My family sat quietly listening to each performance during a master class a few weeks ago. At one point during the class, it became time for 2 of my girls to leave and go to their own class. At the end of one of the songs I whispered to my daughter “Pick up your shoes, grab your backpack, and go to daddy.” He was standing a few feet away waiting for her. My daughter looked at me confused. I repeated my instructions a second time, only this time a little more sternly. She still didn’t get it.
I needed my daughter’s quick obedience so that she could slip out of the row before the next person took their place on the stage. There was a small window of time, and if she missed it, she would have to wait through the next performer and be late for her class. In frustration I whispered to my daughter, “You must go now!” At what felt like the last minute, she finally grabbed her things and got to her dad before the next performer began.
As I sat there listening to the next song,
I couldn’t help but see a spiritual picture.
How many times do we hear instructions from the Lord and sit there questioning His command? How many times have we missed God’s timing because we failed to go right when He says, “Go”?
The longer I walk with the Lord, the more I realize that faith and obedience go hand in hand. In order to obey the Lord, I must have faith that He is worthy of my following. Think about it this way. If a stranger in the mall walks up to my children and tells them to come with them, they will not go. Yet if I walk up to them and tell them it is time to go, then they will go without hesitation. Why? Because my children know me, they trust me, and they love me. They have faith that I am not going to lead them astray or harm them.
What about when the Lord asks us to do something? Do we obey without hesitation? Do we immediately go and do what He asks us to do, or do we question his command? What if the command doesn’t make sense? What if the command requires us to do something we really don’t want to do? Do we spend weeks wondering if His command lines up with our life plan and will benefit us?
Our family saw the importance of God’s timing several months ago. We felt God was leading us to look for a house, but it didn’t make sense that we could get one. Yet, as we lay in bed all night unable to sleep, we checked the internet for available homes. That day, Saturday, a house was listed that was exactly what we needed. We contacted our realtor on Sunday, looked at the house on Monday, only to learn that all bids for the house had to be in by Tuesday at 10 AM. Thankfully through a miracle we were able to get the house. (I have blogged about our house story here if you want to read about it in more detail).
What if we had not obeyed the Lord’s leading?
There was a small window that the perfect house for us was on the market (less than 72 hours)! God needed our obedience to His command to be quick, without hesitation, and full of faith.
We see it in scripture when Abraham is called to sacrifice Isaac.
Genesis 22:2-3 Then God said “Take your son, your only son, whom you love –Isaac–and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you. Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about.”
Abraham’s quick obedience was born out of relationship and faith. He possessed a faith that God keeps His promises and that His commands are good. I love this quote I read in a commentary by Matthew Henry about Abraham that says,
“In matters of God, whoever consults with flesh and blood,
will never offer up his Isaac to God.“
Abraham’s ability to obey was born out of years of testing, trying, and waiting. In the recent weeks I have thought a lot about Abraham’s time of waiting. I have come to think that the distance between the initial promise of a son and the birth of Isaac probably corresponded to the amount of time it really took for Abraham to fully believe the promise! We see that in the fact that he had Ishmael! Had Abraham fully believed the promise, he would not have tried to fulfill the promise by himself! It is the same with us! When we have confidence in who God is, our obedience will be the same as Abraham’s when called to offer up Isaac. We will have a faith that rises up early in the morning in obedience, even when the request is one that costs us everything!
Valerie says
Such a great post and something that I’ve been discovering in my own walk with God. I think the more we say yes to God the easier it becomes to obey him quickly.
Kim@kimborders.com says
Thanks for commenting! I agree!
Elle says
I am catching up on your blog this evening ! I love this one because of the story . I can so relate to teaching quick obedience to my children and i love the picture of me needing to do it with God.
Thanks for sharing.