Ever feel overwhelmed by life and the decisions you face each day? Well, you CAN know YHWH's will and plan for your life. Knowing YHWH's will is as simple as walking with him and asking Him to speak through you. We can discern the call of YHWH through the amazing story of the Prophet Jeremiah, or "Yermi'yahu" in Hebrew. Just replace your name for his in this story and you can better understand all that YHWH has for you.
First, as a youth YHWH called Jeremiah and set him aside for a life of meaning. The initial chapter of the book named after this prophet explains how YHWH told him (and you!) that "before I formed you in the womb I knew you and set you apart." YHWH made you for a purpose. You are not a mistake. You are not a problem. YHWH created you for a special reason and the special season of today. When Yermi'yahu was just in his youth he had an amazing encounter with the Creator of the universe. Just picture it. The young Jeremiah is doing his own thing when all of a sudden he felt the nudge of the Holy Spirit. He actually heard the voice of YHWH. It was a still small whisper, a thunderous boom, that said Jeremiah was chosen to be a prophet to the people. The word in Hebrew for prophet is "navi." This term means "a seer, preacher, one who speaks the words of YHWH." A prophet is someone who points to the word of YHWH. Jeremiah was chosen to be a navi and so where you. Now don't get weird and trade your work uniform for a set of camel skin jeans. Being a prophet doesn't mean you have to eat locusts and honey either. As a navi you were chosen from the womb to point people to the will of YHWH by living His word out before others. This "prophesying" may include preaching or teaching. It also may not include preaching or teaching. Being a navi is more about living holy than speaking about holiness. One wise person once said to "preach Y'shua at times and if you must, use words." We need to be like Jeremiah and therefore we need to forget the idea of a prophet being a bearded man with a sign stating "the End is Near." The end of the world is not necessarily our message. Remember that the Apostles in Acts 1 wanted to talk up the return of Messiah and Y'shua told them not to be concerned with times and seasons. Instead, the Apostles were told to focus on being YHWH's "witnesses" in all the Earth. (Sounds like good advice for today as well!) Yes, yes things are crazy with the stock exchange, the government, conspiracy theories, the nation of Israel, and Islam but before we run off people with our end times ideas and favorite theologies we need to have our mouth touched. Just like Jeremiah did. In verse nine of chapter one Yermi'yahu's mouth was literally touched by YHWH. This signified that the words of the prophet would not be his own. Prophets are simply the mouth piece of YHWH. You and I are only to speak the Almighty's words. Perhaps you are to use your mouth to encourage as a friend, love as a parent, or console as a co-worker. Or maybe your mouth is to be used by YHWH to speak up in prayer. Yermi'yahu was the weeping prophet. For whom do you weep? Do you cry out for the homeless and helpless? Do you mourn for the lost that don't know the love of Y'shua? Are you gripped to the bone for your family and friends? That's YHWH's will for your life. He wants you to have HIS heart and His message. In Jeremiah 18 the navi is taken to the Potter's House. He sees a clump of broken and wasted clay become a beautiful vessel in the Potter's hands. "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?" said YHWH. "Look, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand," Yermi'yahu 18:6. In this vivid illustration we, the lost sheep of the house of Israel, are the clay. We are supposed to be pliable and usable and not firm or stiff necked. That's the second part of knowing YHWH's will. We must "go with the flow" of the Holy Spirit. YHWH will not force us to walk in holiness. Nor will He cram His ways down upon us. Walking in YHWH's will is as simple as following Him through the choices we make. We must choose to obey. We must choose to be the clay on wheel. YHWH's will for any situation can easily be discerned by answering one question - "does this bring life or death?" Throughout the Scriptures is the admonition to "choose life." We have set before us life and death or blessing and curses. We are rewarded for whatever we choose. "You are a slave to whatever you obey - whether a slave of sin unto death or obedience unto righteousness," Romans 6:16. We must choose life from sun up to sun down. YHWH is the elohim of the living and not the dead. YHWH wants you to have life in your life! Y'shua came that we might have life to the fullest. When we choose life we bring more and more life. The Navi Yermi'yahu said it like this, "Set before you is the way of life and the way of death, 21:8. To choose life is to choose to alter our thought patterns. "To be carnally minded is death but to be spiritually minded is life and shalom," says Romans 8. Life comes as we are spiritually minded. The book of Proverbs states that "life and death are in the power of the tongue." Let's put all this together. YHWH's will is life. True abundant life is a byproduct of being spiritually minded. Once we begin to think the proper life thoughts our words release the life within us. Then as we make choices we use our spiritually set mind and mouth to always choose life! Get this! YHWH's will is life for you! He wants you to be fruitful and multiply. Life comes to you as you are "spiritually minded." Is the will of YHWH always in the back of your mind or on your Facebook post? This doesn't mean you have to meditate on Scripture all day long. Being spiritually minded is to choose life over and and over again. We often think of YHWH's will a vocation, a way to pay your bills, or an answer to a serious question. YHWH wants you to be his mouthpiece of life to the people all around you. Like Yermi'yahu you can make a difference in this world when you allow your mind and mouth to be used to bring life. Remember that YHWH's will is for your good. "Behold, I know the thoughts I think about you," says YHWH. "These are thoughts of shalom and not bad. I will give you a good hope in the end," Jeremiah 29:11. Choose life today and seek to walk in His will today. Then, tomorrow will take care of itself. This worked for Yermi'yahu and it will indeed work for you. | 
No comments:
Post a Comment