ListenDaily – 23 March 2010: Proceeding carefully…
"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” (John 15:9-11)
I want to proceed very carefully.
Running through my mind are thoughts of obedience, taking up our crosses, and denying ourselves; but the Holy Spirit tells me to start with “joy”.
I asked this question first: “What are the 1 or 2 things I love to do and feel God is calling me to?” Which might prompt the response: ‘I enjoy it but I don’t feel His calling.’ Or ‘He’s calling me to something I don’t enjoy.’
This is a part of discernment. Oh, we may not like the idea of something God calls us to do, but if we are willingly obedient, we will find joy in the task.
However, if we are not willingly obedient – or if God is not calling us to it – then we will not find joy in a task. God wants you for specific things; not just anything. Doesn’t preaching the Word of God to unbelievers sound like a good and Godly thing to do? And yet, Acts 16 tells us that Paul was prevented by the Holy Spirit from preaching in Asia.
God is certainly calling you to some work. If what you are doing now is not bringing you joy (and I don’t mean moments in which you enjoy it, but joyful living) ask yourself the following:
Am I willingly being obedient to the specific thing(s) God is calling me to?
Am I doing God-work or church-work, but not that to which He is calling me?
And remember, God wants you to have joy, and, He wants to give it to you!
TOMORROW: “But if I don’t do it, who will?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Questions:
1. Do you think you are responsible for your own joy?
2. “God wants you to have joy.” Does that statement make you feel good, or does it make you feel the stress of another thing to do, or another way you come up short?
3. Can you pray, right now, for God to take that stress?
INTERESTING THOUGHT:
"Wise leaders should have known that the human heart cannot exist in a vacuum. If Christians are forbidden to enjoy the wine of the Spirit they will turn to the wine of the flesh. Christ died for our hearts and the Holy Spirit wants to come and satisfy them." A.W.Tozer
"When I cannot enjoy the faith of assurance, I live by the faith of adherence." Matthew Henry
No comments:
Post a Comment