2013 12 09 A Calling or a Test of Obedience

Before turning in at night I generally read something devotional. For some time my night-time reading has been from Days of Praise, a quarterly booklet published by the Institute for Creation Research. For a publication coming from a science organization I have always been impressed by how well these scholars know their Bible. They even delve into context and original languages.

So it was that on December 9 I opened the booklet to the corresponding date to read “God’s Ways are Best”. The first sentence hit me square between the eyes: “The leading of God is not always clear to our understanding or satisfying to our pride, but it is always directed to God’s glory and our good.”

When I was 18, spending the summer working in a factory, I clearly felt God’s calling to go into medicine. It was not something I had ever given consideration to as a career choice. Now, moving into the years when one considers retirement I began to think, if God called me into this, he should be letting me know when to stop practicing.

When I read the sentence above and the accompanying story about Elijah obeying God’s will what I realized was that it was probably not the career that was the thing God was interested in. It was a test of my obedience.

This realization lifted somewhat of a burden from my heart. As I went through the process of getting into medicine and through the rigorous years of education before finally coming out as a qualified Family Physician, then later to become a psychiatrist, there has been a recurring question in my mind as to why I was so called.  To me, it seemed that if God had called me into this field, I should be making something special of it. Yet, it seemed to me that I was never more than quite an ordinary front-line physician. I often wondered if I had taken the wrong turn somewhere, if I had missed some subsequent direction or even been disobedient.

Through the years there had been bumps in the road, especially getting into and through medical training. I began to question the calling because things did not seem to be working out. Now, it did not seem to be clear when I should retire. Through all of this, even now, I made decisions without obvious divine direction. However, they were always made with prayer and reflection on the matter in the light of The Word, sometimes in consultation with other believers. This reminded me of an adage I have never really liked, as it always seemed to me to smack too much of modern individualism: “God helps those who help themselves”. Now I saw that God may have given me direction in the larger things but left me to work out my direction otherwise.

As the sentence read, God’s leading would be his glory.  If I obeyed, God would use what I did to bring him honour. I think I have been faithful in that area. I have lived out my Christian witness in many ways. He also promised that it would be for my good if I learned to be obedient. Indeed, I have had a very good life. Again, there have been times of testing and self-questioning, but overall, my wife and I believe we are very blessed. Ultimately, the sequence of this sentence is, I believe, carefully chosen or even inspired by the Spirit. What we do is important firstly for God’s glory, only secondly, for our good. Those are the blessings of obedience.