Call me Abram...

Change is very difficult for me. With anything new it takes me a bit to adjust. So, naturally I've had good days and bad. Somedays things go really well and I make a new friend and can see the prospects in my future. Other days I sink into a pit of self pity and depression, mourning all that I've 'left behind'. I still feel like I'm entering the gates of heaven when I drive down Veterans Parkway, and feel sick to my stomach every time we pack up the car to leave Bloomington. I find myself asking, "Why God? My life would be perfect if only I didn't have to leave".

Several weeks ago I was asked to write a devotional for our church to be used during a missions conference in the fall. My randomly assigned verse is Genesis 12:1-3. (this gives me chills...)
The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."
Has God ever called you somewhere or asked you to do something that you really didn’t think you wanted to do? Have you ever been in a situation where all the doors (and windows) were opening and you were sure that God was showing you His plan, but you thought, “ Really, God? Are you kidding me?” I keep telling him, “I’m so happy here. I have everything I have ever wanted. Life is perfect. You really want me to leave all this?” And he keeps answering, “Yes”. Thankfully, I have his promise and assurance to rest on. I know that his plans for me are far greater than my plans for me, and my life will be blessed beyond belief by following his will. I know that, even though I am leaving behind so much of what I hold dear and view as ‘perfect’, he has a life even greater in store for me. That in itself is so hard to comprehend. That what he has planned for my future is even better than what I think is incredible now. So, no matter where you feel God is leading you, or how much you want or don’t want to go, you can trust his perfect plan and his wisdom. By following the Lord’s will, your life will be blessed and he will use you to bless other’s lives in a way that is greater than you ever could have imagined. It is absolutely terrifying to walk out in faith, but we will be richly blessed by doing so.
Jer. 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.