Where Is God Leading?

Hello, tender friends!

This is a continuation of last week’s post.

Does God use things that we simply enjoy, with no obvious spiritual connection, to fulfill his purposes? Of course I know that he can, because God can do anything he wants, but I’m so used to the idea that following Jesus involves suffering that I’m not sure.

Almost a year has passed since I joined the Roanoke chapter of the national nonprofit toastmasters. If you haven’t heard of it, toastmasters is a public speaking group. The public speaking involved includes giving speeches and other club roles.

I joined the group a year ago because I felt led to do so, but I wasn’t sure if it was led by my own desires or God. It can be tricky, can’t it? As someone who strives to do exactly what God wants me to do at all moments, I struggled with the decision. It meant time away from family. It meant investing time and energy into something that had no clear end game.

But it also meant spontaneous public speaking experiences in addition to planned speeches. Every meeting includes a time called table topics, in which participants are randomly called to give a 1 to 2 minute speech on a topic on the fly. I enjoy this time, as it reminds me of my improv days in high school.

Is there a deeper end game? Did I feel led to join simply because it was something that I wanted to do, but God doesn’t really care because it’s not a moral issue?

When I joined the group, I chose the humorous pathway out of all the possible choices. Other pathways include those designed for persuasion, or for leadership – things that make a lot more sense.

“That’s a tough pathway, but it’s good that you’re trying it,” the president of the group said when I signed up.

It’s kind of ballsy to admit you want to make people laugh. It would be much easier to do a pathway people expected. If you admit that you’re trying to make people laugh, failing publicly and delivering a joke to a silent room is more painful. I’m willing to continue taking that risk.

I don’t know what God’s end game is, or if he even has one.

But when I look at the parable of the talents, I see a God who urges us not to play it safe.

This isn’t a rhema word or anything, but rather a conclusion that I have drawn which may or not be defensible in light of the entire Bible. Right now, this is what I feel is true:

I serve a God who honors and rewards risk.

Okay, that’s all for today, tender friends! Here’s your proof that I’m a real person:

(I have my hair pulled back in a different way in this picture. I didn’t get my hair cut or anything.)

Thank you for stopping by, and thank you for sharing!

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