YES!

SHEPHERD TO SHEEP

YES!

(Mat 9:28) And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. And Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.”

I love the word yes. It's such a positive word and it means "all right, okay, sure, why not?, no problem, of course, agreed." It has all that is in it that we should say to the Lord when He presents His will to us. When the Lord says to do something we can just say YES knowing that He is so wise and His ways are the best.

Sometimes we fuss with the Lord don't we? Is that because we have "trust" issues? Maybe there was an authority in our life at one time that we trusted and then misled us. Ever since we have said NO!, especially to those over us. Or maybe it's just that we're plain scared. We like our comfort zone. We've never liked that leap in the dark stuff. It has to be cautious and explain itself. Anything outside that is just a flat denial. And sometimes it's just plain rebellion. God says GO! and we say NO! and that's why sometimes we don't GROW!

Some people say NO as a habit. They want to keep their options open. They don't want to commit. So saying NO protects them from any kind of involvement. But once they find out a situation will be positive for them then they jump in at the last minute with a YES. I think that's playing life too safe. I believe that's also being too protective and a bit self-centered . What's wrong with commitment? It takes you off the sidelines and gets you involved. Christianity is not a spectator sport! The people I admire the most are the ones who have learned to say YES! They are serving the Lord. They have come in from the fringe. They used to dust a pew but now they're in the "do!"

At a certain point I caught myself saying NO to my kids all the time. They were always asking me questions and wanting something so I figured it was just safe to say NO and then backpedal out of the NO once I knew all the facts and what resources I had. Kids love a NO don't they?! Then I grew into the MAYBE mode. Now I was getting nicer as a dad. Kids love to be left hanging don't they?! Finally I caught myself and said why not be open to saying YES more often? I began to see situations as possibilities rather than difficulties. I believe it was the mind of the Lord that He was sharing with me. To be more on the offensive in life and less on the defensive. God can do anything! At least I can pray about it, right?

Now a person has to be discerning and discriminatory in all matters of life. You can't just say YES to everything all the time. Sometimes a NO is the best answer because you don't sense the Lord in it. You'll want to wait for the Lord and His timing. But when the Lord says YES! then so should we!! (2 Cor 1:20) For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.

Doesn't it all come down to trust and faith? When those blind men came to Jesus for healing He asked them if they believed He was able to do this. They had the right answer...YES Lord! That's always the best answer when the Lord begins to prompt you about something. The Lord healed those blind men. And when we say YES to the Lord He will do great things in our lives. Sometimes we are blind with unbelief. But you know what the Bible says about that. (Heb 3:19) So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

There's a promised land awaiting you and me. The Lord didn't say it would be easy but He did promise the abundant life in Christ for us. A new dimension of life awaits you. It will open up wonderful and exiting doors. All you have to do is say YES!

Louie