When people say they have Faith, essentially it should mean they Trust in God and the things He is doing in their life. The common problem found here is that people only want to Trust God when it’s on their terms. In other words, we don’t want to be left in the dark. We have to see what’s going on in order to follow suit. I am no different. Up until this point in my life, I made the claim to have Faith. In reality, I had to always be in the know. Trust in God. It’s funny how something so simple can be so difficult to do. Let me tell you though, amazing things can happen when you learn to let go and jump.
When admissions from The Word Race called to reveal my acceptance to join their team, I was given a two week grace period to make a decision. This had to be the longest two weeks of my life! I struggled so hard with the decisions I was facing. Several job opportunities had come up and I was COMFORTABLE! The thought of making an honest salary was too good to be true. Not only was the thought of having a substantially higher cash flow appealing but like I said, I was comfortable. Going on The World Race would strip me of the stability I had built up and quite frankly, I really wasn’t ready to give that up. “Yea, I’m not going,” I’d tell myself. Doing my best to envision my future and how it would look with the relationships I was building and growing, it seemed to be a no-brainer. However, just as soon as I thought I had come to terms with my decision, I would end up right back where I started. My inner conscious would read, “What are you thinking?!” and “Are you really ready to pass this up?” After much prayer, I realized I wasn’t being honest with myself. It would be so easy not to go and there would be nothing wrong with that! Yet, I couldn’t find peace with this decision and knew deep down I wanted to venture out. So what was holding me back? Finally, it dawned on me; this was going to be the first time I really stepped out of my comfort zone and took a leap of Faith.
The first job I turned down threw me in a whirl wind. Right after I withdrew my application, my insecurities kicked in. “Are you crazy?! I can’t believe you turned down that job!” I began to second guess myself. Even though I knew this was the right decision to make, I could not ease my mind as my future began to hang in the balance. At this very instance, my cell phone went off. It was my buddy, Trey Braswell. After catching up, I filled him in on the choices I was making in my life and how troubled and concerned I was about it all. His response, “Listen buddy, I really want to encourage you to go and know that you’re not crazy! You’re the man! I wish I could have done this, but God has given me a different platform to work from. I not only want to encourage you to go, I want to help support you financially.” I was blown away and immediately lifted by his words! God’s timing is perfect. Before Trey called, I was acting on little Faith. In another conversation addressing some similar issues in my life, Dr. Johnny Clark told me this, “Jeff, all you need to know is that hey buddy-God loves you, man. He’s going to provide for you.” Even as believers, it is so hard to dismiss the insecurities that plague our minds. We find ourselves wrapped up and worried about all the little things going on in our life. Stop. All you need to know is that God loves you!
After a week or two had passed, I turned down another job. This was it! Apart from the little income I have now, this was the last offer left on the table to jump start my career. So what did I do? I turned it down and the cycle continued. Why can’t I learn? Remember that whole conversation about God having your back? Nevertheless, I began to worry myself to death! AGAIN, another close friend of mine, David Hill, came onto the scene. After I got David up to speed on the decisions made, he looked at me and said, “Yea, you’re crazy alright. You would be even more crazy to pass up an opportunity like this! I believe in you and I tell you what-I’ll give you your first thousand.”
Although our Faith will be tested, we are never alone in our trials. Our Heavenly Father is always with us, especially during our weakest moments. As we journey with Him in our walk, He gives us Faith. As far as fundraising is concerned, I still have a long way to go but I know that all things are possible through Him! Even when the road ahead is unclear, be bold and take a leap of Faith.
