God didn’t stop speaking to his people just because the Bible was written. I believe God still speaks to people today. It may or may not be audible, God usually speaks to us by the doors He opens, the directions He gives and even the doors He closes. I really believe God is still very active in this world.
I believe God is active in your life and that He will open doors and provide opportunities, but he won’t push you through them. Do you believe God wants to be involved in your life and that He has a dream for you? Three things I want to share with you about stepping forward to embrace this idea.
#1 DUST OFF YOUR IMAGINATION
I think one of the most common reasons we miss hearing God speak to us as adults is due to the fact that we stop dreaming. We stop using our imagination and creativity. I love sitting down with kids and hearing their dreams and imagination. “When I grow up, this is what I’m going to do…” Kids always have a vision; a dream. Their imaginations run wild, but as adults, we know what happens. Dreams are fragile and they get broken. Things don’t always work out the way we planned. We get hurt; life gets hard and it’s easy to become cynical. In the end, we quit dreaming and suddenly we’re stuck in a rut where each day feels the same as the next. Is there a dream pulling at your life?
#2 DO WHAT YOU CAN
Secondly, as Christians I believe it is our responsibility to accept where we are and share love with others. It’s my responsibility to love on people and to be a blessing! It’s not my responsibility to change everybody in Oklahoma City. I can’t do that. God calls me to be faithful for what I can do; and what I can do is reach out and share love, encouragement and hope. I find so many people don’t dream anymore and they don’t feel that God can use them because they look around and feel so inadequate. “How could I change the world when all of the problems are so big? What could I really do? We feel overwhelmed, so we don’t even try. The truth is, you can reach out one person at a time to share the gospel of Christ, by being kind, encouraging and loving to all people.
#3 STEP FORWARD
Third, I really believe God can use you today, just as you are. We look at ourselves and we feel like we’re not enough. We use excuses that we’re too young, too old, too weak, too poor, too rich. We look at our lives and we know our failures and disappointments and we wonder, “How could God use me after all I’ve done?” The message of Jesus reminds us that no matter what you’ve done, you are forgiven and God can use you just as you are. When we say we are unable to help, when we feel unworthy to help, it’s a denial of everything that Christ stands for. God can use you just as you are, today. You can make a difference. God will open doors and provide opportunities, but he won’t push us through those doors. May we have the courage to step forward and say, “Here I am Lord, use me.”
