What does it mean to be a servant of God? I have spent a lot of time listening to other fellow believers, and non-believers constantly searching for their place, either in this world or in God’s plan. The important thing to remember is that you are a part of God’s plan, and that it isn’t so much about finding the right place to be, but being available for the opportunity that He needs you for.

Direction for Believers

When you come to know Christ, and learn to dwell in Him, then the the questions about purpose and direction start to get answered, as long as you know where to look. We are nothing apart from God, and the only way that we can come to know our purpose is through Jesus Christ. For Believers this is something we all know, but we tend to forget. I have been reading through the Old Testament for the past month and read several instances where even the nation of Israel who beared witness to God’s glory didn’t always follow after Him. The same problem is true for us today. The only thing that it’s taught me in my studies is that no matter how much we see of God we are still susceptible to our sinful natures and hearts to constantly lead us astray. It causes us to fall away and return to the selfish natures that we were born with. However, in coming to know Christ, and learning to dwell in Him we have the choice to either follow Him, or to walk in sin. Which direction do you choose?

The Bible says it clearly. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2 ESV)

When you search for your direction in this world remember Romans 12:2, because as we walk we must be conformed to the will of God. Where He sends use we will go, and when we follow His direction we will realize that He is already standing where He wanted us to go. I talked with a good friend recently about her struggles in finding a direction in her life. I could feel the pain in her words, and knew that she was welling up a lot of emotion in talking about it. We have trouble discerning God’s plan, because it is just that, God’s plan. Where we follow He will be. Do you know that? Who are you following when you say, “I need some direction”? She wants to take the next step, she is willing, but she doesn’t know where to step. Her heart is with her family, and the next step will either involve her moving further from her family or it will involve staying close. A tough decision to make, but even the tough decisions even have a clear answer.

There wasn’t much that I could tell her that could have comforted her heart in that moment, but the only advice I can give to hear, and to you is this: When you face a tough decision, pray and watch. God doesn’t abandon, or forget about His children. In our impatience we want an answer now, but we lose sight of Him working when we have that attitude, but in His plan timing is everything.

Timing in the Right Time

After I met my wife I wondered why we hadn’t met sooner, because it would have saved a lot of pain in our lives if we’d only met sooner. Let me give you some background into this. My wife and I attended the same high school and eventually the same community college. Knew some of the same people (one-degree of separation), and still through all that never knew each other. I wondered when we were engaged why this was the case, but I also had to remember that timing is everything.

When your cooking a great meal, timing is everything. If you cook the meat too long, then it gets dry and burnt. If don’t cook it long enough, then it’s rare, and could make you sick. How true this analogy was for the two of us. In high school, I didn’t really want to know God, and didn’t much care. I was perfectly content believing whatever the world and my teachers told me without reservation for guarding my heart. I let every lust into my heart, and was swept away by every thought imaginable. I was for all intensive purposes a child of the world. Now I knew the stories and the history of Christianity, since I had been in church when I was younger, but it didn’t stick. However, for my wife Jesus Christ was the focus of her world, and she had remained strong in her faith since she was a kid. My wife even now knows what she believes and shows it with all her heart.

How would have our relationship been different had a I met her in high school? Very different. She wouldn’t even have looked at me. Though when we did meet. I was a committed follower and servant in our church. She saw me through what I did for others, and how I held myself. My faith was what made me eligible in her eyes. Think of it this way, I found God, and when my faith was strong enough He brought us together, and I have never been more certain of that in my life.

Timing is everything, especially when it is about receiving the things that God has planned for us.