At the age of 14 I felt God calling me to be a Pastor. The only problem was… I didn’t want to be one. So for a few years I fought it as hard as I could. I went on the run. I really wanted nothing to do with God. I truly hated church. I mean, I was there every Sunday and Wednesday, but I didn’t want to go. I remember having the conversation with my father every Sunday.
“Do I HAVE to go to church?” I would yell. “NO!” Dad would say… “You GET to go to church!” So I would go count the tiles on the ceiling every Sunday. 783 to be exact.
I would however always sign up to go on the Youth Trips. I loved to travel wherever I could and do things. On this particular trip to Gatlinburg TN little did I know that my life would begin the process of changing for good.
On Dec. 31st 1998 God became real to me. He was no longer just the God of my parents, but mine as well! That night in the Red Oak Lodge I gave my life over to Christ. I still however did NOT want anything to do with the ministry. I thought I could just go into civil service and that would do the trick. So I took a job out of College with the State of Georgia working in Therapeutic Foster Care. I was miserable. My passion was misplaced. I took care of many children, but I was never able to give them what they really needed. A huge… I was never allowed to pray with them about any situation. It was all business…
Sitting in my office one day I remember coming to a place of surrender. I knew what I was supposed to do with my life and it was time to stop running. I remember calling Tiff and telling her I was done running from my calling and it was time to step in to what God truly had for me. She was elated! She knew it the entire time and stood by my side patiently while I tried to do everything but Pastor.
God truly has a plan for all of our lives. It’s his best for us. And he puts a passion inside of us that we can’t escape. We can try our best to run from it and even try to dance around it… But he really is constant pursuit of us and wants to use us for his glory.
Paul was very religious man. God had actually placed that inside of him. He knew the OT law like the back of his hand and held people to it. God created Paul for amazing things. But instead of embracing the person of Jesus… All he knew to do was uphold the law that was already in place. He actually persecuted those who did believe in Christ according to the law. It was misplaced passion.
Until one day on his way to Damascus, Paul had in encounter with God. One that would change him forever. One that left him blind for days. It was time for Paul to step in to what God had created him to do. And this guy who once was responsible for killing Christians… Now is responsible for writing 2/3rds of the New Testament. He only had to stop running and embrace God’s call!
So the question is… What has God called you to do that you are running from? Starting a business? Starting a Bible Study with your neighbors?
What are you passionate about? What keeps you up at night? What do you have a burden for?
Chances are… Thats where you’ll find your God give purpose. And YES… it’s scary. And YES… it will cost you something. But not stepping in to what Gods best for us is will ultimately cost us much more.
Today is the day! Start now! It’s never to late to be who you might have been! YOU WERE BORN FOR THIS!
Stop running or you could potentially go blind!
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