Freedom In God's Will

I was listening to Robin Mark this morning singing "All For Jesus." One line in the song really struck me. "In your will I am free."

For most of my ministry I have felt the constraints of trying to fit into a system I often felt at odds with. Like a person trying to fit into a suit of clothes that are the wrong size I have at times felt like I did not fit in the religious system. I did not know how to play the church game. I did not know the rules. It is a game I never cared to play anyway.

While I have felt God's call to serve as a pastor, I have also felt the call to pursue God for revival. I still travel and preach outside the church I serve from time to time. And even though my official title has been "pastor" for the past five years,  the truth is I have also served as youth pastor at Faith Community Church. We have never had a youth pastor. I serve along side a group of dedicated volunteers. Together we work to minister to students. I have taught students and planned student activities such as winter retreats and youth camps along with fun outings with these wonderful volunteers. There efforts free me to do what I am most gifted to do. The truth is I have felt equally at home in all the roles God placed me in. Pastor, youth pastor, revivalist, traveling preacher, and I did not mention author. I am equally at home in all these ministries.

Some would be quick to tell me I should focus on one or the other. I do what God calls me to do. I pastor. I feed the flock. I shepherd the sheep. I work with students. I share the gospel with them. I try to disciple them. I also travel preaching on a limited basis camps, revivals, and one day events. I write. I write blogs. I have written books in the past. I believe I write additional books in the future.

There is freedom in God's will. I am free to be and to minister how God leads me. I do not have to be limited to one aspect of ministry. Saying that, I do not feel called to full time student ministry. I have not heard a clear call from God to go into a full time traveling ministry. The passion of my life is to serve as a pastor. Yet, I continue to feel a passionate call to pursue God for revival though. As I have written about at great length, that pursuit is leading me to pray and labor for revival in Kermit, TX for the summer of 2017. Perhaps God will burden me for other towns in the future and if so I will pursue Him for revival in those towns also.

There is freedom in being who God created you to be. You don't have to fake your way through life. As sure as I write this I know there are certain places I could never serve. I could never play the game well enough to please the people. So I choose not to play the game. I choose to submit to and avail myself wholeheartedly only to the will of God. There I can be free. I proceed with confidence. I can minister with assurance knowing I am where God wants me and doing what He wants me to do.

How many ministers do not feel freedom because they worry about keeping their job. They work hard to get into a place of ministry they do not fit. They feel the constraints. They get frustrated by the system they work in. Such people are bound, miserable, and ill fitted to minister effectively where they are.

There is freedom in God's will. Therefore I do not have to make decisions where I minister. God does that for me. I do not have to consider financial compensation. God promised to be my provider no matter where He leads. I can rest in those comforts. Whether His will leads down the path strewn with sacrifice, suffering, and satanic opposition or down the path of God's blessings, His abundance, and His triumphs there is freedom in His plan.

I am free to be me. I don't have to be your version of a pastor. I am free to pursue God and follow His plan. That may not fit into your preconceived ideas. You may not understand. You don't have to. I don't have to understand how God leads you. In His will for your life there is freedom for you also. You are free to follow His leadership. You are free to worship where He leads, how He leads, and to fellowship with those He plants you in the midst.

I admit I did live bound at certain points of my ministry. I tried to be what I thought people wanted me to be. I failed miserably. It is so much easier to simply be who and do what God calls you to be and do. It is liberating. So brothers and sisters, walk in freedom as you walk out God's will.