Saying YES to Where God Calls
Today we’re furthering the conversation of how to live out our faith, through talking about the word YES. Often times when we feel God calling us somewhere, we hesitate. We want to wait until we have answers and until it feels right when what we should be doing is simply saying YES. At the beginning of quarantine, I had this vision of a world where everyone was saying yes to who God was calling them to be. It was such a beautiful image and idea because it meant no matter the state of the world- people would be stepping out in faith saying, “Yes Lord”. I think this is so timely with right now, at a time when our world feels so broken. We continue to live in uncertainty with COVID, we continue to have to reframe what our lives and relationships look like. Here’s the thing though— God is still using us and growing us. He is starting to work new things in us, while also continuing things He has been preparing us for.
For me, a year and a half ago, I said yes to attending Westmont College. All of my friends know that I had a strong desire to go to Pepperdine. When I got in, I was determined that was where my next four years would be. Yet God continued to close doors to Pepperdine, and I remember being so angry at Him and praying that He would make a way for me to go there. Instead of realizing that maybe God had even greater things in store for me, I clung harder to what I wanted for my life. Pepperdine was familiar to me, I knew everything about it, I had stayed there during the summer, I could see what I would be involved in- it was all in my plan. With Westmont it was unfamiliar to me (yet looking back now it was the best for me!). It took me four months to finally shift my prayers from , “God make this happen”, to “God change my heart”. My prayers were no longer about changing a situation, but instead to changing my heart to desire what God had for me. I began to feel that shift in my heart and was given what I believe a clear sign from God that Westmont was where I was supposed to be. Here is the thing though- even at that moment where God changed my heart to desire what He had for me, and where He had given me a clear sign, I still had to say yes. Let me tell you that yes to Westmont was still full of unknowns for me. My desire to go to Pepperdine was still there. But I knew that I had to set aside my own desires to make room for God’s desires… and so I said yes!
Fast forward through that first semester, man was it not what I thought it would be. I had all of these thoughts on what college would look like for me, and it was far from it. Even with glimpses of why God had me at Westmont, I was so hung up on God granting my desires in the timeline I had set, that it kept me from fully experiencing what God had put in front of me. Starting my second semester I remember telling my dad, I knew that was where God wanted me, but it wasn’t going how I imagined it would. He told me that I had to do my part in taking action. I had to put myself out there even when it was uncomfortable. And he was right- I had said this big yes to God of attending Westmont, but then I just sat back waiting for Him to prove to me He was right. Instead my big yes had to be accompanied by smaller yes’s- going on a run with a new friend, going to a worship night alone, spending time in the word, eating with a new friend in the dining hall. New yes’s every day in pursuit of where God was calling me. Every single yes, big and small, brought me closer to who God was growing me to be.
Where is God calling you right now? What is He calling you to do, who is He calling you to be, who is He calling you to seek out? Where do you need to have strong confidence in Him to say yes? Since quarantine, for me it is was saying yes to being consistent in a book club. It was saying yes to starting a blog even though I had no idea how long I’d do it, who would read/watch, what would happen (still don’t). It was me saying yes to giving God more time in my day and spending new time in His word.
Jeremiah 29:11 says “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”. He wants the very best for you, a matter of fact He knows what is best for you. He is leading you down a path that is right for you- one where you are becoming who He created you to be.
Let’s join together in saying yes and supporting one another in wherever God calls. Maybe it’s a big move, a new job, an ending to a relationship, a dare to be creative when you’ve convinced yourself you’re not, a new way to spend your time, a call to tell someone about God, a call to change the way you’re living, a new way of using your words, a call to love your enemies, a call to be patient and wait, a call to be faithful, a call to use your gifts in a new way. There are so many ways that God is planning on using each of us for His glory- are you going to take part in saying yes?
♡ Lindsay
