It was in the middle of the night that the questions flooded my mind. These are not questions unique to me, but the deluge was overwhelming. “Did you do the right thing?” “Can you really be in the will of God?” “You sold your house for this?” We could go on but you get the picture.
I have been through this countless times before - in the company with everyone who has ever endeavored to accomplish anything for God. Having been there before does not make the voices go away. In fact the longer I serve the Lord, the stronger some of these voices tend to be.
I have been through this countless times before - in the company with everyone who has ever endeavored to accomplish anything for God. Having been there before does not make the voices go away. In fact the longer I serve the Lord, the stronger some of these voices tend to be.
Of course they often are loudest in our moments of weakness. I was tired from our trip to Africa. No, let me rephrase that. I was completely fried... beyond exhausted... I had turned into some kind of monster that small children fear will pop out from under their bed. I did not feel human in any way shape or form. I wanted to count the hours of sleep I had had over the past three days and knew if I did, I would only need to use fingers and no toes. On top of this my body was rebelling against me from the lack of sleep and sickness. Thanks a lot!!!
So in that moment of complete exhaustion and sickened body I felt doubt.
It did not help the situation.
Then my mind was flooded with some important thoughts. I remembered being prayed for by numerous churches, such as Capital Community in Fredericton. I recalled Words of Prophecy spoken into my life about the work that we were going to accomplish in Africa and how the Lord was going to bear witness to our efforts. I recalled the miracles that God did that proved over and over again that we were doing the right thing.
It dawned on me such as I had never felt before. This was not the will of God for “me”, this was the will of God for the body. The body of Christ bore witness to what we were doing. From the moment the Global Missions Board gave us a green light to enter missions once again until that very moment, we had not acted on our own. We were doing the will of God as lived out through the entire body of Christ.
We are functioning as a single member, doing what we can and yet no member of the body can do anything without the cooperation of the rest of the body. So we fall back again into the arms of God’s grace and assurance that we serve Him as He wills.
I do not know how it works for others, but this I know. The will of God, when it is good, right and perfect, will not simply be a personal will for your life, but a corporate one. It will not be our voice lifted in opposition to elders, pastors, brothers and sisters. Rather it will be with the affirmation of those elders, pastors, brothers and sisters that the acknowledgement of God’s Will shall be made known to you.
Seeking the will of God for your life? Live as a vibrant member of the body, and the body, in harmony with the Lord Jesus Christ - the head of that body - will reveal it to you!!
So in that moment of complete exhaustion and sickened body I felt doubt.
It did not help the situation.
Then my mind was flooded with some important thoughts. I remembered being prayed for by numerous churches, such as Capital Community in Fredericton. I recalled Words of Prophecy spoken into my life about the work that we were going to accomplish in Africa and how the Lord was going to bear witness to our efforts. I recalled the miracles that God did that proved over and over again that we were doing the right thing.
It dawned on me such as I had never felt before. This was not the will of God for “me”, this was the will of God for the body. The body of Christ bore witness to what we were doing. From the moment the Global Missions Board gave us a green light to enter missions once again until that very moment, we had not acted on our own. We were doing the will of God as lived out through the entire body of Christ.
We are functioning as a single member, doing what we can and yet no member of the body can do anything without the cooperation of the rest of the body. So we fall back again into the arms of God’s grace and assurance that we serve Him as He wills.
I do not know how it works for others, but this I know. The will of God, when it is good, right and perfect, will not simply be a personal will for your life, but a corporate one. It will not be our voice lifted in opposition to elders, pastors, brothers and sisters. Rather it will be with the affirmation of those elders, pastors, brothers and sisters that the acknowledgement of God’s Will shall be made known to you.
Seeking the will of God for your life? Live as a vibrant member of the body, and the body, in harmony with the Lord Jesus Christ - the head of that body - will reveal it to you!!
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