“I can’t do this!”
How many times have you said this or turned away from something that made you uncomfortable, or you felt ill-equipped to handle a conversation that you just didn’t want to have? I do believe we can all honestly say we have run away from something at least once in our lives.
Did you know that running from God is something we tend to do and do not realize that is what we are doing? How many times has something been heavy on your heart to do, and you did not do it? How often has a small voice inside said help him, or talk to her and you didn’t do it?
Throughout the Bible, people have run from God or tried to hide from Him since Adam and Eve in the Garden. Remember when they hid from God because they realized they were naked?
And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. Adam and his wife hid themselves from the LORD God’s presence among the garden’s trees” – Genesis 3:8.
Or when Jonah ran from God because he didn’t want to go to Nineveh.
The Lord sent this message to Jonah, the son of Amittai: ‘Go to the great city of Nineveh and give them this announcement from the Lord: ‘I am going to destroy you, for your wickedness rises before me; it smells to the highest heaven.’ But Jonah was afraid to go and ran away from the Lord. He went down to the seacoast, to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket, went on board, and climbed down into the dark hold of the ship to hide there from the Lord” – Jonah 1:1-3.
Running from God has been a part of the human condition since we can remember. Sometimes it was out of fear. Other times, it was out of not liking what was being asked. And yet other times are just because you doubt the urge. Whatever the reason, running from God’s calling or nudge is not something we are immune to just because we have a relationship with Him. Running means we do not have to face our own insecurities or inadequacies.
We have all kinds of rationale for not acting on a calling or nudge from God. We run because, well, God will find someone else, or you don’t think you are the right person for the job, or you are just plain scared you are not getting the message right, and you don’t want to look foolish.
Do you know that sometimes that nudge is God asking you to fulfill someone else’s prayer? Or to address a need? As Christians, we are called to be God’s hands and feet. We are called to be Servants just as Jesus was a Servant to many in His time here on earth. We are supposed to have a Servant’s heart, which means we are supposed to answer that nudge no matter how we feel about it.
But what if I am wrong? Think about this: Would it be wrong if it is God’s nudging? Did you hear the story about the young man who felt God leading him to buy a gallon of milk? He lived alone and would not be able to finish that gallon of milk before it went bad, and he shook his head and went that can’t be right. But the feeling would not leave him, and after many hours and doubting and denying self-talk, he bought the gallon of milk and said, “Lord, what now?”
God led him to a house and urged him to knock on the door and he felt foolish. Still, he did it, and a frantic man answered the door. He offered him the gallon of milk and guess what, the man thanked him profusely because he did not have the money. His baby needed milk, and he asked God for a miracle. Remember, you could be the answer to someone’s prayer.
God never asks anything of us without a reason. How many times has He asked you to smile, say a kind word to a stranger, stop and help someone in need, or maybe even buy something you didn’t need? Running from God never works out really. When we run, He either continues to push at us or totally redirects our path as He did with Jonah.
If you feel God calling, look first for His peace and then take a deep breath and ask, Lord, what are you asking of me? Then say yes. What is the worse that can happen? The worst thing is that smile is not returned, that kind word falls on deaf ears, or that stranger refuses your help. But you have shown God that you trust Him, and that is all He really wants from us. To trust Him.
Yvette Asplund gave her life to God and was Baptized in April of 1999 and strives to continue to grow in her relationship with Him.