Monday, May 2, 2011

There are so many voices today, it becomes difficult to listen to all of them.  There are voices on the radio.  Voices on the television.  Voices at work.  Voices at home.  Voices on the freeway.  Voices.  Voices. Voices.  We are bombarded with them daily.  And what voices do we listen to.  Some of the voices are encouraging.  Some voices tell of us of daily destruction throughout the world.  Some voices are critical of what we do. Some voices bring hope.  Some voices bring hopelessness.  Then there are tones in the voice that give us an entirely different message.  Some tones are intimidating.  Some are angry.  Some tones give double messages where the words say something and the tone gives a completely different message.  There are many voices and sometimes it is difficult to decide which voices to listen to.

We have been talking about God’s call on your life.  That call could entail His desire on your part to marry a certain wife or husband.  His call could be children that He has brought into your life and wants you to raise them and build your legacy.  A call could be a particular job or vocation that He has gifted you to and wants you to use your skills and abilities in a certain area of ability.  Sometimes we think of a call being only a call to ministry, but that is not all true.  He talks about the body having many members and each member having a distinctly different task but each member being equally important for what He wants that member to do (I Cor 12).  Auto technician.  Garbage collector.  Teacher.  Nurse.  Doctor.  House wife.  Mother.  Father.  Pastor.  Engineer.  Pilot.  Farmer.  Inventor.  Where would we all be if everyone was called to be a pastor.  No cars would get fixed, or teeth filled, or garbage collected.  God’s call is expansive.

The problem comes when we are called to a specific assignment and voices challenge our call.  In the case of Nehemiah, as he got to his assigned task, he got opposition.  “When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites.” (Neh 2:10)  Be assured that whatever you undertake as God begins to call you, there will be opposition.   Opposition will come.  The challenge for you and me WHEN it does come is to stay tied into the person that called us to the task at hand.

This journey will involve opposition to get us sidetracked from what God wants us to do.  Keep your eyes focused on Him, not on the opposition.