To be cultivated.

To grow.

To be refined.

As I’ve reflected on how I’ve seen these things occurring in my life, one idea has been placed on my heart over and over again: God is cultivating a spirit of obedience in me.

One way God has been cultivating obedience within me is by asking me to say “yes” when He asks–or, more accurately, tells–me to do something. Whether He’s leading me to have a certain conversation with someone, take a break from Instagram, or another thing that is outside of my comfort zone.

I’m learning how important it is to God for us to trust Him enough to say “yes” to whatever He asks of us, even if it’s uncomfortable, undesirable, or really difficult. I think, at times, the harder it is to say yes, the more we need to do so. God wants to use that experience for a purpose, even if we can’t see it immediately. I do believe that many times, God will reveal to us the reason why He wanted us to obey Him in a given situation.

Our obedience will sometimes be for us personally for the purpose of developing or refining something in us. However, our obedience is not all about us. Our decision to say “yes” to God may also serve others.

During high school, I felt compelled to start this blog where I could write about different topics I felt like God was putting on my heart and share about what He was teaching me. I am always hopeful that my writing will resonate with at least one person and possibly help them with something on their faith journey.

Because of this desire, I have been incredibly thankful whenever I have received feedback from family members or family friends who have read a post of mine and expressed how they needed to hear the message it contained.

Sometimes, I don’t feel like writing. However, I have sometimes sat down to write when I felt like God wanted me to. If I had not obeyed what I felt the Holy Spirit asking me to do, I would not have been able to bless those who have read my blog posts.

Another example of this would be God calling me to fast from specific types of media. Even when I didn’t necessarily want to, I have taken a break from Instagram and certain music when God has led me to. When I have done this, I never regret it. I always feel refreshed and often realize how I have become dependent in some way on those things. For example, for a period of time, the first thing I would do after waking up in the morning is to open up Instagram. Stepping away temporarily helped me reflect on why this had become a habit of mine, and has helped me to do this less than I used to.

Additionally, at times my sister has joined me in my fasts and has appreciated how they caused her to consider the space certain things can take up in our lives. Sometimes, we are not even aware of how our routine habits can be harmful and that we can make better, more life-giving choices. Obeying God’s guidance in these areas has always proven fruitful and led to me making better and more self-aware choices regarding the media I am consuming.

While we will sometimes see the immediate results from us saying “yes,” I don’t believe we always will. I think that sometimes, God just wants us to be willing to say “yes,” even if the thing itself doesn’t actually come to fruition.

At least twice within the last couple years, I strongly felt God tell me to say yes to stepping into a certain leadership role. However, due to different factors, I ended up not filling those positions.

While I’m not sure exactly why things played out in this way, I truly believe I did what God wanted by saying “yes” to being willing to be in those roles.

One thing that makes saying “yes” easier is trusting God. Trusting God is always the best decision. He knows what He’s talking about, I promise you. I may think that my ideas or plans are best…until God does something different. Then I have to pivot.

I’ve had to pivot a lot lately. And as frustrating as that is for a planner like me, it’s also good. God helps me to become more flexible and not idolize my plans. It also helps me remember that I am not in control. Only God is.

I once read that “partial obedience is not obedience.” And that’s so true. I preach this to myself often when I’m trying to make a decision. 

Saying “yes” often requires a sacrifice on our part. Some situations will cause us to make a bigger sacrifice than others. When thinking about this, a song lyric comes to mind. In the song “Available” by Elevation Worship, there is a line that says:

“For the One who gave me life, nothing is a sacrifice.”

That convicts me every time I think about it. Is anything really so big of a sacrifice that I’m not willing to do it for the Lord who gave His life for me? I say that I love Him, but do I love Him enough to do what He’s asked of me?

As I wrestle through different ways to be obedient better, God is refining my understanding of my own character. I have learned that I need to depend more upon Him and less upon myself. I also am becoming more aware of how I have sinned by ignoring His guidance in the past.

Let me tell you from firsthand experience, we can trust God when He leads us to do something.

He is trustworthy and faithful.

He is worthy of being obeyed.

My hope and prayer for myself and whoever is reading this is that God will cultivate our hearts, minds, and souls as we seek to obey Him better and love Him more and more. For He is worthy!

This piece was originally published in a college publication. Photo credit: owner of this blog.