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Following God’s Calling is Risky, but it’s Worth it!

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bibleRecently I found myself struggling with some fears relating to something God has called me to do. After days of playing out what if scenarios in my head and feeling anxious I finally decided to go to God in prayer and ask Him for peace. God reminded me through the story of Gideon that I don’t have to be afraid. I can trust Him to keep me safe even when He calls me to do something that seems unsafe. You see, sometimes the possible result of what we are called to do is scary, but if we hold on to what God has said and know that we are doing His will we can overcome our fears.

Let’s look at the first thing The Lord asked from Gideon below:

Now it came to pass the same night that the Lord said to him, “Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it; and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.” So Gideon took ten men from among his servants and did as the Lord had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night. (Judges 6: 25-27: NKJV)

God asked Gideon to tear down the alter and build a new one. There was a lot of risk in doing this and Gideon was afraid. He knew the people would be angry and they were, in fact They tried to kill him for it. The things God calls us to do as His followers pose a lot of risk. We are called to stand against what this world stands by and that’s no easy or safe task. Even Peter feared the Jews and acted like a hypocrite when around them, rather than fully speak the truth of the gospel (Galatians 2:11). There was risk involved and he gave into fear. We are all in danger of giving into our fears when following God’s calling because there is always risk.

What the story of Gideon reminds me of is that with God on my side I can face the risk fearless, with Gods strength and power, and overcome. I don’t have to fear because I am His child and he has already given me victory. Even if the what if’s I’ve played out in my mind happen I can still face them with God on my side, believing He will get me through. Gideon feared the people, he probably played out his own what if scenario that involved a mob of angry people coming after him after he tore down the alter of Baal. This scenario is exactly what took place, but God had his back just as He has mine and yours when we choose to faithfully follow his call. This set the stage for the bigger, more risky, things God had in store for Gideon. Gideon had already seen Gods faithfulness in action because he was willing to respond to God and take on the risk of tearing down that alter. This further enabled him to head into battle with 300 men and the living God on his side, knowing he could full well defeat an army of hundreds of thousands. This reminds me that I can take on God’s calling, full of risks, and have victory.

It’s probably easy for us, seeing the end of this faith encounter, to focus on the fact that Gideon survived the angry mob. God could have easily prevented this from even happening. Why didn’t He? In my opinion, God allows us to face trials to grow our character and show us His faithfulness (1 Peter 1:6-7; Romans 5:3-5). Years ago my husband and I felt God calling us to walk away from his corporate job so he could pursue other things. This meant we would have to live on my salary which wouldn’t even cover the bills. That step was the best thing we ever could have done for our faith! God grew us and changed our hearts in so many ways, teaching us to depend more fully on Him. Although our finances suffered greatly during this time, God provided exactly what we needed when we needed it! He took care of our every need. Although this was a difficult time of trials and faith testing, we would do it all over again. God could have poured out financial blessings on us immediately, as He could have prevented the angry mob, but we would not have grown and learned the beautiful lessons he taught us. 

What has God called you to? Is fear holding you back from stepping out in faith and taking the risk to obey? Just as God was patient with Gideon when he was overcome with fear he will be patient with you too. Without God, Gideon was the least of the least. With God, he was a mighty man of valor! (Judges 6:15; judges 6:12) This is what we become when we choose to, in-spite of the risk, answer and obey God’s calling. 

What is the risk of not obeying God’s calling on your life? It’s simple. John 10:10 says “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” The risk is exactly that. You can allow Satan to steal, kill, and destroy your life, or you can obey God and face trials that produce Christ’s character in you and please Him. Which risk will you choose to take? 

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As Lecrae Says it, are we Outsiders or Insiders?

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Before you read this post check out Lecrae’s song outsiders here

Also, if you aren’t a follower of Jesus Christ this post wont exactly pertain to you, but you can continue reading if you would like.

Something that really breaks my heart is seeing a fellow believer of Christ not living in a way that pleases God but rather in a way that dishonors Him. I’m not talking about not sinning. I’m talking about making a conscious choice to disobey God’s Word and showing little or no remorse and sadness when sin does take place. Lecrae has it down in this song “Outsiders”. I just love his bold passion for Jesus Christ and speaking truth. He doesn’t care what people think about him, believers and nonbelievers alike.

What we as Christians and followers of Jesus need to realize is that we will never impact this world if we are insiders rather than outsiders. If we want to experience abundant living like Christ offers us we have got to start living as outsiders, set apart from the ways of this world. The definition of an outsider is a person who does not belong to a particular group. If it appears as though we belong in this world based on the way we live then we simply don’t get it. Sadly, our Christian culture can be so watered down and distant from the truth of Gods Word. Because of this so many Christians are living lives absent of joy, faith, and peace and are having little, if any, impact on others for Christ.

Do you think God is any less sad over believers who fail to obey his commandments than lost people who choose not to accept him as savior? 1 Peter 1: 14-16 (NKJV) says “as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” What has happened to Christ’s call for us to be holy? We are so desensitized to this world that we are willing to lower our standards. Instead of judging ourselves based on God’s Word we try to find someone who is just a “little worse” than we are so we can justify our actions. We have one person to be comparing ourselves to and that is Jesus Christ. We will never achieve true holiness as Christ did, but we sure as heck better spend our lives striving to. Anything less than this is a direct act of dishonor to our savior who rescued us from darkness and death.

The moral standards of Christians today is downright confusing. If we want to make a difference we have to be different. Its as simple as that. And I’m not talking about going to church and reading the bible. That’s all great of course, but if aside from that you are no different than the world then honestly what’s the point? Being different means not getting wasted every weekend, not entertaining ourselves with pornographic shows and movies, not laughing at perverted jokes with friends, not being hateful to people who are different, not making our goal in life to achieve more wealth and possession. Do the people around you have any idea that you live a totally different lifestyle than they do? Because they should. If not, its probably because you don’t.

This isn’t some self-righteous post; I’m talking to myself the same way that I’m talking to you. This is about speaking the truth of God’s Word. A truth that I believe really needs to be spoken in the midst of this watered down generation. We, as followers of Jesus Christ, need to stop just reading the Bible and start living it. James 4:4 says “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” We have a choice to make. Do we want to be God’s friend and servant, or his enemy?

Think about those people you know who are continuously showing the love of Jesus everywhere they go and impacting this world for eternity. How do they live their lives? Like the world? I highly doubt that. These people know what it means to live abundantly and we will too if we make the decision to give up our love affair with the ways of this world and live in obedience to God’s Word. What you will find when you make this choice is that it really isn’t much of a sacrifice at all. The real sacrifice is living for the world rather than God. A sacrifice of joy, peace, abundant living, and being close with the God who created you and loves you, who made the ultimate sacrifice in giving His son for you. Don’t shame His sacrifice any longer by claiming to be His follower while being an insider rather than an outsider.