Sit down and shut up (I tell myself)

 After years of shirking God's tug on my heart, the happenings in the last 2 years caused me to sit up and listen to what God was putting on my heart. With the encouragement from a brother I took a step of faith that God was indeed calling me and started a Christian Brotherhood Group. We meet a few times a month and it's been an amazing experience. It's hard to put it into words because it is just a dozen or so guys sitting in a living room talking.. but, we invite the Holy Spirit in to lead and guide... that makes all the difference. That being said, anyone who knows me knows I am a talker, which can be annoying if there are a dozen other guys there. I am working specifically on being a listener in all areas of my life, whether at work, with friends, at home or in a meeting. Also, I am seen by the guys as the leader since I initiated the meetings but I give it all to God to lead. 

Something that is being made very clear to me is as a leader I sometimes unintentionally take up more time and space than I realize. If I think every comment or question needs to be followed by my response, people can feel processed instead of heard, even when my intent is good. Silence isn’t a problem I need to fix.. it’s where reflection, honesty and vulnerability can grow.

Not every question needs my answer. Sometimes a brother is saying his own words out loud for the first time, and what he shared simply needs room to sit. And when a question does need answering, as a leader I can set an example by sitting back and letting others speak first, being genuinely interested in hearing perspectives other than my own.

I already know what I think. Growth comes from learning what others think, not from restating my own thoughts.

My voice matters. Making room for others’ voices strengthens the whole group.

I can honestly say that when I shut up and listen.. it's awesome what I hear.. when I listen to hear and understand instead of listen to respond, it's awesome.  

All glory to God-

Lord, send me... (surely You wouldn't!)

I recently heard someone offering a prayer to God, and part of it said:

“Yes, Lord, we will go where You want us to go… which is most likely right where we are.”

That comment got my attention.

It started with the language of obedience, go where You want us to go, and then neutralized. Surrender was acknowledged and then explained away. The door was opened long enough to sound faithful and then shut and we go back to our comfort zone.

A statement like that can sound harmless and practical.

I mean, why would God call me to foster a child?
Why would He call me to start a Bible study for the homeless?
Why would He call me to collect clothes for the needy, build homes with Habitat for Humanity, step away from a comfortable career, or start a church where I don’t know anyone, drive 40 minutes out of my way every week, to sit in the cold to talk to one lonely man I met outside a gas station..?

Why would He ask me to do something that seems crazy… when staying “right where I am” is the most comfortable, passive thing I can do?

Don’t get me wrong, I understand that God often does call people to be faithful right where they are. Scripture shows that. It's not whether God sometimes tells us to stay. The issue is the assumption that He probably will... and the comfort that assumption provides before our obedience is ever tested.

That simple follow-up phrase... “which is most likely right where we are”   is subtle, but powerful. It lowers expectations. It reassures us that God will never ask you to do something that would disrupt our lives. It's almost like we assume God says, 'Relax… your calling won’t cost you anything'.

That’s not how the apostles understood calling. They took it seriously, knowing full well it could, and often did, cost them their lives.

That prayer gave us the idea of radical obedience and then squashed it. Almost like saying, God is gathering an army for His purposes… but whoa whoa, relax, sit back down, it’s probably not you.

We cannot acknowledge His call and then set boundaries around it and surrender on our terms.

And when this kind of language comes from a pulpit, it’s not just them telling us their personal opinion, it can train the way people think.

Does comfort equal obedience?
Is our calling simply to stay where we are, do what we already do, and remain comfortably unchanged?

Can we honestly pray, “God, I’ll go wherever You want me to go,” while assuming He will never ask us to do something that rearranges our lives?

Isaiah’s calling was anything but comfortable. At one point, God told him to walk naked and barefoot for three and a half years, and he obeyed (Isaiah 20). Isaiah could have easily responded, “C'mon God, I'm sure You don’t mean all my clothes… or that long.” He just obeyed.

Paul didn’t plan his journeys around convenience. He knew what he was signing up for... the beatings, prison, torture, and still sang praises in chains, thanking God that he was found worthy to suffer.

Prayers that sound reasonable can be dangerous. They can sound bold and ready while protecting us from interruption.

The real question isn’t whether we say we’re willing. It’s whether we’re actually willing to have our lives disrupted for the work of the Lord… for the Great Commission.

We can’t talk boldly like disciples while not being willing to live like disciples, as scary and intimidating as that can be!

We can’t sing about being sent and never expect to go.
We can’t pray “Send me” and already make up our minds that He would not actually send us, afterall it would disrupt our schedule.

If that’s our position and belief, we shouldn’t be surprised if we never recognize His voice when He does call.

The problem isn’t that God isn’t calling.
It’s that we’ve learned to explain why there is no way it could mean me!