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And so I wrote each day my thoughts and insights after reading the daily passage from the One Year Bible (published by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.). It was an amazing year of growth in my walk with God as I was forced to dig deeper into the mysteries and simplicities of the Bible. Sometimes
these insights were educational, sometimes inspirational, and almost
always personal as I shared pieces of myself throughout the year. Although
unpublished, I'm positive that what I learned during that year far outweighs
any rewards of seeing it picked up and picked apart for mass consumption.
Here is one example from what proved to be an amazing experience for
me.
10 September 1997 Isaiah 6:1 - 7:25, 2 Corinthians 11:16-33, Psalm 54:1-7, Proverbs 23:1-3 The calling of Isaiah is one of the most amazing, most personal passages I've ever come across. He tells us, "I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple...Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?' And I said, 'Here am I. Send me!' He said, 'Go...'" [Isaiah 6:1,8-9a] The simple fact is this - every Christian experiences this same calling. If you are in the body of Christ, there is something He wants you to do. Some calling you were meant to fulfill. One of my friends in a Bible study I lead just left to head to Wyoming. He is going there to begin a life as a rancher, and the family he is staying with has a vision of opening their private land to hunters. The goal is to use this ground to invite hunters to spend time there, and subsequently they are hoping to minister and lead people to Christ. It is a calling that will take a great deal of preparation and hard work, but it was definitely a calling from God. My calling has been to write this devotional. Early this year, I began the effort, never quite believing I would be able to complete it. Yet thanks to a strength that did not come from me, I have been able to persevere, to overcome difficulties in time and tiredness and continue this calling from God. All of us have gifts, and all of us have a calling by God to use these gifts both for the body of Christ and for unbelievers. For the Christian, our gifts should edify and uplift the church in some manner. For the benefit of the non-Christian, these spiritual gifts should in some way lead the non-believer to the door that is Christ. Paul tells us about the spiritual gifts in Romans 12 as well as 1 Corinthians 12. If all of us have these gifts, then clearly there must be a purpose for them. A calling to use them. The Holy Spirit decides what your gift is [1 Corinthians 12:11], and it is a sin to waste your gift [1 Corinthians 4:1-2]. The trick is for each of us to discover these gifts and use them as God calls us, just like He did with Isaiah. A friend of mine recently gave me an acronym for finding your gifts. It is START - Study, Trial and Error, Analyze, Request, and Training. Through these methods you can discover what God instilled in your person when you accepted Christ. I hope and pray God will use me as He used Isaiah. I know there is some purpose for my life, something He wants me to do. And I'm glad I have the opportunity to love Him by doing what He made me to be. When God calls us, let's not be left behind, wondering what we should be doing. Let's respond like Isaiah did so long ago. Here I am, God. Send me! Please, send me!
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