“By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.”
Hebrews 11:8, NKJV
Most likely Abraham had no idea the challenges that lay ahead of him in the land of Canaan. Had he known perhaps he would never have left his father’s house. He had no idea he would wait 25 years, until he was 100 years old, for the fulfillment of God’s promise of a son. Yet, despite all of this, Abraham followed the invisible hand of God into an unknown land.
A step of faith comes with both challenges and blessings.
In the Spring of 2000 I turned 21 and was seeking God’s direction for my life. Having grown up in small towns, and for reasons I won’t get into here, I felt God had called me to the city. One night, at the church altar, I prayed, “God, if you’ve called me to the city, then give me a city.” I think it was more of a prayer of exasperation. I was searching for some kind of direction from God.
That next Saturday night, during our church worship practice, my pastor prayed, “Lord, speak to us in our dreams tonight.” Up till that point in my life I may have had a dream or two from the Lord, but no dream as life-altering as the one I was about to have.
That night I had a dream. In the dream I was driving around a city with my friend Joel. We asked a person or two what city we were in, but no one would tell us. And then, from the sky, a voice said, “Dallas, TX.”
I woke up the next morning with an excitement inside of me. I got out my Road Atlas and looked for Dallas on the map. The idea of living in Texas had been no where on the radar screen of my life. But that dream was the beginning of an incredible journey of faith for me. By that August I had moved to Texas and was attending Christ for the Nations Institute in Dallas.
Looking back now, over these last 11 years, coming to Texas has brought many blessings and challenges. I’ve had some awesome experiences with God. And I’ve endured seasons of intense testing, spiritual warfare, disappointment and frustration. But I wouldn’t trade this journey for anything. I know I am where I am supposed to be.
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