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God's Call
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God's Call
I arrived at Middletown Baptist Church in Louisville to be greeted by Youth Sunday. I was told the youth were doing everything. They were preaching, teaching, and leading the music.
This is where I have a confession to make. I briefly wondered if I had heard God correctly. Was it possible I was supposed to visit one of the 2 interesting churches I passed on the way? Surely I needed to hear a real teacher and pastor today. Laughing at my thoughts, I followed a most enthusiastic man to my class.
There were only 2 people in the class and both were silent. I found myself growing impatient as the start time arrived and no one else had. I considered going to the class across the hall but they were serving breakfast and I thought it best to stay out of there. Eating breakfast twice is a very bad idea for me. I briefly considered praying for patience but that prayer scares me.
I decided it might help if someone said something. My conversational skills are not at their best in the morning and I asked something boring like how many people usually attended this class. I was told 17.
Then I remembered the class "Conversation 101." The first thing you learn is to always ask open-ended questions. I asked the youth sitting in front of me his name and age. Not very open-ended but at least it was 2 questions. I realized I sounded a little like I was grilling this youth on his credentials but luckily 14-year-old Billy was a very good sport. He quickly told me he wasn't the real teacher and that another youth would be joining him. I am dangerous when bored and I started joking with Billy about the frustrations of age 14. I pretended that he cared and told him I had a 14-year-old nephew. Billy was kind enough to humor me with joking back.
As the room filled up, everyone started talking about their day, the soccer field, and children. No one seemed to notice me and I was starting to panic. I felt left out. Suddenly the man next to me seemed to realize I was there and turned and introduced himself. A lady sat down next to me and introduced herself. The world is so much better with friends.
2 more youth arrived and the youth voted that Billy really was in charge. He began what became an excellent lesson. Poor Billy. Someone stopped him immediately and decided that I needed to introduce myself to the class. They then went around and introduced themselves. By this time, the room was full.
In my introduction, I told them about my trip. I have been struggling with how to explain what I'm doing in 60 seconds or less. This morning, I simply said that I'm traveling around the country and talking to people about their relationship with God. I let them know I was writing my experiences on my website. I finished with the words, "I believe this is a calling from God."
The lesson began with the scripture being read. The approach for the lesson was to first have the youth read the scripture and follow the scripture with a series of questions. The scripture Genesis 12 and was about the divine call of Abram. Billy's first question was about being called by God. Since I had just used the words "a calling from God" I knew I was in the right place. The entire lesson was about hearing and following the call of God.
I was reminded that in any church, the teacher is God working through individuals. It really doesn't matter who the pastors and teachers are. This was particularly comforting to me because the pastor of my precious church was giving his resignation this morning. I love my pastor and want to sit at his feet and listen and learn. I am deeply grieving him leaving. Our church has blossomed under his 18 years of leadership and I was having deep fears about what I would be facing when I returned.
How God must be amused at my fears and negative thoughts. He is probably thinking, "Cheryle, we have this great relationship of love and trust. You ask me to be with you and guide you every day. Do you think I'm not listening?"
From that moment forward, I was a part of that class. I wanted to answer every question and get an A on the test. The questions were thought provoking and stimulated dialogue. I had to sit on my hands and bite my tongue to let others answer. I had just heard the speaker Beth Moore say that we learn best by listening and I was having to coach myself to listen. When I get excited, I have trouble being quiet.
On one of my more quiet moments, I heard something very profound. A woman in the class said that the 3 tests for a calling are:
1. Scripture: Does it conflict with scripture?
2. Circumstance: Are the circumstances falling into place?
3. Peace: Are you at peace about it.
I thought about the events surrounding my journey and I realized that I passed the test she gave. I wondered, "Is this where I get my A?"
I went into the worship and was blessed by the music. The youth played the piano, drums, and sang. The youth song leader had a wonderful and pure voice. They did a dramatic presentation that was touching. They did a skit that was amusing. Within 15 minutes, I had laughed and cried.
When the youth pastor stood up to speak, I listened with awe. She spoke clearly, with intelligence and wisdom. She was beautiful physically and spiritually. Her faith in God was obvious. She had wisdom beyond her years. She briefly referenced an illness and I wanted to know more. After the service, I found her mother. She was quick to share her story with me. She gave me permission to tell the story and use her name. Please read her incredible story marked Prayer Request: Abundant Living.
As I left the church, I thought about God's call. He calls us every day. Hopefully we wake up each morning and ask him what our assignment for the day is. My daily prayer is to have knowledge of God's will for me today and the power to carry that out. God's call led me to this sweet church today.
Matt 4:19-20
"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him.
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