A Less Complicated Call

Could it be that following after the Lord is far more simple than we make it to be? I don’t mean to say it’s easy, I mean we make it more complicated. When you think about it – it makes sense why we do this.

See, easy things are easy to adopt. It’s the hard things that take more attention, more time, more diligence. Humans are constantly looking for the easy way out. By believing that following God requires us to ascend to the top of some intellectual mountain, or have the will power of an Olympic athlete, we immediately disqualify ourselves and worse yet – we give ourselves an out to actually following God.

I’ve been reading The Will of God as a Way of Life, authored by Jerry Sittser, and have found his comments quite intriguing. So often we think of God’s will as some future thing. We consider it when we have a big decision to make or find ourselves at a pronounced crossroads, but what if God’s will is seen much more frequently?

The Bible is clear that we are to “love the Lord your God with all of your heart, with all of your soul, with all of your mind, and with all of your strength” (Matthew 22:37). We’re also told that we are to “seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Jesus tells us, quite plainly, not to worry about tomorrow (Matthew 6:34).

What we do know about the future is that Jesus is coming back, He wins in the end, and the rest we are to let go and trust the Lord with. Sittser points out that It would seem then, God’s will has far more to do with our present than it does with our future.

Here’s the practical piece, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:17). Yes, this is true for future decisions, but how much more so with the day you have right in front of you?

Refer back to a previous post, Choose the Honoring Thing, and you’ll see a similar sentiment. What does it mean to do the will of God – do everything in the same as if you were doing it for Him. With that lens in mind, you’ll put forth the adequate effort needed to become a person who does work well, you’ll produce the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), and you’ll say no to things you know don’t please the Lord.

Again, is this an easy task? By no means! But it’s not complicated. It “simply” takes intentionality. We aren’t promised tomorrow, so let’s stop saying we’ll follow the Lord then. The only decision you have is the one in front of you. It could be the last one you ever make, would we be found as a people making decisions and living our lives completely for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.