LifeLink Devotions

Monday, December 4, 2023

In 1986 I was living in Watertown, South Dakota. I thought I had a great life with my wonderful wife and three kids. I was working as the Program Director for one of the largest radio stations in the state and was quite well-known. I was pastor of a church in a community 25 miles away and travelled there every Sunday and Wednesday. We had developed some very close and intimate relationships, some of which are still thriving today. I golfed with my best friend, went fishing with guys from work, went pheasant and duck hunting with other friends, and I had a 1964 red Ford pickup truck. Wow! Could life get any better?

Then God called. He made it clear it was time to become a full-time pastor. We packed everything up, sold the house, the boat, the shotgun, and even the pick-up (as a tear comes to my eye), and we moved to Wisconsin. We trusted His word that says obedience brings blessing. We were about to experience it. At first I looked for the blessing in the return of the material things. But that’s not where God chose to bless. He blessed us with a harvest of souls and with a deep peace and satisfaction that we were in His perfect will. The thrill of waking every morning to the joy of serving Jesus cannot be replaced or duplicated with things. We had gone from a new home to an old bat-infested one, but it didn’t matter – we were obeying the LORD. We had gone from being well-known to being nobodies, but it didn’t matter – we were known by God and we were making Him known. We had very little, but we were being blessed with every spiritual blessing from heaven. We experienced the incredible blessing of simply trusting God.

Once we learned that, God began to restore the material blessings. God gave us new friends. One day a new friend gave me a deer rifle and a place to hunt deer. Later another new friend gave me a boat. A Christian brother helped me get a Jeep. God’s people built us a house. Little by little God gave us back the desires of our hearts because we had made Him the desire of our hearts. What a blessing it is to obey God!

Abraham was promised the blessing of God for His obedience as well.

Genesis 12:1-4 “The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” So Abram left, as the LORD had told him;”

Abraham’s blessings, measured by the world’s standards, were much greater than mine. However, his blessings, measured from an eternal perspective, are only different in one point – through Him all the people of the earth have been blessed, because through him the Messiah came to the earth. Unfortunately, the people who should be receiving the blessing are not because their hearts are desiring the things of the world rather than the things of God.

There are many obstacles Satan puts in people’s way to keep them from receiving Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. One of the biggest ones is the consideration of what must be sacrificed. They have worked hard to get where they’ve gotten, be who they are, and have what they have. What if, as a part of God’s call on their life, they were asked to give it all up to serve Him? Could they do it? Many cannot. They make their decision about Christ based on a need to maintain control of their lives. They sacrifice the eternal on the altar of the immediate. The present experience of a few blessings keeps them from stepping out in faith which will result in the experience of complete blessing. They do not believe they can take God at His word.

Maybe, just maybe, it’s because they haven’t seen enough examples of Christians living such lives of obedience. Maybe if they saw more of us making earthly sacrifices and living in the joy of serving Jesus, they would be given the hope they need to take the same step of faith. Maybe, just maybe, if we were willing to leave everything behind to go at God’s Word to an unknown place, they would do the same.

We must each evaluate our own level of faith and obedience. Why? Because God still intends to bless you, but more importantly He intends to bless others through you, and He can only do that if you have put yourself in the right place to receive His blessing. The blessings of God are not ours to keep – they are ours to give. May our lives be a blessing to all people.

Pastor John