calling, dream or vision God has planted in you. Yes there will be
hurdles to jump along the way but it will be worth it to follow the Lord and
know that we have been obedient to His calling. We will be able to say as the
Apostle Paul said: “I have fought
the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful.” 2 Tim, 4:7 (NLT)
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