God is holy, I am not
His calling is sacred
To answer, I must learn
To lean my weakness
On the strength of the Mighty
To plant my feet
In the steps He leaves behind
To draw as close as I can
Stuck on Him who never fails.
Some of us can’t distinguish between the secular and the sacred, we treat everything the same and wonder why it isn’t working out. First thing Abraham did as soon as he got on that mountain with Isaac was build an alter to God. He’s the reason they were there. A lot of us get carried away by details of the trip we forget that the journey was only a means and not an end. We get so bothered about what we are going to give and what we stand to lose that we forget the sacrifice is also only a means and not an end in itself. The journey was for the sacrifice and the sacrifice is about God. (Matthew 22: 9a.)
What is God calling you to right now that doesn’t seem so great? Keep in mind that He knows best and always has our best interest at heart. His ways may seem impractical, almost impossible but He gives life to the dead and calls those things that be not as though they were and they become. How else did Abraham and Sarah become parents in old age? How did that lamb appear on the mountain? He who created the world out of nothing can fulfil whatever promises He has given you irrespective of how impractical it may seem to human eyes. If you want to follow your understanding, well and good: that is your choice but if you want to follow God, don’t forget that whatever He is calling you to lay down or take on will never outweigh what He has in store as your reward for choosing to trust and obey Him instead of your own preferences.
Those who make history are those who against all odds, choose to go the highway with God. If you are confused, one thing that has always helped me in deciding which way to go is to answer the question: what is my life about? If it is about me, then I can join Frank Sinatra and make an anthem of, “I did it my way!” But if my life is about God, then whatever I choose, whatever I do, has to be His way. The most incredible experiences I have enjoyed thus far have been as a result of choosing to follow God instead of my instincts, current trends, even my family and friends. It may not start out great but in the end, everyone looks at you like a genius, a super star whereas all you did was go against the tide and stick it out with God until others see enough to get it and come around.
The story of that journey and the sacrifice on Mount Moriah wasn’t about Abraham and his commendable faith. It wasn’t about poor Isaac who had neither choice nor say in what was going to happen or not. The whole journey and sacrifice were all about God. It was God’s idea in the first place, not Abraham’s suggestion to show God how much he loved Him or how obedient he was. When we choose to make a sacrifice to God, it is up to us on how we deliver but when God initiates an assignment, we have a responsibility to let Him lead. When we step ahead, instead of following in His footsteps, we expose ourselves to preventable harms.
God is and God will ever remain, the center of every message and every mission. Shift the attention or take Him off the equation and it’s no longer about God and His will. If we choose to run the show, God will step aside and let us. If however, what we truly desire is to please God instead of people or ourselves, to do His will not flaunt that we do, we will keep Him central and upfront in every thought, through every word and every action we take.
Glory!