A Heart to Obey

You have been called to a great work. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was called to a great work. The angel, Gabriel, came to her and said, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” Mary trembled at the news, but she replied, “I am the Lord's servant.”

Mary had a heart to obey. She never walked away from God's calling. Don't walk away from what God has called you to do for the sake of time or personal need or even fear. He desires for you to know Him completely―to know fulfillment in your calling―to have a pliable heart―to experience the power of His presence―to receive what He has promised. The promise is realized when you allow Him to work in your life, and you give Him the gift of an obedient heart. What God has promised you is true, and He will bring it to pass in His time. Jesus is the reason for this Christmas season. Christ was born for you and me, and He died for us. It came at the greatest cost─His life for yours and mine─His pure life for our sinful one─His perfect love for our rejection─His pain for our stubbornness. And what will it cost us? A repentant, and obedient heart―His will instead of our own. 

 

Perhaps you were once wandering, longing to be used by the Lord, longing to be fulfilled in His purpose. The Holy Spirit opened a door, and you walked joyfully through it, and you now know the joy of His purpose and His promise. His will is your anchor which sustains through all the trials and hardships. Never let go of it. Perhaps you have made a decision about your life which has placed His will on the shelf. There is no joy in placing your desire before His calling. You will eventually experience loneliness and pain. At the time your decision might seem so right because your need seems so great, but you will learn later that you have lost what He has promised. Your greatest loss will be found in failing Him. Living your life for yourself instead of living it for Him, you will lose everything He wishes to teach you. He just longs to be in control of your life. He just wants your obedient heart. He longs for you to trust Him to bring about what He has promised. When you choose to be in control instead of allowing Him to lead and guide, you lose His presence in your life.

 

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9). Mary realized the omnipotence of a great God, and the importance of what He asked. She realized that He was higher in every way than she could ever be─that His purpose and vision in every way surpassed her own. If He has promised you something, allow Him to bring it to pass in His time. Give Him the gift of an obedient heart this Christmas. Give Him all of you. That special promise He has imparted to your heart will be fulfilled in His time.