Go Where The Ravens Are
Many times people will have, what they feel, (or what they have led themselves to believe,) is a calling or ministry upon their lives. So often this is actually a desire to have a purpose which they base upon a personal feeling, a talent, or even what someone else has told them that they should be doing. And, so often, these “projects” fail because they are not God’s will for that person, or even if the Lord has placed this in their minds, they rush into it because of their excitement and lead themselves off on a tangent because they have not bothered to consult the Lord for the direction in which He intended them to proceed.
A lot of good, well-meaning Christians have started projects, or gone out into the mission field and then asked the Lord to bless it. To bless their work, to bring about what they feel is the desired result. It often fails and, when it has failed, (or come short of their expectations) they do not understand why. Even blaming God for the failure. Sometimes these failures actually result in attacking their faith in Him or, as He has put it Himself, “hardening their hearts” towards Him.
But, if you go where the Lord tells you to go, if you do what the Lord tells you to do, in the way that He tells you to perform that task, that project, that mission, all the resources, equipment and even laborers that you will require to complete it, will be provided for you, ahead of time or as they are needed. And, the results will be far greater than what you could ever imagine.
If we take a look at the story of Elijah the prophet when he was under the threat of death from Jezebel (see 1st Kings, chapters 16-18) the Lord sent him to the brook Cherith (1st Kings 17:2-6) and told him to hide there. But the Lord told him that he could drink from the brook and that He had already commanded the ravens to bring him food.
The first point here is that all this was prepared before Elijah set out on his journey.
The second point is that the provisions were waiting for him; he did not have to take them with him.
When God sends you out on any kind of mission, any kind of task for Him, He will provide ahead of time for all that you need, or will require, to complete His work.
So, if you feel that the Lord is telling you or, tasking you with a mission on His behalf, before you do anything else, go before Him, and get absolute confirmation.
It is also not a good idea to take someone else’s achievements as a template for your own. In short, just because someone else was successful in doing the very thing that you feel called to complete, do not assume your success based upon theirs.
It is also not a very good idea to take the Word of God and step out into an action that is so obviously foolish and wonder why the result was not what was expected. Such actions often become dangerous to the point of physical harm or death. There’s a story told by Pastor Paul Yongi Cho (Assemblies of God, Seoul, South Korea) about three young girls who were going to a meeting and had to cross a river to get there. However, there had been heavy rains and the river was swollen and flooded, the current was raging. After consulting with one another the three young girls decided that because they were God’s children, like Moses, they could step out and the waters would part leaving them to walk across on dry ground. They drowned. The lesson is very simple, do not assume that the Lord wants you to do something. Always consult with Him, and be certain that He is instructing you to do this thing; also being very attentive as to His instructions of how to achieve it. God is not foolish, and He doesn’t expect us to be either.
If you set out to do something and afterwards pray for the Lord’s blessing upon it you are not in His perfect will.
Whilst it is possible to partially achieve something that you wish to achieve, it will never be as successful as when it is the Lord’s will. It is always a wonderful thing to want to serve the Lord, and to work for Him, but it is never a good idea to assume what He wants you to do, or how He wants you to achieve it. You can actually get in His way or interfere with what He is trying to achieve through you.
So, “Go Where the Ravens Are” is a simple message of following the Lords instructions as opposed to stepping out and asking Him to follow you…. When you do things His way, the ravens will be there waiting for you! They will not come to where you are unless you are where God wants you to be, not the other way around!
(Psalm 37:5) Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
(Proverbs 3:5-6) Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
You have probably heard the saying “God is my copilot.” Why don’t you consider switching places? That way you will be guided to where He wants you to go, and not where you think you should go.
An Addendum
Read Genesis chapter 1. The conclusion and understanding that you should come to is the fact that God created the heavens and the earth and all things contained within it before He created man. Everything was prepared and made ready for the man. Then God placed him where He wanted him to be. God did not just place this man on the earth and let him fend for himself. He provided everything that the man would ever need even to the point of self replenishment of those things. The Garden of Eden itself was created in perfection, for mankind to flourish. Everything was created bearing its own seed, including man himself. God has always provided for us, and, because He is “the same yesterday, today, and forever” He has provided all things, all things for us, for our lives.
Extended teaching:
“What’s In A Name” (click here)