WALK

I came up the title for this blog based on what God has been teaching me these past few years. It can be summed up in one word: walk.  As I have just finished my junior year at Northwestern college, I'm definitely in a time of my life where I feel pressured to figure out God's direction for my life. But God has been teaching me that His will is much more than a decision to make or a specific destination He wants me to go. It is about a lifestyle of pleasing Him and living for him. It is about walking. I have been encouraged by these words from Francis Chan's small group workbook for his book Remembering the Forgotten God:


"The concept of walking is so basic that perhaps you've never considered what walking entails. Think about how simple it is. You don't have to know exactly where you are going; it doesn't require any planning; all you have to do is put one foot in front of the other. Really, the only way to walk is one step at a time. We can get so caught up in the big picture that we lose sight of the fact that God is simply calling us to walk. It won't always be easy, but we can always put one foot in front of the other."


It is definitely easy to get caught up in the big picture. I ask questions like "What does God want me to do with my life?" when perhaps a better question is "What does God want me to do with my day?" or my hour? or this minute? God's word actually has a lot to say about his will in the present moment:


Colossians 2:6-7 "Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus, the Lord, so WALK in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, abounding in thanksgiving."


1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for THIS is the WILL OF GOD in Christ Jesus for you."


This is on my heart the week before I embark on my short term missions trip to the Solomon Islands with Wycliffe Bible Translators (I meet my team June 17th and return home July 31st). Wycliffe is an organization God has placed on my heart, and during this trip I will be able to observe Wycliffe missions in action. Maybe God will speak clearly about his direction for my life! I want to be listening to His voice for my future while I am in the Solomons.  Yet I realize sometimes God does not speak loudly or reveal all His plans at once. I want to be content if God reveals my life direction loudly and clearly or if I  home with more questions than answers. And I don't want to become so obsessed with God's will for my future that I forget that He is really calling me to walk with Him here and now, confident that if my lifestyle is consistent with his Word (rejoicing, praying, giving thanks), I will already be in His will wherever I am and that He is in control to redirect me and open and close doors in His timing.