Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” I said, “Here I am. Send me.” Isaiah 6:8 NLT
Those five words — if they are my genuine response to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the One Who ransomed me from a life going nowhere, the sinless One Who took my place on that dreadful cross … “Here I am. Send me.” If this is the cry of my heart, then I am inclined to bow that same heart and step aside to get out of my own way to make room for Him to show me where I am to go.
Why would anyone want to volunteer for an assignment where they have no clue as to what they will do, where they are to go, who they will meet up with … who does that?
You’ve read it in the news and heard it on social media … people raising their hands to take orphans into their homes, swing wide the doors to the refugee, give out of their own pantry to the hungry and homeless … why? Or am I actually asking, “What benefits me from such work?”
We could never do enough to equate the work of Christ — never. So, if we’re looking for a ‘payback’ for sacrificial living, forget it — we’re in the wrong camp. But if we’re seeking to give gratitude and show thankfulness for the grace that we could never earn and the mercy we never deserved, then we are in good company.
To be the ‘hands and feet of Jesus,’ is no easy task and yet we hear it tossed around Christian circles so casually. There is a cross to bear. The ridicule, the criticism, the judgement, the abandonment of friends and family who pledged to support you … it can be a lonely journey; not all are willing to go there. Some will turn around and go back to where they began — because the price outweighs more than they are willing to shoulder.
But the joy of the one who steps into the company of those who gave it all … reputation, status, career, material possession … and sometimes their very lives … unspeakable joy!
Are you willing to be the one you needed for someone else? The world will not welcome you, but Jesus says, “Come.”
I love you to Heaven and Back, Girlfriend ~~
LindaRJohnson, TitusTwo Visionary
*Thank you to Jenn Johnson and Chris Quilala | Bethel Music for this.
Titus Two 