Called Out To Be Called In

In the seasons of our life, have you noticed that God often calls us out of somewhere or something to call us into something new? It could be out of a country, a job, a business deal or even a relationship.

For Abraham, the call was out of his father’s house and also out of the country where he dwelt, UR of the Chaldees ‘to go to a land where I will show you’.

When God calls us out of somewhere, it is always with the intention of blessing us and of revealing His wider purposes for us in the next stage of our journey into destiny. Yes, there are usually challenges to refine us, but God always has plans of good to give us hope.

This usually means leaving people and things behind that may be dear to us and which formed part of our security, and that we held on to. God asked Abraham to leave his father’s house… but as it turned out initially, Lot went with him. However, inevitably, there came the parting of the ways, when Lot’s herdsmen argued with Abraham’s herdsmen over the ground they occupied when they both had more animals than the land could bear. God will have His way with all of us in the end, even as He did with Jonah. But, He is no man’s debtor, and those we have to leave behind, or things we have to part with, He will more than make up for. If Abraham was obedient (and he was) then the promise to him was ‘I will bless you…’ and so it is with us.

When the call comes, we have a choice to make – either we go with God and take that leap of faith, or remain where we are and stagnate, like the Dead Sea. The fact is, when we know, that we know, that we know, that God is in it, we can take the risk and make the move without any fear, for His Word never to leave nor forsake us, never fails.

Of course, His first call to us was ‘out of darkness, into His most marvellous light’ (1 Peter 2:9), the most important journey involving our free will that we’ll ever make. Are we willing to continue to trust Him with the remainder of our journey on earth and continually step out of the old and into the new as He directs? Journeying with God is exciting and well worth the risk, for quite apart from the natural rewards we can see, the spiritual rewards will be far beyond anything we can imagine, ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him’ (1 Corinthians 2:9).

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, Help us to have the courage to always be obedient to Your callings and to trust You every step of the way as we journey with You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.