I had the prompt to check out Oswald Chambers this morning and I can see why.
January 16, 2009
The Voice of the Nature of God
I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ’Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’ —Isaiah 6:8
When we talk about the call of God, we often forget the most important thing, namely, the nature of Him who calls. There are many things calling each of us today. Some of these calls will be answered, and others will not even be heard. The call is the expression of the nature of the One who calls, and we can only recognize the call if that same nature is in us. The call of God is the expression of God’s nature, not ours. God providentially weaves the threads of His call through our lives, and only we can distinguish them. It is the threading of God’s voice directly to us over a certain concern, and it is useless to seek another person’s opinion of it. Our dealings over the call of God should be kept exclusively between ourselves and Him.
The call of God is not a reflection of my nature; my personal desires and temperament are of no consideration. As long as I dwell on my own qualities and traits and think about what I am suited for, I will never hear the call of God. But when God brings me into the right relationship with Himself, I will be in the same condition Isaiah was. Isaiah was so attuned to God, because of the great crisis he had just endured, that the call of God penetrated his soul. The majority of us cannot hear anything but ourselves. And we cannot hear anything God says. But to be brought to the place where we can hear the call of God is to be profoundly changed.
2 comments:
oooh! good one, good one...i read this through a few times and pondered it...the thing about our own desires or needs not being important is so true but it is the most difficult thing for me, it really is. I struggle with that everyday, every minute of the day sometimes. And the part about listening to God and him weaving himself into our concerns...so true. I remember when I starting homeschooling. I didn't tell my sister until the choice had been made and she wanted to know why I didn't ask her opinion on it and I said "because I didn't need it, it wasn't between me and you." I had prayed about it and that was good enough for me and it's been the thing in my life that I feel the most sure of, even on days when I want to pull someone's hair out. I just know that this is what God wanted for me. So many times I miss my opportuntity at listening to Him though. I'm sorry I went on, but this one really spoke to me.
extremely thought provoking, even when you think you understand it somewhat!
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