Trust God and Keep Following His Call
September 21, 2022 · 1:39:35 · Watch on YouTube ↗
These notes - summary, key points, and highlighted thoughts - were generated by AI from the recording and are not the preacher’s exact words.
Summary
The evening opens with worship drawn from Psalm 71, and the first preacher reminds the church that none of us knows what tomorrow holds. Leaning on the words of Jesus in Matthew 6 (seek first the kingdom of God, and do not worry about tomorrow) and on James 4 (your life is a vapor), he points to Noah, Abraham, and the apostle Paul as people who answered God's call without demanding to know the future. Each suffered in his own way, yet none grumbled or interrogated God; they simply believed and obeyed.
A visiting minister, Gennady from Severodonetsk in Ukraine, tells how war destroyed his home and church and brought him to America. He describes a real hunger for God's word, the kind that wakes up when you no longer know where to go or who you are meant to be. America is not the rest we long for, he says; only heaven is. Reading the Transfiguration (Matthew 17) and Luke's account of Jesus speaking with Moses and Elijah about His departure, he explains that it is on the mountain, close to God, that we hear His clear call, even when that call frightens us.
From Ezekiel's river that deepens at every thousand cubits, he urges believers never to settle for the distance already traveled. God measures out stage after stage, blessing us and then calling us further, until the current carries us beyond our own strength. Finally, from Gethsemane (Matthew 26), he shows Jesus surrendering His own will to the Father and warns the church to watch and pray, so our will never rises above God's and so we keep following Christ all the way home.
Key Points
- No one knows what tomorrow holds, so we entrust each day to God instead of worrying.
- Noah, Abraham, and Paul obeyed God's call without first demanding to know the outcome.
- Real hunger for God's word awakens when we no longer know where to go or who to be.
- No place on earth is our rest; heaven is the believer's true and final home.
- It is on the mountain, close to God in prayer, that we hear His clear command.
- Like Ezekiel's deepening river, God measures out stage after stage and keeps calling us further.
- In Gethsemane Jesus surrendered His will to the Father; we too must watch and pray not to fall.
Devotional
Tomorrow is hidden from you, but it is not hidden from God. Like Noah building, Abraham leaving, and Paul preaching in chains, you are not asked to see the whole road, only to take the next step He measures out. When His call unsettles you, do not retreat into comfort or sleep; climb the mountain of prayer and listen. Surrender your will as Jesus did in the garden, and keep walking, knowing the finish line is heaven.
Real hunger for God's word wakes up when you no longer know where to go.
America is not paradise; only heaven is the rest we are longing for.
Do not retire too early - hear from the Lord your next thousand cubits.
