Tuesday, May 15, 2007

Do You Listen and Do, or Just Listen?

It is truly exciting to watch God work. It is an often forgotten truth, that if we will get out of the way and allow Him to work through us, we can go to and experience things that we could never do in our own strength. If we could just get over this idea of having to try and "help" Him to what needs to be done (after all, we want the same thing He wants, right?), and just be the vessel He uses, life would be so much simpler.

A young couple has been attending our church for a year or so, and God has clearly put a call to ministry on their lives. But the call of ministry can often times be the hardest thing to answer. "Not me, how can the Lord use me after all that I have done in the past?" If that was the criteria for ministry, there would be a whole lot of empty pulpits.

They had been seeking the Lord as to if the call was real, or just the emotional ramblings of the local pastor. They asked that God reveal to them His will in the matter, and unbeknownst (is that really a word?) to me, I was a part of the sign they were asking God for.

Well, without going into details, their call has been confirmed to them. It is so cool to be used of God, especially when you don't even realize it. I just did what I felt God would have me do, without even being aware that He was confirming things to them through a completely unrelated matter.

We have the opportunity to serve God in some truly spectacular ways. It may be that He will use you in a way you were not even expecting. But you have to listen to His call, and then do. If He is calling and you listen but don't do, you aren't fulfilling His call on your life. It will take faith and trust to follow Him. It always has, it will until He takes us home. Listen. And then do. He has already been there and prepared the way.