Good Monday morning... ah man, I really did type that. The short nights of Wed and Thurs have begun for the year, which means that on Friday morning I wake up a little dopey. Some of you use coffee to fight the end of the week goofs, but my decaf just doesn't do the job. So, I'll just have to start over...
Good Friday mornign! Aaagh! This just isn't working out between my brain and my typing fingers this morning. We did have a good life group session last night. I will tell you that the third session of teaching a class does not make a person a seasoned pro; I still have much to learn about small group teaching. Last night we did work on a tough subject though: Stepping out in the direction of our calling. How does a person discover his or her calling? How do I know that I am going in the direction God would have me to go? Today, or rather late last night, I thought of Jonah.
Jonah received his calling from the Lord, and he knew without a doubt and with complete certainty his calling. We long for that certainty, but we don't look at Jonah as an example. The man with complete certainty in his calling... took off in the opposite direction of his calling on the first ship he could find. Jonah might have swapped a little uncertainty in his calling for the fear that sent him west and nearly sank the vessel he sailed on. We know from our Bible studies that God sent first an unusually tenacious storm, and then a big fish. Jonah may have taken off in the wrong direction, but God steered him back to the correct path. I also remember another verse or two on this uncertainty of ours: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV The Lord will be our certainty in our calling. Trust in Him and take those steps.
Last night we also heard the example of John the Baptist. Today, we will hear that example one more time:
"You yourselves know how plainly I told you, 'I am not the Messiah.' I am only here to prepare the way for him." John 3:28
This is the first verse of the very example our video minister used last night. Now is the Holy Spirit still working in us or what? John the Baptist had certainty in his calling. He knew from the start of his life that he was not the Messiah, but that he would be the herald proclaiming the arrival of the Messiah. That is quite an honor. John the Baptist also lost his head for his calling. Our calling may not seem quite so illustrious as John's was, but we may also get to live a long life without such things as beheading and jail time. We don't know where our calling will take us in this life, but we do know where following Jesus will lead... to Heaven!
We may crave certainty in our calling, but God calls us to step out in faith. Thomas craved certainty of Jesus' resurrection. He received the certainty he sought, but Jesus told him that blessed are those who have not seen, and still believe. We have an opportunity to be blessed in our calling by not seeing with certainty, but believing with our whole heart in God. Trust in Him!
Bucky
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