Pastor Steve this past week in his sermon on Elijah shared with us that when the “brook dries up” in our lives, often it is a sign of God’s pleasure, not disappointment. I don’t know about you, but when my “brook dries up” from time to time, I don’t look up and say, “Thank you, Lord. Just what I wanted, another dry spell.” Yet, if I was to look back over my life, it was in those “dry spells” that I saw God moving in my life. Often He moved me in another direction or pushed me to take another step in my faith. It usually was something outside my comfort zone, something that I had to fully rely on God alone to accomplish. And, it usually brought some feelings of fear, failure and even inadequacy to my mind.
Before I went to seminary I was in the corporate world working as a marketing manager for about 14 years. However, as I began to feel God’s calling to go to seminary and to become a pastor, my passion for my “career” in the corporate world began to dry up. In fact, every morning I would get out of bed and my call to ministry was the first thing on my mind every single day, until I finally said, “Here I am, God. Send me, send me!” I use to question God daily and ask Him why He was calling me to ministry. You’ve got to be nuts God!! I’m convinced that even today, God still uses the foolish to confound the wise! As God continued to dry up the “career brook” in my life, I realized that God was moving me into a “new” brook – that of full-time ministry. What an exciting and wonderful journey that has been and continues to be for me!
When we are going through those times in our lives when the “brook dries up,” I think we often question God’s presence and plans for us the most. Yet, it is in those very moments that we are actually on the verge of being used by God in a new way. For most of us, we couldn’t even anticipate or expect those movements of God in our life. Yet, when they happen, we are often shocked and amazed at the same time. It is in those instances that we are often times being moved and positioned to do more for God’s Kingdom and for God’s children than ever before.
What brooks are drying up in your life right now? What “new brook” is God calling you to do or be in this world? While droughts bring frustration, they also help us to see more clearly God’s leading in our lives and pushes us to ask God what His next step for our lives is going to be.
Here’s a great song by Chris Tomlin called “Our God.” The lyrics talk about our God being FOR US and WITH US – yes, that even includes those periods of “drought” when we question God’s presence and leading in our lives the most.
Soli Deo Gloria!
Pastor Carol
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