Blessings of Obedience
Have you ever been out in a rainstorm? You’re standing there, getting soaked and all of a sudden someone comes up to you and holds an umbrella over your head. It’s the best, right? In a moment, you feel safe and protected from the storm and start to dry off. THAT is what the feeling of following God’s voice is like.
So many times, the stories we hear are of those who had the craziest testimonies and found Jesus. If that is you, I am so proud of you and excited to meet you here on earth or in Heaven one day! Many times, the ones that stayed under that umbrella don’t get as much of an opportunity to tell their side of the story. They don’t wear the scars of the past, but bear the blessing of obedience.
“To obey is better than sacrifice…” -
1 Samuel 15:22
The reality is we do have God in our lives, and like Abraham when he sacrificed his son in Genesis, we too can hear God’s voice today. Sometimes God may ask us to lay aside what we want or what we think we have to do - rather than simply heeding to his voice. It can be for so many reasons that we want to do things our own way, but God always has the best plan. He’s holding out the umbrella and offering to shelter us from the storm.
In the story of Abraham, in Genesis, we hear of Abraham climbing a mountain to literally kill his son as a sacrifice because God said so. Then, we see God provide the sacrifice at the top of the mountain and Abraham spares his son’s life. That moment of obedience kept Abraham under God’s umbrella, shielded him from the storm, and made him a great nation known throughout the world.
We also have the flipside in 1 Samuel 15:22. That verse was an admonishment because King Saul had stepped outside of the laws that God had given him. He stepped outside of that umbrella of protection and God could no longer use him to do His will. In this story, Saul thought he knew better than what God had told him and attempted to do more than God had asked. Not only did Saul end up replaced as King, he also found his lineage dying off (which you can read more of in 1 Samuel).
In my over ten years of helping people, I see both of these stories over and over again. I watch people step into situations where they have no covering and all hell breaks loose. In the other instance, I see those who have been given God’s blessings step in and God has multiplied their efforts, as well as shielded them from storms. One of the things God has grown me in is the discernment of who is hearing God’s voice and whom, like Saul, is adding to what God has instructed them to do.
Everyone knows God has instructed them to help someone else. Just because there is a need, doesn’t mean you are the one who is called to help however. Sometimes you may be in the way of the person whom God has sent to help. It may seem like the right fit, but there is someone who is newer in their faith and may need your opportunity to grow them to the next level of faith. And there may be somewhere that is just waiting for you to step into a new role if you’re willing to submit and step under God’s umbrella into that new season.
It can be scary to become the new person or the least trained in the room. God shows up, just like He did for Abraham though. He becomes your protection and gives you the opportunity to become the leader you were meant to be. Those scary moments where God asks you to step into something new may have a blessing right on the other side of that obedience. I’m not promising you a ram as a sacrifice, a great nation, or a Kingdom. I am saying there is protection in your obedience to God. I’ve found that every time I’ve continually chosen submission to both authority and God, God has protected me from the storm. I could share so many stories of how many potentially dangerous situations I’ve been in, but God has kept me safe because of obedience to authorities, seeking out protection, and following God’s voice.
Please choose obedience. If you haven’t been, it’s not too late to turn around. If you have been, be faithful. Your story doesn’t have to be a grand testimony of repentance, but rather the blessing of obedience. Thankfully, we’re not in Saul’s times and, until you're dead, there is time for you to discover those blessings. Remember obedience brings both protection and blessings.