My Call to Action

Morning all!
I have been reading through the book of James, and this morning I came across a verse that really convicted me. I love the book of James! Everyday, God really speaks to me through that piece of scripture. I have read through it before, and I will be sure to read through it again, but this time through I just seem to be able to relate to it more than I ever have before.
So, as I said when I started this blog, I wanted to share about all the things God is teaching me. It has seemed like in the past year, we have just been hit with one stress after another. As soon as one thing looks like it is finally getting better, we get hit with something else.
Now I realize that when you look at the things that have happened in my life and compare them to the pain that so many other people face, it may not seem like I much to deal with. And you know what? You are absolutely right. I recently received an email asking for prayer for a family who was about to lose their nine year old little boy to cancer. The mother had written an entry in her journal that day that they had included in the email. All through her entry, she was finding things to praise God for. What strength. That precious lady has so much more faith than I do. So when I think about situations like that, it definitely puts things into perspective for me. However, in my own life, though my struggles are so different, there have been times that I have felt that they would swallow me alive! I have literally said to God " I can't handle anything else Lord!". "Please don't put anything else on my plate, because I may just crumble under the pressure." It has all felt too big for me to handle. And maybe it is too big for me, but it's not too big for God. He has gotten me through and has made me so much stronger. I am so grateful to have grown.
Ya know, the funny thing about growing closer to God, is the closer we get to Him, the more we see our own weaknesses and shortcomings. God's light starts shining in those deep dark corners of our lives where we like to hide things and try to hang on to them for just a little while longer. I know for me, it's the place where I tuck away all those convictions that I don't want to think about or deal with. I put them in the back of my mind and say to myself, "I'll deal with that later".
As I have been spending more time with the Lord, and as He has been teaching me, there is one specific phrase that I feel has continually been spoken to my soul. It is so clear and specific that it almost makes me want to hide out of shame, like Adam did in the garden. "What are you doing in your life that has eternal value?" That is the sentence that I have felt spoken to me over and over again in the past months. The reason I feel ashamed is because my answer is not one that I am proud to report. "Not much Lord, not much", is all I can think. I think about all the running around I do and how busy I am. I think about all the time that I waste, and then I think about how much of it I actually use to do things that will have any affect on eternity. It's a sobering thought to me as a Christian. The things that keep me so busy aren't necessarily wrong, but if they keep me from doing the things that I was put on this earth to do, that is when they become a problem. I have always felt like I could live out my testimony through my actions and my choices, and in some ways I have and I do, but is that really enough? Aren't we called as Christians to be outspoken about the love of Christ? Are we living in a time when we can really afford to put it off any longer? I have always struggled with vocally sharing the Gospel with others. I'm so afraid I'm going to do it wrong or turn people away. What I need to realize though, is that my calling is not to do it perfectly, or to even do it right. I just have to share how God has worked in my life, and what He has done for me, and the rest is up to Him!
In the 4th chapter of James, it talks about not boasting about tomorrow, because we don't know what it will bring. We don't know how long we have. We don't even know for sure that we will have tomorrow. In the same paragraph, verse 17 to be exact, it says this,
"Anyone then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins."
Wow! That hit me like a ton of bricks! How many times have I been convicted about something, and put it off or have pushed it out of my mind either out of fear or laziness. How many times have I missed opportunities that God had for me to serve or to witness because I was too busy to listen. The Bible clearly states that that is SIN. Not only is doing the WRONG thing sin, but not doing ANYTHING is sin too! God hates complacency. Revelation 3:16 says "So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth." There is no more time to wait! Just cruising through life is not pleasing to God. He wants more for us and from us! The time to act for God is NOW. I DO NOT want to stand before my Heavenly Father one day, knowing all that He did for me, and knowing that I didn't share that with every person that I could!
Here is a quote by Charles Spurgeon (that I stole from my Aunt Marci's blog) that really says it all.
"If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms around their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for. - C.H. Spurgeon.
Hell is a real place. I know its hard to think about. No one wants to think about dying or what hell will be like, but death is a reality we will all face, and Hell is a reality that all of those who don't come to Christ will certainly face as well.
So here is my call to action. I need to be constantly aware of the spiritual need in our world (which is very great I might add), and of those people that I come into contact with everyday. I know that I am given opportunities on a daily basis to show someone the love of Christ, either through my words or my actions. I must seize every opportunity! I must put my fear behind me and step out in faith, so that one day when I stand before my gracious Heavenly Father, that I know I did everything I could to let others know about the reality of Heaven and Hell, and the reality of God our Creator who surpasses anything we could ever conceive or imagine. I have been given such a precious gift in Christ. I don't want to be selfish enough to keep it to myself after all I have been given.
I love this song by Brandon Heath. I want to make this my prayer. It's something to think about Christians. Please pray for me, that I can focus on the things in my life that do have eternal value and that I don't forget and get caught up in all the busyness of things that really don't matter. I don't want to waste any more time! I don't want to miss another opportunity to share the love of Christ with someone. I don't want another person in my life to be able to look at me when we reach the crossroads between Heaven and Hell and say "Why didn't you tell me?" "Why didn't you offer me the Salvation that you had all along", because at that point, it will be too late. There will be no going back. We still have today. God is giving us today to do the work that He laid out for us. Don't wait any longer. The Lord will return one day soon, and I want His harvest to be ripe and ready!
Lord,
Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I've been missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken-hearted
Ones that are far beyond my reach
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see!
AMEN!
Thanks all for reading. I am certainly preaching to myself here and hope that you all can and will pray for me as I strive to become who Christ wants me to be and do all the things I know He has called me to do!
God Bless!
Love,
~Carli~