I Don't Wanna Go!!

I was in church this morning, and the children's sermon had just ended. It was time for the children to leave and go to Sunday School. A boy sitting in front of me, probably about three years old, started yelling "I don't wanna go!" as his parents cajoled him into going.

This made me think about my own experience when I was younger. I, too, wasn't extremely fond of Sunday School. But even though I didn't want to go, my parents knew something that I didn't. They knew that I was going to be doing fun art projects, getting to know friends, and, ultimately, learning about the God that my parents already knew and loved. Looking back at those days, I'm now thankful for my parents making me go to church, because I still remember those bible stories that I learned back then

I think that it's similar with God. Part of being called, for many of us, involves us saying, "I don't wanna go! I'm comfortable right here! Why do I have to go there?!" But God, our heavenly Parent, knows something that we don't know... Yet. What we're going to do, who we're going to meet, and what projects we're going to have when we get there is often kept from us. Like that child, it takes some trust and maybe even a leap of faith to be willing to go somewhere unknown.

This little thought process of mine happened before the sermon even started, so I got extremely excited when the pastor began talking about the attributes of a call as the bible describes them. Stories of individuals being called by God are found throughout both the Old and New Testaments, and the stories share a number of commonalities.

People who experience an authentic call from God are reluctant to accept it and "resist mightily." Rev. Scott Campbell, the pastor of Harvard-Epworth United Methodist Church where I attend, described this as being similar to being drafted to where God has chosen for you to be, rather than making a career choice. Biblical calls also come with feelings of inadequacy for the call that God has made, but that moves them toward a reliance on God for results - that is, God doesn't choose the most gifted and talented among us, but works inside of us and provides for us.

God calls us to go into places where we aren't comfortable, where we feel inadequate. God continues to call us as we try to pull back, as we try to run away. I've come to realize that no matter how far I try to run, there are always more bushes that can burn. I also believe that God won't lead us to a place where we have no chance at succeeding, where we can't grow and learn.

Toward the end of the service, the boy returned from Sunday School. He excitedly showed his parents the bookmarks that he made while he was there. We, too, can create something to be proud of when we follow where we are led.