There Are No Detours

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    There is nothing more frustrating than driving down a highway and seeing that orange sign, "Detour Ahead."   It totally throws off my sense of direction and takes time to get back onto the right road. And even with all those orange signs, I'm still afraid of getting lost.

Have you ever felt like you've had to take detour in your life? Like, say, spiritual detours? How about in your path following the call of God on your life?

     I've been really thinking very deeply about this subject lately. There have been a lot of people that have heard God's call: Abraham, Moses, Jeremiah to name just a few. They did great, hard things throughout their lives. God's call is as real to us today as it was to them: go and do.

     But what is really God's call? The very cliche brings up mainly one definition to our minds: the voice of God speaking to our hearts to do a specific thing with our lives. Its a deep unction from within that urges us to do what we otherwise would have not had a mind to do, such as missions, preaching, or teaching. 

     However, I would like to present a different idea of God's call today. Back last summer I blogged about how we so often live in the future and forget about the present. When we think about God's call we usually think about a specific thing. Don't get me wrong, God definitely calls people to very specific things! But what about your normal, everyday tasks that must be done? What about the "little ministries" that seem to have no bearing on what God has "really called you to do?" If God has called you to be a preacher/missionary/teacher, then why in the world am I ______? Fill in the blank. Life seems to be filled with these "detours."

When we feel like God has called us to do a certain thing with our lives, we often put that calling into our ministry compartment in our mind. Then, we shrink that box until the only thing that will fit in our "ministry box" is that one certain ministry we filled like we are called to do. We have no room for anything else so that if we are given an opportunity that may not be "what we are called to do," we either turn it down or treat it with lesser importance.

But what if God's call is not so limited to one certain thing? We think of life's journey as a Point A to Point B. But what about life in between? Are all those other things between A and B just detours to the real thing? No. They are the tasks God has placed on your path. This is the road He has chosen for YOU to walk; with God, there are no detours. They are all things God has placed on your path for a reason; He has something for you to do; some life to touch, some lesson to learn.Hebrews 12:1 says, "...Let us run with patience the race that is set before us." Its all part of the same race: your path, your journey, and the task He has placed in your hands today is just as important as that "great thing" that He has called you to do sometime in the future. And aren't they all great things? Would you pray and prepare any less for a nursing home devotion than you would for a Youth Rally message? Isn't this why Colossions 3:23 says, "Whatsoever ye do do it heartily..."?

There are no detours. The road may be rough where you are right now, but its the path God has laid before you. You may have to take a sudden turn, but He preparing the way before you. If God places a task before you, then He is calling you to do it. So, run with patience, and enjoy the journey. 

Sober Thoughts=Sober Subject

     I went on hospital visitation today with my parents. As I sit here staring at the blank page, my mind is full of sober thoughts.

 Hospitals can be happy place or a sad place. Some draw their first breath in it's walls. For some people, it is a place to heal. For others, it's a place to die. As I walk down their spic-and-span corridors, life hangs in the balance on either side, from the soul that is just drawn its first breath, to the oldest patient with alzheiers, at every room eternity hesitates. Will life go on, or will it cease?

     Eternity waits for no one, not for that one lying in the hospital bed, not that person in front of you at Starbucks, and not for that one that comes to your car asking for a handout. Death is no respecter of persons, it takes whom it pleases. That's real talk right there.

     God is Sovereign. He is Love; He took the morbidity out of death for all that will receive Him. But, He is Holy. He will do right by the earth, He will do right by you, and He will do right by that person that has rejected His Son.

     So, seeing as how eternity waits for no one and death is impatient, there is only one question to ask. What are you waiting for? You have one chance. Deuteronomy 30:19 says, I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live."

     Eternal life is inevitable, they place you will spend it is your choice. What will you do, for yourself, and for those around you? Their's and your eternal destiny is at hand. Will life go on, or will it cease?


 

Life...life...I can't think of any other name....blah blah

I've been thinking to myself lately, "I really need to blog." Then again, "I really need to update my blog." So here I am, doing just that! I know that most of you have probably completely given up on me, it being a long, long time since my last update, but here I am. :)
     It's funny how when you are going to speak in front of a larger group of people, say for a devotion, or maybe a speech, you know exactly what you're going to say, and you just cannot stop the flow of thoughts and words in your head right until that very moment when you stand in front of the microphone. Then, in some strange, mysterious way, the microphone literelly sucks every bit of brainpower you have, leaving you with a blank brain. That is how so often how I feel about blogging. I have a lot of ideas and thoughts, but as soon as I sit down in front of this blank page, my brain begins to look the same: blank.
     I know most of ya'll, (the ones that are still with me, that is), have seen bits and pieces of my life of facebook. By the grace of God, I completed my first year of Ozark Bible Institute and College in Neosho, MO. It has been one of the best years of my life, with a lot of hard times packed in with a lot of good, amazing experiences. That is life in general, actually. How would we learn to appreciate the good times? I learned a lot, I laughed a lot, I cried a lot, I prayed a lot, I took little naps a lot, and I stayed up way too late a lot. I gained a lot, and lost a lot. I did things I thought I would never do, and didn't do things I always thought I would do. (This does not include skydiving.) 
     When I went to OBI, I did not really know if I would be going back or not. All I knew was that I wanted to be there. I did not really feel like the Lord "called" me there; I just really wanted to be there. I went wanting to accomplish three main goals:
          
           1. To get closer to God.
           2. To figure out His will for my life.
           3. To learn more about the Bible.

     I am thankful to say that I accomplished them all, yet, I haven't even scratched the surface of any of them. I cannot cross them off of my life's checklist. Why? Because they can never be completed until my life here is done. That is one of the biggest lessons I learned. I learned that these endeavors are not destinations, but they are journeys.
          
           1. I will never "arrive" when it comes to getting closer to Him, because I could never, ever reach the end of Who He is.
           2. Discovering God's will is not really all that difficult, it's just saying yes to the Lord every day, doing those little things that He commands and that He lays on your heart. "The steps of a righteous man are ordered by the Lord..." Psalm 37:23.
           3. I think I have taken Nike's slogen for a lot of things lately. "JUST DO IT." Read the Bible, STUDY the Bible, pray for Heaven's sake! (Speaking to myself.)

     Yes, I learned a lot, but I have so much more to go. There are a thousand lifetimes of things to learn of and about God and His Word. "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out." Romans 11:33
     Not to discourage you! I want to encourage you! Even though His ways are past finding out, they are God's ways, and how do you find out God's ways? By going to God, of course! Remember James 1:5? "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." There is no question to the statement, "it will be given him." Just ask! Simple, yet we make it so complicated.

What do you call a writer version of a long-winded speaker? A wordy writer? If ya'll find out let me know. =)

Attitude check?!?!