
28 May Partial Obedience is aForm of Disobedience
The Lord has been showing me a few things on obedience…
I never saw this before but even in my parenting I would ask my children to do something and along the way they would often get distracted.
An example of this would be asking my son to go and do something and instead of him doing that first, he would find something else ‘important’ to do, and though it was a great excuse, it was not what I had asked of him.
I found myself continually redirecting him (them).
After having to ask 5x to go do….. This can be very exhausting/frustrating for a parent when its constant throughout the day,
but I figured since they weren’t doing anything WRONG then I needed to just be patient…
I didn’t even realize that I was teaching that it was OK to not do what they were told to do.
The Lord showed me a vision about nine months ago and he gave me an assignment but along the way I, myself too have found myself distracted.
I didn’t ‘know how to deal’, and I was fearful so I became lazy about my responsibility, my part, in a specific area of my life…
I did what I could and ignored the parts that were too hard.
This in the end, partial obedience is willful disobedience.
What does God want from me?
A one- on- one with the Holy Spirit, step by step, in showing me how to accomplish that/those things, in which he has asked me to do.
A few months back when God had shown me the vision. My initial reaction to him (which I wrote about in my previous blog)
was ‘NOOOO! I cannot do that!’ I felt He asked me to do something that was too difficult for me.
Moses and Jonah had a similar reaction, lol.
My life spiritually, when I told God I couldn’t, was a long walk through the desert.
You have to be intentional about what God asks you to do.
God will help you, but most of the time you have a part to do as well.
I’ve learned that you must stay just as focused on the things that you don’t feel comfortable doing, as you are about those things that you look forward to doing.
You have to listen for His voice, make your decisions ‘on purpose’, fight your enemy + renew your thinking on the hardest of days….
The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years when it should have only taken 40 days.
I had really missed the last season that I was in. I felt a disconnect from God when I felt incapable.
I greatly grieved as I felt so lonely
(even though I knew I was never alone)
God was my greatest pleasure and it felt like the intimacy just stopped…
just like that.
But not every season we encounter is going to FEEL AMAZING.
For months and months I had so many questions that I felt were not being answered and just wanted to go back to that place…
JUST AS I’M SURE JONAH FELT TOO…
but the belly of the whale showed Jonah some things about God that he had never known before.
In 1st Samuel 15, God had asked Samuel to Give Saul an order. Saul agreed to do what God had asked him to do but along the way he justified his actions as to why he didn’t have to FULLY obey God.
God was grieved is what the Word says.
Samuel confronted Saul and asked him this…
Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD?
This spoke to me greatly because Saul felt that his justification was going to be ok with God as long as, he had MOSTLY carried out what had been asked of him.
God requires Full and direct obedience. Not just partial.
Also, I’m seeing that when I ask my children to go and do something for me there should be no excuses as to why they can or cannot do it.
I obviously understand that they are capable or I would have never asked them.
The same goes with God.
When God asks us to do something, He enables us… with his help, to do what He has asked us to do.
Maybe you found yourself walking in a direction towards God but somewhere along the way you found yourself taking a turn into the Wilderness instead.
The Holy Spirit Led Jesus Into the Wilderness right after Jesus was baptized
(his son in whom he was so pleased with)
so just because you’re there doesn’t mean it’s because you necessarily did something wrong..
Father, I just want to pray for anyone that is reading this that may feel as if they have been wandering…
You have not left and it is never too late.
Bring us to those secret places and may we find ourselves LOST IN YOU once again, along the journey.
Breathe Life, Hope and fresh breath into us. And just as Moses said, Lord, I don’t wanna take this journey if you are not going with me, so show me you are here.
We love you Lord.
Amen
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