Where He Leads Me…..
By Shauna Leis
“The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.’ So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran.”
Genesis 12:1-4
Can you just imagine what Abram and especially Sarah were feeling after they got this message? At least Abram got to hear the message directly from God while Sarah was probably taken completely by surprise when her husband came walking in later that night and relayed the good news. “Sarah, dear one, we are moving,” Abram says. “Where to, honey?” Sarah sweetly asks. “I have no idea,” Abram quickly responds. “We just have to go where God leads us.” Okay so that probably would not lead us to the most fruitful of discussions in our households, either, but look at the response in verse 4 above, “So Abram left.” There were no arguments or questions back to God; there was just blind obedience.
There have been times in my life where I have thankfully chosen blind obedience in the face of uncertainty, and there are other times when I have whined, questioned, and walked defiantly the other way. One of the most vivid experiences I had with this was recently with my job at work. For over 12 years, I have spent my time at work centered on some type of development activity. With my chemical engineering education, it has always just been assumed that I would work in some type of research or development activity. And several years ago, I worked my way up into a management position in our development organization that I truly loved and felt was really where I belonged. Development management was such an awesome blend of my love for the technical combined with my love for people.
Then, several months ago the game changed, and the job became something different than what I had originally signed up for. Isn’t that just the way that life happens sometimes, too? God decided to lead me in a direction that I would definitely not have chosen on my own through a series of very chance encounters and discussions. He has such a hilarious sense of humor. A position had just opened up on the other side of the business in a sales consulting role, and I was being considered for the position. Now, picture this with me – chemical engineering background and current development management position versus a sales role on the other side of the business that I had no experience in whatsoever.
And so, I was left with a choice. People would think that I was crazy if I decided to leave my management job and move over to this sales consulting role. And not to mention my salary was about to be cut because this role was based on commission versus a straight salary. So, I would be giving up both power and money all in one fell swoop.
My husband and I prayed greatly over this matter because it was a decision that would affect our family as a whole – less power, less money, and more traveling – none of these was a decision factor to be considered lightly. We both kept hearing from God, “Wherever I lead, follow.” And I kept going back to the verses in Genesis above with Abram and Sarah. There was no questioning or trying to understand. There was just Abram’s immediate response to pack up and go where God was leading him. That was our response as well, “Wherever you lead God, we will go.”
Psalm 143:9-11, says, “Rescue me from my enemies, O LORD, for I hide myself in you. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. For your name's sake, O LORD, preserve my life; in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.” Dear one, God will lead us if we will only let Him. And, He will never lead us astray. It may not be the path that we would have chosen or even the path that seems to make sense (to us or anyone else around us), but it will always be the right path in the end. It will lead you to a greater and more intimate relationship with Him in the end. Trust me on this one!
Pray with me: Dear God, oh, how we long for You to lead us. There are times when we just have to trust You and go where You lead us. It may not make sense to us while looking at it from our perspective, and it may not make sense to those around us, either. But, we will remain faithful to You and Your direction for our lives. God, we choose the motto, “Wherever You lead, we will go!”
Give us the courage to follow You with blind obedience. Fill us up with Your Holy Spirit to be our guide along the way. God, we love You so very much and pray all of this in the precious name of Your Son, Jesus Christ! Amen!