Never Too Close!
Scripture reassures us, “No one who trusts God like this—heart and soul—will ever regret it.” Rom. 10:11 (MSG)
Yesterday, at the time of this writing, my pastor spoke from the book of Genesis about how Abram (later Abraham) picked up and left everything to follow God and his plan for his life. Today I sent the following message to him.
Hi Pastor,
I could relate to your message yesterday. When I was 20, God called me into the ministry. Three weeks after I turned 21, I left Tulsa, my budding, stable career with PSO, family, and friends, and drove 1640 miles to Acton, MA.
I took a position in an Assembly of God church that was new, and they said they couldn’t pay me a salary. Yet I had a car payment, a student loan to pay back (with no Joe Biden’s help), and living costs. My father forbade me from going. (I was not living under his roof at the time.) Also, I lost my best friend over it because he thought I should obey my father. Yet I knew God told me to go, and I wanted to “trust” Him and obey.
God was faithful, and everything got paid. I learned so much about following God back then. It has truly been the greatest adventure one could ever live! I, too, desire for everyone to experience that kind of relationship with God, and that is the basis of my blogs.
In closing, I sensed the Holy Spirit whisper to me yesterday while you were speaking, “Because you trusted me and obeyed, I have poured out my blessings upon you ever since.”
Romans 10:11 is so true! You don’t follow God for what you can get from him. He simply likes to bless his children who believe so strongly in him. One can never follow God too closely.
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Heb. 11:6 (NIV)
6 So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” 7 Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. 8 Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” 9 So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Gal. 3:6-9 (NIV)
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