Thoughts following Pastor Dave Creek’s sermon from Joshua 5:
I have always been a bit impulsive when it comes to saying “yes.” In fact, I am painfully aware of this as I lie in bed writing this blog post. My 17-month-old foster son is fighting bedtime. The mountain of laundry at the foot of my bed is staring at me. My dog could definitely use a good nail trim. How did I think I could coherently write a blog amidst the chaos?
My impulsive “yes” has even led me to cleaning my pregnant best friend’s kitty litter box despite me being highly allergic to cats (she did not know of my allergy when she asked). The kitty litter ended up getting cleaned, I survived and the rest is history. But, my impulsive “yes” struck again!
Here I am now thinking, Should I have said “yes” to writing this blog? Or should I have chosen a bit more time for the things swirling around me? But as I write this piece, I am attuned to Jesus slowing me down and diving me deeper into this message. Saying “yes” at the prompting of Christ often leads us to something greater (not kitty litter boxes).
I think back to the hardest moments of my life and how those moments often needed me to say “yes” to Christ in order to carry me through. Whether the “yes” is showing up to church despite dreading it, cracking open your Bible in the midst of tiredness, or saying that one prayer you could have let slip by. A brief “yes” to Christ holds power.
I remember the day we got the call for our now-foster son. Andrew, my husband, and I knew we were ready to foster and felt like that was what God called us to. But saying “yes” to taking placement of our little guy was absolutely terrifying. Life as we knew it would flip upside down and we would have absolutely no control over how long our son would stay with us, what would happen with his case and what DCFS would do. But, we said “yes” and everything the Lord was doing now makes sense.
God does not require us to say a “yes” that is earth-shattering and changes generations—though that can happen sometimes. More often, it is a simple, and maybe a bit impulsive, “yes” to the little things that could change it all. A prayer, a Bible verse, a church service.
What is Christ calling you to say “yes” to this week? When we take a moment out of the daily chaos, check in with the heart of Christ and see where he is leading us, we often find the sweetest gifts. The Lord is a God of details, a God who sees each of us. All we may need to do to see him clearer is say “yes.”
I’ve often found it fun to track the implications of “yeses” made years ago. But, and more so, marvel at the implications of not having said yes. Oh, the Lord is faithful when we are “yes-ing” out of obedience.