Obedience

Tuesday Evening, Food for Thought:

Obedience to God praises God. We praise God through prayer, song and worship as well as through our obedience to Him. Obedience originates in God's word, the word made flesh--the Lord Jesus Christ--and the Bible.

See Christ, Believe Christ, Achieve with Christ!

Rick E. Meyer
See, Believe, Achieve Inc.
Running on Faith Ministry Inc.
www.rickEmeyer.com

Stay tuned for additional writing in this article.

Procrastination

"True Obedience Acts Immediately." ~ Dr. Stanley D. Toussaint (c.f. Acts 16:9–10 NASB95)

    "A vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him, and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us."

When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them."

 

I have several assignments and three exams to study for and complete in the next month, I am relatively caught-up with school work. If I continue with a steady pace, this preparation and completion should avoid activation of panic alarms. This realization carries the dangerous temptation to procrastinate beginning these tasks instead of starting and completing the responsibilities early. However, while eating breakfast this morning and pondering the upcoming workload; I considered an opportunity at the end of April that I have previously prayed for God to provide if He desires my participating in this activity.

 

As I prayed for guidance on my participation in this activity, a strong prompting voice struck my heart and mind, "If you are serious about receiving provision for this activity, you will complete as much of your academic requirements now to free up the time necessary to receive the blessing. Conversely, procrastinating on your studying will result in missing participating if you receive the opportunity.

• Am I willing to act in studying and preparing ahead of time to the best of my ability on Faith of receiving this opportunity?
  
• If I act in faith with studying ahead of schedule and the opportunity fails to materialize, will I regret working ahead?
  
• If I fail to act in faith with studying ahead of schedule and the opportunity does materialize, will I regret missing out in participating?
  
• If I were to regret each of the above scenarios, which one would yield the greatest regret?
  
• "Always put yourself in a position to win" Bill "Congo" Congleton .
  
• Working ahead seems as the best positioning for winning.
  

 

• How are you listening and responding to God's promptings?
  
• Are you reading God's Word?
  
• Do you pray, living joyfully and thankfully always?
  
• Are you immediately responding in obedience?
  

 

See Christ, Believe Christ, Achieve with Christ-Act Obediently, Immediately!

 

Rick E. Meyer

See, Believe, Achieve Inc.

www.rickEmeyer.com

 

 

Food for thought, while I organize my thoughts for a full article. Procrastination denies some future Blessings. When we deny doing our chores now, we miss out later opportunities when we finally do our chores.

 

Conversely, failing to act immediately to promptings from the Holy Spirit is in fact disobedience resulting from doubt (or pride).

    "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways." James 1:5–8 (NASB95)

 

Doubt appears in numerous forms, including doubting the validity of a prompting based on the lack of immediate response from someone that I received a prompting to encourage. Yet, the same voice who prompted me with the encouraging message, also strongly reminds me to Trust Him instead of people's responses or response time. Past obedient immediate action to this same prompting voice results in hundreds of validations, including several this week.

 

Why am I still tempted with doubt about the validity of current promptings? Promptings from the indwelling Holy Spirit virtually always contrasts human logic, displacing human comfort. Additionally, we doubt when placing greater concern of approval from men and women than from pleasing God. My obedience, and YOUR obedience, belongs to only God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit! God—the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit—calls us to serve and accept.

 

The indwelling Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts and minds through promptings, associations with fellow believers, prayer and in our internalizing God's Word—as does faith.

 

"So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ (Romans 10:17 NASB95)."

 

We serve Him in obedience to His word, prayers and correlating guidance from others and promptings, we then joyfully and thankfully accepts whatever He places in our lives.

        "^aRejoice always; ^apray without ceasing; in everything ^agive thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. ^aDo not quench the Spirit; do not despise ^aprophetic ¹utterances. But ^aexamine everything carefully;
^bhold fast to that which is good; abstain from every ¹form of evil. " (1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 NASB 95)

 

Procrastination is choosing Disobedience over Obedience.

 

 

Listen and Respond to Christ’s Voice

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27 NIV).


As a child growing-up on the farm, Dad expected me to run in response to his commands. If he asked for a 11/16" deep socket, I ran to find the 11/16" deep socket, then ran to deliver the socket to him. He expected the same response in getting a shovel, a tractor, the pick-up or something in the house. When my father spoke, he expected an immediate, urgent response in my running to fulfill his command. I obeyed because I knew my father's voice, and I strongly desired to please him. Oftentimes, Dad did not have time to explain why he needed me to run for whatever he needed. I was expected to run in response despite whether I understood the purpose of the command.


Naturally, our loving desire to please our heavenly Father, responding to Christ's voice spoken in our hearts by the indwelling Holy Spirit should generate at least an equal response to our dad's voice.

True obedience responds immediately.

~ Dr. Stan Toussaint, Dallas Theological Seminary

Other times have failed to immediately respond to Christ's voice, because my selfish pride prevented my recognizing, my knowing Christ's voice. In the spring and early summer of 2009, I had "hunches" to visit a neighbor across the yard. My sinful, inward focused pride prevented me from visiting this neighbor who lived by himself. I justified that I was too busy; another time will work better for both of us.


Additionally, my sinful pride rhetorically asked, "What will this guy whom I never met think? What will the other neighbors think of me visiting this raggedy dressed man.'


I am embarrassed to write about my terrible sins, I now am unable to understand what causes such as awful thoughts, and more importantly what caused my obedience to these sinful, prideful thoughts. During Saturday morning Bible study in mid-July, one of the men told of my neighbor whom I was too busy and prideful to visit, committed suicide due to loneliness. The indwelling Holy Spirit requested that I visit this man. I ignored the Holy Spirit, I failed to listen to Christ's voice. I failed to follow Christ to that man's home.


Consequently, I now strive to immediately respond to Christ's voice, even if I risk embarrassment. I would rather be embarrassed in immediately responding to the voice of Holy Spirit, than risk failing to respond. This includes calling someone immediately before entering a meeting because I hear in my heart and mind the Holy Spirit's voice instructing me to leave a message of healing and encouragement. A few minutes later the person sent a text message thanking me for the message. This text message validates that I did appropriately listen to and respond to Christ's voice.


Other times, I send messages of thoughts, encouragement, hopes and prayers via text, e-mail, facebook or a spoken word to those whom the Lord places on my heart. Sometimes it seems rather awkward, yet I know that as long as I seek to serve and please God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit He will guide my messages in hearts of the receptors.


This morning at church a couple and their young son whom I had never met, sat by me. Near the end of the service, I heard the Lord instruct me through my heart to tell the mother how I could easily see and sense her and her husband's authentic Christian love for their son. Despite the awkwardness, I immediately responded to Christ's voice. The mother thanked me profusely. She repeated her gratitude as we departed the sanctuary. I further stated that their love for their son is indicative of her and her husband's love for each other. Her eyes once again softly leaked with compassion and gratitude as she assured me of their authentic Christian love for one another.


The reason for Christ using me to express this message to this mother remains unknown to me. Yet, just as I Dad didn't always explain why he needed me to run for something for him, neither does God need to explain each of His commands to me.


The above stories have little to do with Rick E. Meyer, rather everything to do with how you will listen to Christ's voice, immediately respond to Christ's voice as you follow Him.


To listen to Christ's voice, assumes we know Christ's voice spoken non-audibly in our heart and mind by the indwelling Holy Spirit. Do you listen and respond to the Holy Spirit? Listening and knowing mandate immediate response. Delays in belief cause delays in belief, we respond according to our belief.


To know Christ's voice, pray—this includes listening, read scripture, associate with mature Christians and journal to aid your calibration of His voice.


How has God used you to touch lives, even when it seems awkward?


Are you prepared and willing to immediately respond to Christ voice in serving His people in whatever method He commands? Trust Him! Seek to honestly say, "Lord, you know that I try to hear, listen and respond to appropriately to your voice. Cause me to glorify you even when I inadvertently mess up in understanding your message and / or how to respond to your message. Lord, thank you for using me, and helping me perpetually improve in listening and responding to Christ's voice spoken to me from the indwelling Holy Spirit."


Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
(Psalm 37:4-5). Listening and responding to the Christ who sent the indwelling Holy Spirit to believers—delighting in the Lord—results in you and I requesting God to infuse His desires into your heart and my heart.


See Christ, Believe Christ, Achieve with Christ!
Rick E. Meyer
See, Believe, Achieve Inc.
www.rickEmeyer.com