Courageous & Committed

“He was deeply committed to (His heart was courageous in) the ways of the Lord. He removed the pagan shrines and Asherah poles from Judah.”

– 2 Chronicles 17:6 NLT

Have you ever felt like maybe God was calling you to do more… to be more?

I’m not talking about our busy days and schedules… and all that we are trying to fit into our days… but as Steven Curtis Chapman once said, “There’s More To This Life.”

I know that as far as my career goes, I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing right now… He has me right where He wants me right now… Sometimes I don’t understand it, but He has me right where He wants me.

However, when I go to conferences… and hear speakers… I listen and I begin to wonder why that person speaking isn’t me… I mean, they’re saying things that I have said… placing challenges that I have challenged…

So, is there something that I am missing… something that I’m not doing?

As I think through it, I not only find myself feeling that way at conferences… but when I meet with political leaders… and with business leaders. And I wonder if that’s my ego speaking… wonder if I have an over inflated view of my self… after all, I like attention… like to be out front… like to dream…

And I wonder… is there something more that I should be doing? Does the Lord want more from and of me?

The answer seems to always overwhelmingly come back “YES”

But not like you think.

He wants and expects more of and from me… not so I can be some conference speaker… or some Congressman or Senator (though that may or may not one day happen)… He wants more of and from me so I can be more like Jehoshaphat… and ultimately more like Jesus.

Jehoshaphat was deeply committed to/his heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord.

That’s what the Lord wants from and of me… to be deeply committed to His ways… to be courageous in His ways.

I’ll say it again… deeply committed and courageous to Him and His ways.

That doesn’t mean that I will one day be rich and famous… or walking the halls of Washington… or speaking in front of  100’s or 1000’s on a consistent basis.

No… But it does mean that I will be beginning to reach my potential in Him… seeking Him and finding Him… striving to know Him more and better… stepping out of the boat in faith with eyes fully focused on Him… striving to walk as Jesus walked… and cry over the things that break His heart… striving to be His hands and feet… and be a city on a hill in this dark world.

My goal should not necessarily be to be that guy in front leading the charge… but rather to be deeply committed to and courageous in the ways of the Lord… and to take up my cross and follow Jesus… with a heart after His own heart.

I wonder what might happen if I truly became that person… that guy who is deeply committed to and has a heart courageous in the ways of the Lord.

Keep the Faith… Carpe Diem