Sometimes I wish that God could force me to do His will. The fact that He gave me free will have brought me a lot of harm because every time I try to do things outside of His will, I run into trouble. Although I know that God’s will is best for my life, it is not always an easy thing to obey the will of God. God’s plans for my life are complete opposite from what my flesh desires and a lot of times and I am weak to follow through whenever God calls me to do something that is difficult. I struggle with obeying God because the instant gratification my flesh provides sometimes seems more appealing than whatever the Holy Spirit is leading me to do. My church has been on a prayer and fasting program this month that centers around obedience. This month has truly been a time of yielding my disobedience to God and receiving His grace to obey. I have not mastered the act of obeying God yet so this post is also an encouragement to me and I pray that we can grow together.
One of the main things that God has been showing me about disobedience is that disobedience is a sign that your love tank for God is empty or running low. John 14:15 says “If you love me, obey my commandments.”Disobedience shows that we love something else more than we love God. When we truly love God, it becomes easy to obey Him because we recognize that whatever God is calling us to sacrifice is nothing compared to the sacrifice He already made on our behalf. I can only imagine that this is the kind of love Abraham had when God called Him to sacrifice his only son Issac in Genesis 22. Although Abraham gave birth to Isaac in His old age and that was the only person who could carry his seed after he died; Abraham still chose to obey. The reason for Abraham’s obedience was simply because He loved the Lord more than he loved his son. We should never love a created thing more than we love the creator. If you are struggling with leaving a relationship that God has called you out of; simply ask yourself “Do I love this man/woman more than I love God.?” I have had to ask myself this question a lot lately and ultimately there were times were I had admit that I do not love Him more than what He is calling me to do. However, I also admitted to Him that I want to love Him more than anything else. I want to love God more than I love to sin. I want to love God more than I love my comfort whenever He calls me to uncomfortable places. If you are struggling with obeying God, ask God to increase your love for Him because nothing is ever too big to give up for the person you love.
Let me be transparent with you guys really quickly. I struggled today with obedience and I noticed that whenever I am walking in disobedience I run away from the presence of God. I tried to run away from spending time in my secret place or having intimate conversations with God because honestly, I did not want to be convicted. However, after trying to run from God the whole day; I went back to the Father. I confessed to Him that I did not love Him more than what He is calling me to give up and I disobeyed Him on purpose because I truly desired my will above His will. I also confessed to God how much I loved Him and I prayed this simply prayer which was “Lord, please teach me how to obey you because I do not know how.” Immediately the Holy Spirit brought Hebrews 5:8 to my remembrance which says “Even though Jesus was God’s Son, He learned obedience from the things He suffered.” Now, I’m not sure if this verse does anything to you but it brought so much freedom to my heart. Jesus was the Son of God yet He had to learn how to obey! This means that Jesus did not have the natural instinct to follow the voice of God but there were times where He struggled just like I did today. However, the Lord is willing to teach me how to be obedient. After I prayed this prayer and read this Bible scripture, I started to rethink the prayer I just prayed because obedience is learned through suffering. There will be times where I may have to suffer in order for God to teach me how to obey Him but I am willing to suffer if it leads me closer to God. I understand that this blog title can be discouraging because you may be struggling to “Just Do It” when it comes to God’s will. There are times when I simply want to Just do the will of God but instead I fall and return back to just doing my own will. However it is important to simply yield your disobedient heart to God and ask Him to teach you how to obey. The process of learning obedience may not be a walk in the park but trust God through the journey.
Another thing I have had to realize about disobedience is that it is often a reflection of a deeper heart issue. A lot of my disobedience comes from a place of rejection and a lack of trust in God. When the Lord called Abraham to sacrifice His son, Abraham did not ask for other people’s approval before He obeyed God. A lot of times we are scared to obey God because of what other people may think. Abraham knew that other people will not agree with the fact that he was willing to kill his son for God but Abraham also knew that the only person he was looking to please is God. We may want to ask this question “Why is it hard for me to obey God?” If God asked you to leave your job and you are struggling to obey then asking the “why” question is important because it is possible that you no longer see God as your source but now you see your job as your source. Abraham was certain that God will provide the Lamb that was to be sacrificed (Genesis 1:8). Everything we need will be provided for when we choose to obey God. There may be some heart issues that are keeping you in the cage of disobedience but in Christ, we have freedom.
Something else I had to remember is that there is a reward for obedience and a consequence for disobedience. I have countless testimonies of how God has honored my obedience so I have to remind myself consistently that there is a reward for dying to my flesh. Incomplete obedience is still disobedience so we have to make sure that our obedience is prompt, positive and perfect. Sometimes the consequence of disobedience may be more than we can bare which is why we need to obey whatever God calls us to do. God calls us to obey for our own good and for our protection and this is important to remember whenever you are struggling to obey God. Whenever God calls you to obey, Just Do It because there is a blessing attached to your obedience.
God also allowed me to see that although He will never force me to do His will, He will give me the strength to do His will if that is my desire. God never wants us to obey Him out of obligation but He will give me the strength to crucify my flesh daily. Obedience to God is not a natural response to our flesh. However, the more we communion with God, the easier it will be to only desire what God wants for our life. There will be times when we do not want to obey and this does not make us a sinner. Jesus did not necessarily want to die on the cross but He chose the will of His father above His will. Matthew 26:39 says “Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Even in those moment when we do not want to do the will of the Father, it is important that we Just Do It. There will be moments of weaknesses where we are weak to do the will of God but like Jesus did, we must simply fall on our face and pray so we can receive strength. We may have questions about why we must obey but it is imperative that you obey first then ask questions later. Obedience may not be easy but it is possible when we are determined to JUST DO IT!