“Stepping out of reluctance and into obedience will reveal purpose.” @KarenHarmon @propelwoman
If God has called you to do something in this season, do it now. Not tomorrow, or next week or next year. Now.
I’m guilty. I’m the anti-procrastinator by nature. However – I have procrastinated “until next week” on doing something I believe God wants me to do….and nearly a year later, it’s still left undone, sitting on my desk. Untouched.
For me, it’s been a combination of insecurities of what people will think when I do it because I’m not “qualified” and raw laziness. Which is also very contrary to my innate tendencies.
This morning, Pastor @benprescott preached about the seven valleys that will keep you from your purpose: distractions, doubt, hurt, [spiritual] dryness, indecision [lukewarmness], sin (the seventh I can’t remember – should’ve taken notes I guess).
For the past year, I have let distractions and doubt keep me from totally focusing on this task. The distractions have been good things…opportunities in my field, opportunities to make a little extra money and time spent “playing house.” However, I knew that God did not want me to get comfortable. I didn’t want to get comfortable. But I also didn’t want to put in the effort to go to the next step. I was starting to get comfortable being comfortable….and so the laziness set in….slowly drifting me away from what I am meant to do right now….which suited me just fine because I didn’t want to do said task anyway. So I made myself busy to subconsciously avoid it however I could.
But alas, the time has come. I suppose everyone comes to a crossroads. Do I continue to be comfortable, being thankful for the blessings in my life and settle for the level of influence and destiny I’ve already grabbed a hold of, all good things, nothing necessarily bad? Or do I stand up and continue pressing towards an even greater purpose?
I believe there is no small calling. God has called each and every one of us to influence our worlds….whether that be the homeschool mom who shares God’s love and discipleship with the other moms at the birthday party…or the preacher speaking from an international platform. Each person is able to touch someone’s life In a way that no one else can….and since every life is equally valuable to God, that means that every calling that touches even just one life, is massively vital.
I also believe that God will continue to pull you towards as much of your calling that you want. Meaning, you can stop short, if you choose. I’ll call them “Purpose Milestones”. Periodically I have come across a crossroad where I can choose to live a blessed life and influence my circle of people comfortably or I can take a leap of faith to grab a hold of more. Each time this Purpose Milestone occurs, you have the opportunity to decide whether you stay content and comfortable or if you step off the cliff and hope you land on something greater. It’s like a big game of Deal or No Deal.
One is Gods permissible will and I believe He would have blessed my life accordingly if I chose to stop there. But the other is a step towards God’s perfect will and that one is greater influence and greater destiny….and far scarier risks, a world of unknowns, massively more work, greater criticisms, you name it.
And that one is the “big dream” that we all start out with that we think is impossible and ridiculous. The dream and purpose that someone told us at some point to “stop daydreaming” about.
Unfortunately, the road to Gods “perfect will” is not a nicely packaged roadmap. It’s an oddly programmed GPS that only gives one step at a time and no overview…and the only way to hear each step is to constantly be close enough to hear God speak or nudge you in a certain direction.
Secondly, the road to God’s “perfect will” also includes some seasons that are not fun, some tasks that are daunting and some valleys that have to be endured.
But it’s worth it. I’m sure it is. I don’t know the end results…yet. But I do know the journey behind me thus far…and I can say with certainty that the risk and work of seeking his “perfect will” vs deciding to park, has been well-worth it.
But maybe that’s the idea. Maybe our purpose and our destiny is not necessarily an end result or a destination. But perhaps our purpose and our destiny is an ever flowing journey. One with successful accomplishments along the way, but the real “end result” is a closer walk with God….which is ultimately why we as the human race were created to begin with.
So, I’m purposing in my heart today to no longer delay. Tomorrow I will wake up, seek Him and start the task that I have successfully procrastinated on for a year now….and whatever distraction that comes to slow me down will just have to take a backseat, for now. Whatever the results, however poorly executed, I pray that God will do with it what He desires. After all, it’s our job to obey. It’s God’s job to use it, how and when He pleases.
As I close this massively long status update that had to be turned into a blog, I hope you’ll join me – in stepping out of your comfort zone, putting on your working boots, standing up with a renewed determination, re-establishing your time with God, refocusing your to-do list and purging the “good but not God” stuff and declaring that you want more – more of God and more of your purpose – and any less than more, will not be enough.