Friday, May 14, 2010

I feel lead but not sure if it is God...

Have you ever felt led to do something but you wanted to make sure it was God and not you? I have had that happen to me more times than I can count; whether it was sharing my faith, offering encouragement or rebuke, going a certain direction. I think God wants me to do it but I am not sure (and scared). Can you relate?

In Matthew 14 when Jesus walked out on the water the disciples were like frightened children. They thought it might be Jesus but they didn’t rule out it being a ghost. After they settled down Peter says “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you by walking on the water.” And Jesus said, “Come.” Peter ended up taking a small step out of the boat and a giant leap toward Jesus. He is the only person (beside Jesus) to have literally walked on water. We learn, though, that when you step out in faith it doesn’t take long to start second guessing yourself. Peter saw the wind and waves and wonders “did I make a mistake getting out of the boat?” And when you do that spiritually you start to sink because you stop focusing on Jesus and start focusing on the wind and waves.

Andy Stanley in his book “The Next Generation Leader" writes “generally speaking, you are probably never going to be more than 80% certain. Waiting for great certainty may cause you to miss an opportunity.”

Most want absolute certainty before stepping out in faith. We love 100% money back guarantees but the problem with that reasoning in life is that it takes faith out of the equation. Maybe we are not suppose to be absolutely certain before we step out. As Mark Batterson says “there is no such thing as risk free faith….and you can’t experience success without risking failure.”

What steps of faith do I need to take today? (Thoughts inspired by the book “In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day” p. 114)

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