“And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him”.

Luke 5:11

            “I’ll Say Yes, Lord”.  These are the simple words of a song sang beautifully and worshipfully by the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir.  This morning as I listened to this award-winning choir sing with all of their hearts, I began to ponder my own personal journey with the Lord.  I reflected on my beginning times of communion with God when I would venture often to a nearby park in the south suburbs of Chicago—a quiet area nurtured by a calm river and bordered by endless rows of tall standing trees.   I recall the Spirit of God causing me to face towards the direction of the big city and then speaking directly to my heart the message that there is where He would send me.  I simply said, “Yes”. 

            And now after several years of having served in a city where change happens regularly and rapidly—after having suffered the many hardships of urban ministry—after having established by the grace of God a family to nurture and love and lead, once again God appears to be calling me onward.  This time to a rural place, a far land on foreign soil.  “To Your will, Lord, I say, Yes”.   

            When Christ calls, we do not know to where His call may lead.  Yet, the worshipping heart has come to see in Jesus something so very precious and exceptionally rare that it is worth leaving all else behind—even the very things and people we truly love.  Obedience to God may very well lead to personal discomfort, to significant loss, to periods of uncertainty and even to violent persecution such as those fishermen of Galilee would eventually encounter.  However, for those who have experienced a genuine encounter with the Eternal Son of God, saying “Yes” is in many ways the simple part.

Have you said “Yes” to the Lord’s call?

“What I am doing you do not understand now,

but afterward you will understand”.   John 13:7

When Michael Jordan was at the height of his career he was the darling of the public media.  The famed NBA player had worked hard to gain the confidence and favor of both local and national reporters.   And so apparently when there were things they knew about Jordan that would potentially diminish his squeaky clean image, they chose not to report it.

Protective of our own personal and public image, we work hard at keeping hidden the damnable, shameful realties or “skeletons” pertaining to ourselves.  If given the choice we might ignore or find clever ways to justify our very dark, sinful traits.  Christ absolutely refuses to ignore them.

It is a most humiliating and painful experience once God enters into our darkest spaces and begins to bring the disease to the surface, exposing it so that He might purge it out completely.  It is a humbling season of acute confusion.  We do not know what He is doing or why He is doing it.  Yet afterwards when we began to experience the fruit of restoration and the joy of increased intimacy we are happy He has done so.  And we are increased in affection and love towards the One who is ever condescending for our good.    

“Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words.”  __ Daniel 10:12 [emphasis mine]

Do you find yourself dismayed to the point of prayerlessness when you have experienced no move of God in response to your petitions?

I recently applied for a passport upon visiting the local post office.  The clerk was sure to inform me of how I might track the process given the long amount of time it takes to actually receive my passport.  Tracking allows one the comfort in knowing that things are progressing along properly.  Such assurances are unnecessary when it is a matter of waiting upon God.

Several days had passed since the first day Daniel began to fast and pray in accordance with God’s will.  There would have been ample time for him to allow discouragement to set in.  Nevertheless, he perseveres with God, believing that God must be consistent with Himself and therefore is faithful to His Word.  What if you knew that from the very first day, when the words had scarcely left your lips, heaven began to move in response to your petitions?  Would you give up so readily?  Will the Son of Man find faith on earth when He returns (Luke 18:8)?

Be wary of giving in to the evil urge of deciding that perceived inactivity on the part of God is a matter of indifference or even unfairness.  God in His infinite wisdom and foresight enjoys the perfect and complete picture of things, whereas we have a very biased limited view.  If we have settled the all-important matter that what we are asking for is indeed consistent with God’s word, His will and His nature, then shall we have the confidence to wait patiently and expectantly  for its timely fulfillment (1 John 5:14, 15)… no matter how long it is delayed.

“At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved”.  Daniel 9:36

“Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words”.  Daniel 10:12

“And he said, “O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage”.  Daniel 10:19

The key to having power with God in prayer is having established and nurtured an intimate relationship with Him.  The foundation and prerequisite for a right relationship with God is always faith in Jesus Christ.  Nevertheless, intimate communion with God never leaves off being the priority of the true seeker.  God’s reward for such holy persistence is answered prayer.

When I got my most recent cellular phone, the service representative led me through an initial exercise that enabled the phone to recognize my voice.  Even after several months, if I am to be successful using this feature I must speak clearly without noise distraction because the phone is sensitive to my voice and my voice alone.

In a like manner, we must develop such a habit of prayer where there is a mutual recognition of speech–God hearing and recognizing our voice and we in turn recognizing Him speak softly to our hearts without the melee of competing noises and distractions all around us.  Why did Jesus often retire away from the multitude to be alone with God the Father?  So that He might hear clearly the unmistakable voice from on High.  And the Father would recognize the voice of the Son immediately and bless His soul through answers to His prayers.

Do you recognize the Divine Voice?  Has He become accustomed to hearing your voice?

Divine Speech Recognition