Chapter Four God's Higher Calling - The departing to mediocrity.

“Set thee up waymarks, make thee high heaps: set thine heart toward the highway, even the way which thou wentest: turn again,” ~ Jeremiah 31:21a God's Higher Calling is a day by day thing. It's a daily setting your heart on Christ. Sometimes I think we focus so much on the outward physical that we miss seeing the inward heart. What does God emphasize? “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,” ~ Deuteronomy 10:12. It doesn't take much to let your heart grow cold and worldly. “Sin will take you farther than you want to go and leave you longer than you want to stay.” We don’t just wake up one day and say to ourselves: “Self, I think I’ll stop living for the LORD today.” But what we can and most often do is we slowly let the World creep in on us. Ever play Shutes and Ladders? This was one of my favorite games as a kid. Many times I’ve thought of how the Christian walk is like a game of Shutes and Ladders. Each time we yield something to the LORD, we take a step forward. During Christian camps and revivals these are the times we come to a ladder in our life and we go up for the LORD. But each time we take our life in our hands and say no to God, we shoot back down. Remember that one shute that takes you all the way down to the beginning? You’re just about to win and you hit that shute which plunges you all the way down. The Christian life can be compared to that, if we chose not to obey the LORD, we just keep shooting back down. Just as in the game we end up moving our piece over the same blocks we had already traveled, so it is as we climb back up in the Christian walk, we end up having to be taught the same lessons. Just a little distraction can misplace our focus off of the LORD and on to ourselves. A friend once told me that in everything we do we need to guard our heart, keep our testimony, and take everything to the LORD before we do it. This may sound right and true, but just as we cannot know our heart without God’s guidance; neither can we keep our heart on our own! “I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” ~ Jeremiah 17:10. It is impossible for us to keep our heart, we have to give our heart to the LORD. It is an every day occurrence. Every day, we need to cast down thoughts, and put our hope and trust in the LORD. It is a struggle to stay focused on the LORD and when we let self rein in our hearts it is impossible. “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the LORD Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” ~ Col. 3:17. I often warn teens about wrong relationships. But it doesn’t matter if your 13 or 30, we all must guard against having a wrong relationship. He wants us to spend our season of singleness focused on Him! This is our season of singleness; we must not waste it! Remember God is trying to make us to be all glorious within. “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” ~ James 1:3-4. We can’t see God’s perfect plan for us. Maybe, God is working on us now, to make us into marriageable material. Whatever the reason, God’s plan is perfect. “As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him.” ~ Psalms 18:30 ~ From Singleness of heart I’ve seen so many wreck their lives because of a guy or girl relationship. I thought back to when my older sister was a teen and how her life started down the path of destruction. It started out so innocent. I remember how my sister and her best friend would talk about boys. They would tell each other who they liked and giggle every time the guys came into the room. They encouraged each other to like guys, by over exaggerating things that would take place. They daydreamed about the different guys. They prepared their minds to do the worst because they didn’t cast down the thoughts. Instead they encouraged the thoughts to remain. And from there they both headed out to the world. Both got pregnant at an early age. Though my sister received Christ just months before she died, she lost the chance to live her life to God’s fullest potential. She died a month after her 29th Birthday. My dear friends please watch your thoughts! It may start out so innocent but it ends in destruction. “Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman.” ~ 1 Corinthians 7:1. Don’t think for a moment that you can handle it. God placed this in the Word of God for a reason. We can’t handle it. “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.” ~ Psalms 1:1. Egypt is a picture of the world and worldly desires. All it takes for us to go down to Egypt is thought in the wrong direction that goes unchallenged. “That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt!” ~ Isaiah 30:2. We need to challenge our thoughts. Our thinking can lead us into trying to fix our own lives. “A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” ~ Proverbs 16:9. The word deviseth means to invent; to contrive; to form in the mind by new combinations of ideas, new applications of principles, or new arrangement of parts; to excogitate; to strike out by thought; to plan; to scheme; to project; as, to devise an engine or machine; to devise a new mode of writing; to devise a plan of defense; to devise arguments. Is this how you want to run your life? “And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.” ~ Genesis 13:10. Do you think God directed Lot’s steps or does it look like Lot devised his way? All it took for Lot to move away from the presence of God was one look. Lot’s life progressively grew worse and worse. He missed out on so many of the blessings of God all because he didn’t challenge his thinking. When we think we need something or want something so much and we pursue it with all of our heart, refusing to hear all the warnings around us, we better watch out. Our thoughts that we are dwelling on are most probably not of God. Lot only took a few steps out of the will of God. It wasn’t a huge leap that destroyed Lot’s life; it was just one small step at a time. The climb back up to where God would have us to be is never easy! During Summer Camp of 2005, God showed me an illustration of how the world claims our hearts. He gave this to me the day before I left camp. It was an illustration I had seen when I was a teenager. To do this illustration I needed a dress. And not just any dress, I needed a dress that was precious. I brought with me to camp my high school graduation dress. I had no intention of destroying the dress when I brought it. But during one of the messages God required it of me. To have the full effect for this illustration the dress would have to be cut bit by bit… piece by piece. The following is what ended up being called…. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Dress Devotional: "The Value of Beauty" How many of you wake up in the morning and say to yourself, “how can I make myself look as ugly as possible?” Not a one of us. See this box, isn't it pretty? Name will you open this for us? (she toke out a tiara, necklace, slippers, and lace handkerchief) Now, which is prettier the outside or the inside? Answer: The Inside. "Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is fare above rubies." ~ Proverbs 31:10. When we look at this verse, what is it that we see about this woman? Answer: The Inside. (I held up the flower decorated box) It's ok to look pretty; there is nothing wrong with that. But what is on the inside is going to shine forth to the outside. 1 Peter 3:1-4 - The key in these verses is not what the woman is putting on but what is in her heart. What is one thing that you have to give to the Lord; if you do not have this, you would not have anything? Answer: LIFE. You have a little bit of life that God has given you, what are you going to do with it? 2 Kings 4:1-6 - The widow with the little bit of oil. I have this little Bit It's all I have this Little Bit To pour it out Oh How it would spoil It's all I have this little Bit I have been told that I must pour it out And I will receive all the more. Oh, how I want to shout! It's all I have this little bit. To pour it out would cost me great Can I not keep it safe this little Bit Oh what shall be my fate; It's all I have and no more I've shut the door expecting no more Then only what is on the floor So quietly into the vessels I pour And from this lesson I've been taught That God can use a little bit And give more than I could ever wrought I must give my little Bit! When you give your little bit to God, God can use it and give you more than you could ever imagine. (I held up a beautiful dress, white lace shimmering). “Let's say this dress is you as a saved young lady. This is your life.” (One of the girls had scissors in her hands ready to cut).. “What happens when?” (As I list these things; picture as she cut into a white lace dress; with each thing I say she snipped). You stop singing in church Laugh during the service Looking around during service Back talk Give in to peer pressure Think about Boys Have wrong friends Wrong hobbies Vanity Pride Selfishness Rebellion to parents Gossiping Jealousy Flirting Wrong music Country music Bad movies Letting things of this world take the place of God Snippet remarks Worldly standards Wrong thinking (By the time I had finished saying this; the dress was destroyed; the girls were silent... When my helper first started cutting they had been screaming “No don't do that!” Afterwards they were quiet.) I looked at all their faces and held out my hands and said, “You have this little bit of life what are you going to do with it. You can either use it for self and look like this dress or use it for God. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The next night there was a bonfire with all the teens and I took the dress along... One of the girls got up and explained the whole story of the dress, because most of the boys did not know of the dress devotional. When it was my turn to speak, I got up and picked up the dress and said “This dress was beautiful but it’s not anymore... We started out saying this dress represented a saved person, but what I am about to do represents a lost person’s life.” With that I tossed the dress into the fire... it began to melt and soon began to burn. I continued, “All those things that you hold on to now are going to burn away and you will burn forever in hell. Don’t think that you can live for yourself now and someday you’ll get saved. God has given you just a little bit of life that you have on this earth. Don’t waste it. In my hand are the buttons from the dress; if you will take the little bit of life that God has given you and give it back to Him; He can make you Ladies into something beautiful and for you guys, He’ll make you into godly men of integrity”. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When God lays something on are heart to do and we say no, we are showing that we have let Pride rise up in our hearts. God cares about the inward heart more than our outward appearance. “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” ~ Proverbs 16:18. Pride will keep us and hold us back from going forward. Fear of the unknown will challenge our faith and if we are not careful we will let these thoughts take us down a path we do not wish to walk. The root of bitterness will chain us and destroy us. These are all doors out of the Will of God. The Will of God is not a destination but rather a path. There are many doors of distraction off of this path. These doors of distraction all lead down to Egypt. “And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of:” ~ Genesis 26:2. The LORD has a much better land for us to dwell in. Please avoid Egypt. Watch your thoughts, guard against thoughts of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” ~ 1 Corinthians 9:27. We must continue to examine our motives. Examine them through God’s glasses – The Word of God. Ask the LORD to direct your steps. Yield every area to HIM and avoid devising your own way! Continue to seek out God’s Higher Calling! The LORD isn’t done working on me to which I am so grateful. He loves us so much, how can we not give him our best. When we chose to live for self, we are leaving God’s Higher Calling. God’s Higher Calling is the Will of God. When we are out of God’s Will, we cause our Savior anguish. I do not know what tomorrow will bring, but I do know this: No matter what may come my way, I want to continue to go up HIGHER!!!! “Just some old wounds” Looking down at His children below Angles surround Him in Heavenly glow, Christ sees His own failing to run the race, Then comes a look of pain on our LORD’s face “Are you all right, LORD?”... Says a servant that was slain. The Lord replies, “Just some old wounds causing me pain.” So remember this, blood bought child, When you fail to live for Him and abide, And you’ve thrown good away for the wild, Christ cries when you walk to the other side. He paid the price for you All He asks is for you to yield yourself. That is all you need to do, Choose Christ and leave self on the shelf!