Will you follow Him anywhere?
I can easily say “yes” but when it comes down to God asking me to do things I really don't WANT to do...
I hesitate.
I question.
I doubt.
I worry.
Like when He said to take in someone else's baby... and that baby may be HIV positive.
Or when He said to go pick up a baby from the hospital and sit beside a broken mother and pray with her as she hands me HER child to care for because she is too addicted to drugs to do it herself.
Or when He says you will be able to keep this baby for 2 years but then he will leave to be reunited with his birth family.
Or when He says to take in an older child when you are already overwhelmed with the 4 children you have.
Or when He doesn’t choose to give you more biological children even though that is a HUGE desire of your heart.
I hesitate.
I question.
I doubt.
I worry.
And I want to say, "I'm done Lord. No more kids. We have 5 and our house is full! Our family is complete" and God quickly reminds me that our family is complete when He says it is.
Will I follow Him?
This morning we were teaching in our children's class at church and one of our worship songs was "Follow You Anywhere" !
As the words were playing, I heard...
All I want is You
Jesus All I want is You
You are the refuge I run to
You are the fire that leads me through the night
I'll follow you anywhere
There's a million reasons to trust you
Nothing to fear for you are by my side
I'll follow you anywhere
It took until the second chorus for me to hear it.
The small voice of a little boy standing beside me. He had his mask covering his nose and mouth but through the side of his mask, I could see his little mouth singing the words to the song. I could hear his little voice. I could see his eyes closed and his hands slightly turned upward in praise to the Lord.
What made this so impactful for me was that this little boy just last year traveled from Hong Kong all the way to Shelby, NC because of adoption.
Last year, before he moved to his new home here in North Carolina, he had no concept whatsoever of God. His foster mother in Hong Kong believed in an ancient Chinese religion that involves worship of ancestors. Hong Kong has tons and tons of people everywhere! His life there was vastly different that it is now. He walked and rode the subway everywhere he went. He had his own little ID card for the subway rides. There was very little grass except in their nice inner city parks. He was thrilled when he learned that in NC he was going to have his very own yard!
He lived in a giant apartment complex on the 22nd floor in Hong Kong. He attended a Buddhist elementary school right across the street from his apartment. They only served vegetarian options for lunch at school (when we invited this sweet little boy to our son's Birthday party here in Shelby, he ate more grapes than I have ever seen a human eat--haha). He lived with his foster family in Hong Kong from 10 months old until he came home with my sweet friends who gave him a permanent family here in Shelby through adoption. He loved his foster mother in Hong Kong so much, and she loved him. He was cared for very well. But what a blessing that he is now adopted and was able to come home to Shelby, NC in October of last year!
Why do I share all of this information with you?
Well, when I saw and heard this sweet boy standing beside me singing and worshiping, I thought of the verse Matthew 18:3, "Truly I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven."
I thought of the song we were all singing together! I thought of this little boy's age and all he has been through since last year! All GREAT things but definitely BIG changes for a 7 year old!
This picture came into my mind as I was watching him sing quietly, gently, eyes closed, hands outward that THIS must be what following God looks like! This little adorable child hasn't accepted Jesus as Savior yet but....
I am witnessing God work in his little heart and mind right before my eyes! I am seeing this little boy follow Jesus (even unknowingly, because God is good like that, leading His children, fighting for His children) wherever He leads!
Seeing this little 7 year old boy worship Jesus this morning blessed my soul and reminded me of what following Jesus looks like. Our children sometimes have it figured out WAY more than we do! Following God wherever He leads us is HARD, especially when God calls us to leave the comfort, leave the good season we are currently in or step into the unknown. But, I feel confident that where He leads is WAY better than where we are and where we plan to go on our own!
This little boy from Hong Kong, I'd say had a good life where He was. Yes, he was in foster care but with a loving foster mom who took good care of him. He was comfortable there. However, in God's perfect plan, He saw fit to move him to a completely different country just so he could learn and know the love of Jesus (Jeremiah 29:11). God wants him to know that he has a future and a hope and God is revealing Himself to this precious child, little by little because again, He knows just what we need, right when we need it!
God is so good! I pray I would NOT miss out on His goodness and RICH RICH blessings simply because I don't want to follow Him wherever He leads me. I pray that ALL I want would be Him. And I pray the same for you. I'm thankful for a God who finds a child all the way in Hong Kong, places that child with the exact family that He wants to place him with, brings that child right where He wants him and reveals Himself to him. I'm thankful for a God who is stronger than language barriers and trauma and brokenness and idols. I am thankful for a God who meets us right where we are but also picks us up and carries us ACROSS THE WORLD if he has to!