This is something that's been on my mind every since our meeting with the Arizona team on Sunday because it's something that has happened to all of us ... so please bear with me as I get my thoughts down.
When we started telling people we were moving and WHY we were moving, we got all kind of responses. Many of the others in our group got them too... Here's a few of my "favorites":
- WHY would you want to do that?
- What if the church flops? (yep... someone said that!)
- What about a job for Mike, he can't JUST do church and mission work?
- What will we do without you here?
- What about your family here?
- MIKE'S gonna do that?
and my personal favorite that came to me just today....
- That's awful "brave" of you!
Not many have said "That's awesome and I'm so excited to see what's ahead of you!".
Now, don't get me wrong. I know that everyone who has said the above really do mean well and in no way are trying to be mean. In their minds, it just doesn't seem "sensible" to pack up and move across the country for the reason we are going, to help start a church. It just opens my eyes to the fact that acting on 100% faith is something that not many people do and that makes me a bit sad.
So, in response to those of you who have asked the questions like why, or commented on how "brave" it is would start simply with this: Because the Bible and the Lord call us to follow Him and trust in Him in ALL things! 1 Corinthians 11:1 He commands us "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.".
Michael very strongly felt this pull that he was being called to follow the Williams and share the word of Jesus with others through his story. To give encouragement to others. To show others the love of Jesus and how it can pull someone from the darkest of places to a life of salvation when they just surrender all to the Lord.
Have we ever done this before? Nope...
Are we nervous? A little maybe.
But in Matthew 4:19 we are assured that He will guide us in this. It says "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men". Proverbs 3:6 goes further and says "in ALL your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight". All we need to do is follow the calling and the Lord will lay out the rest, he will direct our path. The Lord will give us the words to speak to those that need to hear it. How? That part doesn't matter to us. We have faith that He will. He CAN do "immeasurably MORE than all we could ask or imagine, accoridng to His power that is at work within us" (Ephesians 3:20).
The other piece of this is when we considered the alternative... what choice do we even have? Afterall.. aren't we warned in Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter hte kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."? Not sure about you... but this places in me a bit of fear that says "I'm asking you to follow me, to serve others, to share my Word... and if you don't do it with 100% of your heart and soul.... " well..... you get the picture.
We've been doing a Chan study with our core team where he uses this analogy that I LOVED and really made it a clear picture. If you tell your child to go clean their room, do they go in their room for a while and come back out saying "Dad..... I MEMORIZED what you said to me"! Or better yet, "I know you SAID to clean my room, but I am so busy with friends, and school, and baseball that I just don't have time, and I'm sure someone else can do it since I'm so busy". Ummmmm... Not sure about you... but I'm not ABOUT to tell the Lord Himself at my time of judgement "Father God, I know your Word said to serve others and love others with your heart and soul, but I was so busy with work and driving my kids around to events, that I just didn't have time, and besides, there was another family in our church that did most of that so I didn't have to."
We are doing something that we have never ever done before in our lives and the closer the move gets to us the more "persecuted" we feel. Satan is digging in where he knows we are the weakest, but we are not letting go of the promise that God has given us, that He is preparing a place for us in the Heavens.
Wouldn't this world look much different if we all did this?
