“Don’t shut the door to missions.” That was what the Lord told me during a Retreat of Silence at InterVarsity’s Fall Conference, October 8th, 2016. That was it; it wasn’t a huge eye opener, but yet that little phrase sent me into a whirlwind: destination—the World Race. In that one phrase the Lord told me to keep my mind open to His Will for my life. Then over the course of the next two weeks till October 24th, 2016, God transformed His still small voice into a loud clap of thunder.
So why the World Race. I wanted to do missions for longer than a few months. I first heard about the World Race during senior year of high school. Then I had a friend from college go on the World Race, and he came back with great experiences. Finally, during the Fall Conference I was reminded that my friend, Nathan, was applying to go on the World Race. This prompted me to start thinking about the World Race.
That still small voice prompted me to think about God’s Will for my life, especially going into senior year of college. However, I began to selfishly ask the question “What do I want to do with MY life?”, but the God continued to point out that I should have asked this question: ”What does God want me to do for the rest of my life?” He first pointed out this flaw in my thoughts with these lyrics:
“You’re changing my heart
To want what You want
To love how You love
And that is enough
There’s no greater plan
That I need to know
You only ask me to follow
And want what You,
What, You want”
— What You Want by Tenth Avenue North
What does the Lord want from me? He wants me to keep an open mind, and NOT to shut the door to missions. God continued to speak through various Christian artists over those couple weeks. He also spoke through His Word. I decided to open my Bible up to the minor prophets and begin reading in Hosea.
“the LORD said to Hosea, ‘Go,’ … So he went.”
— Hosea 1:2-3
If you read the rest of chapter one, the Lord told Hosea to take a wife of whoredom and have children with her. Then the Lord told Hosea to name his children unpleasant names. That doesn’t sound very appealing, yet the Bible doesn’t record Hosea complaining or questioning God, he simple obeyed. No matter what the circumstance was, Hosea went and did as the Lord commanded. I pray that we can all obey the Lord in no whatever circumstance He sends us into. I learned through this passage that I should be open to whatever circumstance God sends me into. After reading this passage, I was really questioning what God wants me to do, and I wrote the following:
“Pray that God would guide me in my decisions after I graduate.”
At this point the Lord was speaking through a rushing of wind, and I knew that the Lord wanted me to go on the World Race. But I wasn’t quite ready to accept that fact. Then came InterVarsity’s Cross Training, where I attended a track titled, “Praying for a Change”. This track was designed to strengthen our pray life, more specifically listening prayer. We began the track with a manuscript study in John 10:1-21.
“He goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. … My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. … and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”
— John 10:4, 27, 29
The sheep listen to His voice; they know His voice. Boom! There goes the clap of thunder across my life. I had been listening to the voice of the Good Shepherd, and I knew that it was the Good Shepherd’s voice. I knew it, deep down inside of me, it was this unexplainable peaceful feeling; God was relentlessly pursuing me. He had had enough of me wandering blindly outside, He was going to bring me into His fold and lead me through His adventure.
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”
— Psalm 23:1-4
“After that comes the sound of his roar; he thunders with his majestic voice.
When his voice resounds, he holds nothing back.”
— Job 37:4
But I realized that listening to God’s Voice is only part of the equation; the other part is that I have to obey the Voice of God. It’s not just obeying the Voice of God, it’s also obeying the Word of God.
“Love the LORD your God and keep his requirements,
his decrees, his laws and his commands always.”
— Deuteronomy 11:1
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
— Matthew 22:37
“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”
— Psalm 119:11
The best way to listen and obey the Voice of the Shepherd is to be in constant communion with God. To meditate of His Word day and night and to pray without ceasing. Recently I have been studying the book of Joshua and have noticed the Lord’s overwhelming presence in Joshua and the entire people of Israel. In a later blog titled, “God’s Servant: Joshua”, I will share some of my thoughts on the book of Joshua. Right now, I want to point out the deep relationship Joshua had with the Lord. Many times throughout Joshua the Lord speaks and commands Joshua to lead the people of Israel in unusual war strategies. However time and time again Joshua obeyed the Lord and…
“…the LORD was with Joshua,”
— Joshua 6:27
I could keep writing about how the Lord was with Joshua but I will talk about that in my next blog. So back to my story, how did I obey the Voice of the Shepherd? Well I applied to go on the World Race; I didn’t continue pursuing any full-time jobs. I pursued the World Race with everything I had.
Looking back on the last 4 years of my life, I have excelled with my studies in college and will be graduating with a 3.9+ GPA. Yet I was never able to get an internship to apply my education. Time and time again I would get close, but no offer. I was getting frustrated. Not getting an internship became on my biggest roadblocks in my life. But this roadblock turned out to the work of God. Looking back at this roadblock, I realize that God was preventing me from getting an internship. He was directing my path towards the World Race. What happens next, I know that God will be with me. Pray that I will continue to listen and obey the Voice of the Shepherd. Pray that my teammates will also listen and obey the Voice of the Shepherd.
“And now, O sons, listen to me:
blessed are those who keep my ways.
Hear instruction and be wise,
and do not neglect it.
Blessed is the one who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates,
waiting beside my doors.
For whoever finds me finds life
and obtains favor from the LORD,”
— Proverbs 8:32-35
