Who Me, Lord? Are You Sure?

“It’s not working, I don’t know why I even try!”

Have you ever felt that way?

Perhaps you’re trying to witness to a non-believing friend, or share your testimony with complete strangers at a local coffee shop.

Your progress = Zero.

Crickets.

Loud and clear.

It’s disappointing.

So why then do you keep on keeping on?

If you knew in advance that your God-appointed mission to reach others would seem like a failure by human standards, would you still do it?

A good question to ponder.

Trust “His” Outcome

When was the last time you got a real “thank you for speaking truth”?

For me, it was three years ago on a Monday.

Just kidding.

Whatever you do, please, please, don’t give up.

Our Heavenly Father sees it all, and nothing you do, is hidden from Him.

Disappointments will come.

That’s just life.

Even so, we must trust the outcomes to Him and the inner workings of the Holy Spirit on the people we’re desperately trying to reach.

Whether we get a “thank you” someday or not, it’s not about us.

Life is about glorifying HIM.

Words Of Wisdom

Recently, I read an excellent and thought-provoking article by a fellow Christian writer, Joanne Sher.

Joanne talks about the discouragement we may all feel at times.

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Here Am I Lord, Send ‘ ‘ Wait, What Did You Say?’
by Joanne Sher 
02/05/19
Our pastor is preaching through the book of Isaiah this quarter (insert psychotically happy emoticon here). I was saved in this book, and it is one of my favorites because of its richness. I know parts of it by heart and have read it (and read it through) more than the average person. But on Sunday, it slapped me in the face, and convicted me anew.

Even people who aren’t as obsessed with Isaiah as I am (which is pretty much 99.9% of the known world) are familiar with the passage Pastor Brian Cederquist preached on this past Sunday. It is one of the most well-known evangelical passages in the Old Testament: one that missionaries often claim as their inspiration to serve. Isaiah 6 shows the prophet’s vision of God’s throne, his cleansing, his call to prophesy, and his acceptance of that call.

Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” Isaiah 6:8 NKJV

As I read through the first few verses of Isaiah 6, I see the holiness and beauty of the throne, the reverence and worship of the cherubin, and the power of God. I could understand Isaiah’s desire to be cleansed before God’s holiness and perfection, and I could see myself getting swept up in majesty and experience, and responding just as he did when he heard God’s call to go.

But then comes verse nine and following:

And He said, “Go, and tell this people:‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy; and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed.” Isaiah 6:9-10 NKJV

So, Isaiah (now a young adult) will preach to his people for the rest of his life (sixty years or so, according to Pastor Brian), and the message will be rejected every time.

*He won’t be praised for sharing God’s truth.
*He won’t get that self-esteem boost from seeing the people he loves turn from their wicked ways and back to God.
*Nobody will throw him a prophet’s thank-you luncheon in appreciation of his hard work.
*The priests and rabbis won’t acknowledge his faithfulness from the pulpit (unless it is to denounce him).

It will be, in earthly terms, a thankless job.

And he is told this from day one.

As I sat thinking about this, I pondered how I would have reacted in Isaiah’s place. I could easily see myself saying, “Um…God? Nobody will listen to me? You’re going to harden all of those hearts? Can I…um…take back that whole ‘Send me’ thing? Or could you send me somewhere else? Somewhere that at least some of the folks WILL respond positively? I don’t need a full-out revival or anything – just a bit of encouragement here and there. You know how I love that encouragement thing. Waddaya think?”

I am an encourager, and I thrive on encouragement from others. Almost everyone who knows me knows this. I truly don’t know if I could do what Isaiah did. And that makes me sad.

Am I depending more on what others think than what God does? I hope not.

Is God’s approval and encouragement enough for me? It should be.

I serve in the church in several capacities – would I finagle my way out of some of them if I didn’t feel appreciated by the people I was serving? Am I avoiding ways God is calling me to serve because of my own desire to be appreciated? I really don’t know.

I know that not everyone is called to do the same job in God’s kingdom, but this has been a wakeup call for me. Thank You, Lord, for convicting me to check my motives, and learn to depend on You more.

Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God. Psalm 20:7 NKJV

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*Article shared, courtesy of author Joanne Sher, from article url: https://www.faithwriters.com/article-details.php?id=185177.