Get off your rump

Do you ever find yourself in moments where you want to hear from God. You sit, you listen, you read what other people say about God… and nothing is sticking. I was praying that this morning, when He said, ‘Do what I called you to do.’

How many times do we let others take the lead in what God is saying to us? He has something to say to me, and He wants me finding that answer through doing what He called me to do. Write. Do you get what I’m saying? I tend to listen to others, or watch others do the very thing I was called to do – instead of me doing it. I know this sounds like I am belaboring the point, but maybe that is the point.

What are you called to do? God has so many things laid out for us. He has a clear walk that He wants us on, and sometimes we are too busy watching others do it, that we forget to do the very thing He put in our hearts.

Half of me is excited that He has a plan and calling for me, the other half has regrets for sitting on my lower half and letting others lead.

I feel like this goes back to insecurities… will I have the right words? Will I say the right thing? Does God really want me to do this?

The answer is Yes. If God has called and purposed it, then you are to do it. What’s lacking? Courage and confidence.

Here are some scriptures that God has given me about His callings and His promises:

2 Corinthians 1:20: ‘For all of God's promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding "Yes!" And through Christ, our "Amen" (which means "Yes") ascends to God for his glory.’(NLT)

Romans 11:29: ‘For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.’
2 Timothy 1:17 is powerful. ‘For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.’

Here is the catch with scripture. Do we believe it? Is it truth? Does it hold? Again, the answer is yes.

Romans 11:29 says ‘All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,’

I love the words ‘God-breathed.’ I looked up the Greek word for God-breathed and it is theopneustos. It means God-breathed, inspired by God, due to the inspiration of God. In other words. Scripture is from God. He ‘breathed’ it out. How powerful is it?

Let’s look at Genesis for this… Genesis 1:2 says ‘Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.” To put this into perspective, He spoke light into being. He spoke the earth into being. He spoke day and night into being. In the count of creation, I counted nine times the words “Then God said” being spoken. This didn’t included blessing and other words uttered out of His mouth during creation.

Elohim, one of the names of God is translated creator God. El is used in association with God as ‘mighty God.’ You see this in many of his names, like El Shaddai –which means all sufficient God.

If He can speak life into being, is He not mighty? Or sufficient? Would the words that were ‘God-breathed’ not be viewed in the same power?

The point? We have a great gift given to us in the Bible. It is ‘God-breathed.’ It is His word given to us to understand this life as Christians. Why do we not use it? Why do we not trust it? For goodness sake – why do we not read it? His word is impenetrable. If He has given you a word, then hold on to it as truth!

I have been studying the life of Joseph recently and God brought a little nugget to me today. (The story of Joseph is Genesis 37-50 and I encourage you to read it.) In brief, it’s the story of a man that God gave a dream (actually a few dreams) to – then He fulfilled it. The fulfilling came 15-17 years later. We see many encounters that Joseph went through to prepare him for the fulling of this dream. It hit me that Joseph could not walk into this fulfilling until he was ready. The Lord was preparing Joseph to be the great leader he was. What struck me as interesting was a Psalm that I came across today.

Psalm 105:19: ‘until what he had said came to pass, the word of the LORD tested him.’ (Read the full context in Psalm 105: 16-22.)

This entire story fits into plan of the Exodus of the children of Israel from Egypt to the Promised Land – but we are looking at the Joseph section of the story for a moment.

God had a plan (and still does) for His people. Everyone person that played a role was key... Abraham, Isaac, Jacob… Joseph. This led to the role of Moses, Aaron, Caleb and Joshua. What if any of these guys just stopped believing God? Was it hard? Yes. Were there moments of giving up and frustration? Yes! What did all of these guys do? Held on.

Is the promise of God worth holding onto? Is His word worth it?

Y.E.S.

God tested Joseph with the very word He had given him. There was day however, that the dream came true. The promise was fulfilled. The vision complete.

We have a life to live full of faith. We have promises to take hold of. We have a word for us. The question is…. Are you going to live life with God or are you going to sit and watch reruns?

What was He saying to me today? I have given you a word. I will complete it. Let’s get off your rump and do what I called you to do.

Who’s up for a little adventure?