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Saturday, June 13, 2015

Journey of Faith

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
Hebrews 1:1

In 2000, I was living in Michigan and earnestly seeking God’s direction for my life.  At church one Sunday night I uttered a prayer of exasperation.  “God, if you’ve called me to the city then give me a city.”  I did not expect my prayer would be answered so quickly.
The next Saturday evening, during worship practice, my Pastor prayed, “Lord, speak to us in our dreams tonight.”  At the moment I didn’t realize the significance of his prayer.  But that night I dreamed I was driving around a city with my best friend.  For some reason we didn’t know what city we were in.  The people we asked wouldn’t tell us.  Suddenly a voice from the sky said clearly, “Dallas, Texas.” 
The next morning I awoke with an excitement inside of me.  I opened my Road Atlas and looked for Dallas.  After praying about it, talking with my parents, and visiting Texas for a week, I knew Texas was where God wanted me to be.  By August of the same year I was living in Dallas, attending Christ for the Nations Institute.  It was a step of faith for me, and also a beginning, of sorts, of a journey of faith I’ve been walking now for the approximately 15 years since then.
Hebrews 11:8 (the “Faith” chapter) says,  

“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.”

Abraham simply heard God and obeyed Him.  In some ways, hearing from God and stepping out in faith on His Word is the easy part.  The hard part is enduring through the trials, setbacks and disappointments which will inevitably occur on the journey.  However, if we don’t first respond to God’s call, we won’t know the opportunities to grow in character that come when His word tests us.
The Scripture says Abraham, “went out, not knowing where he was going.”  That comforts me.  Sometimes I don’t feel like I know where I am going.  Sometimes I feel like a man in the dark attempting to follow the invisible hand of God.  Sometimes I feel like I’m just along for the ride.  God is in the driver seat, and He’s only telling me what I need to know (but not everything I’d like to know).  Sometimes it’s a strange feeling, knowing I’m not in control, but often I want to feel like I have a firm grip on things.  Can you relate with that?
With His word as a foundation, and the voice of His Spirit as a guide, we keep moving forward step by step into His purpose for us.
God doesn’t show us all of His purpose at once.  That’s part of the incredible, exciting adventure of following God.  He leads us step by step in a quest of faith.
Still, at times this journey of faith can be unnerving.  Divine moments of destiny may be preceded by a season of searching and suffering.  And waiting and wondering.  We may feel like crying out, “Would somebody please let me know what’s going on here?!” 
In the mean time, much of life is spent in the seeming triviality of the mundane.  We simply maintain.  Thankfully, our calling is much more significant than the mundane.  But real faith is gutted out in the trenches.  Even the mundane can be saturated by His glorious presence.    
During the seasons of waiting God is building His character in our lives.  Waiting on God in the school of character can be hard.  It’s only natural to want to spread your wings and soar into what you know God has called you to do.  However, the time of preparation is of vital importance.  The journey can seem long.  It will try your soul.  You’ll be tempted to quit.  It’s easy to become weary, impatient, frustrated, even discouraged. 
Thankfully, I’ve found that God injects into our seasons of waiting sovereign visitations of His Spirit.  I’ve had some divine encounters with God that have marked my life forever.  These experiences have helped me to carry on during the dry seasons, when it seems like nothing is happening.
God’s promises carry within them His character and the substance of His life.  The moment we receive a promise we possess it by faith.  However, in the realm of the natural it may take some time for the fullness of the promise to be realized.  That does not make the promise less real.  God has a perfect time for all things.  Our times are in His hands. (Psalm 31:15)  While we wait we can judge Him faithful who has promised. (see Heb. 11:11)  

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