Just Say Yes
People often ask me how I knew I was called to be a missionary in Africa. I do my best to describe my experience, but it falls flat. Flat in the sense that I struggle to find words that adequately capture my answering of God’s call. So when I felt the need to write about the call, I knew I was in for a tussle. It was a process for me to just say yes to the call.
A worldwide puzzle coming together
As you read, you will find that the call isn’t as much about others as it is about you. I’m fully convinced that God loves those He sends as much as He loves those He sends them to. He works in us as much as, if not more than, in those we serve. We’re all part of a big worldwide puzzle that comes together when we obey Him. Obedience to God is rarely convenient, practical, or popular. So, when you answer the call, be prepared for many inconveniences, impracticalities, and, many times, complicated situations. You will face opposition, disbelief, and even rejection, sometimes from those closest to you.
You may think that the call I’m referring to is the call to missionary service. Yes, missionary service is a call very close to my heart. However, God’s call isn’t limited to my experience. Everyone has a call from God. The question is, who will answer?
What will you say?
Many will quote Matthew 22:14 (NKJV), which states, “For many are called, but few are chosen.” This verse speaks of salvation, meaning that all are called, or invited, to receive the gift of salvation (see 2 Peter 3:9; John 3:16; and Revelation 22:17). All are invited, but few will respond and accept the invitation.
While these verses discuss salvation, the principle of God’s call to serve Him is the same as the call to salvation. Whoever responds to the call to service will be used by God to do His will. God is looking for those who will respond to the call to go for Him into a lost world, to go next door, to their workplaces, and even abroad.
Just say yes
“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 a young person, barely 11 at the time, I heard this verse quoted for the first time at a conference on the Holy Spirit that I was attending with my family. Something stirred in my young heart. I knew that one day my life would be spent crossing borders for God. I wanted to go!
I didn’t know what that meant or what it would look like. I just knew, and I didn’t wonder too much about the details. Cards were handed out to children and teenagers. On them, we were instructed to write down what we wanted to be when we grew up and what we felt God was calling us to do. Without hesitation, I wrote the word “missionary.”
The problem isn’t whether God is calling. The problem is who isn’t responding to His call.
“I looked, but there was no one to help, and I wondered that there was no one to uphold…”
Isaiah 63:5a (NKJV)
There is no qualifying event or action that makes any of us more worthy than another to answer God’s call. We’re all on equal footing. God is looking for whoever will answer. He will take a “whoever” and send them to do whatever He wants, wherever He wants, and however He wants.
To get started, all He needs from you is to just say yes.
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Recommended reading:
John Bevere’s You Are Called helps readers recognize God’s call on their lives and take the first steps in faithfully saying yes.
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