Calling Over Comfort

When I was 17 years old I left my home in Jacksonville Illinois drove

2 hours to St. Louis Missouri, jumped on a plane to Charlotte NC

Jumped on a much smaller plane to Fort Jackson SC

I then spent the next 10 or so weeks being indoctrinated into the way of the Army.

If I were to really break it down to the basics, it was a series of tests.

Physical tests

Mental tests

Skill tests

Endurance tests.

There was a lot of learning but it always led back to showing I could handle what they were dishing out.

I’m not going to sit here and lie and say that this was the greatest challenge in my life.

To be quite honest, it was actually pretty easy and fun for me.

But there were some who struggled and many who failed.

When you decide to sign on that dotted line and join any branch of the military, but only fools would go anywhere but Army.

Anyway when you say yes……selection begins.

Many are called…..

The military is open to pretty much all US citizens with a few exceptions.

Your first step is to take the aptitude test or ASVAB.

Studies suggest that 26% of high school graduates cannot meet minimum requirements.

So let’s say we start with 100 people.

We are now down to 73

Once you get through that, you have to go to a place called MEPS and get a physical.

16% are disqualified at MEPS.

61 remain

If you get through MEPS, it’s time for Basic training.

16% fall out of Basic

51 made it.

100 were called

51 were chosen and earned the title soldier.

Many Are Called, Few Are Chosen

Matthew 22:14 ““For many are invited, but few are chosen.””

Now this scripture is spoken over and over.

And so often we just leave it at that with no context. So what is Jesus talking about?

Jesus is telling a parable about a King who is throwing a wedding banquet. He invites everyone from the streets and many arrive. However, he sees one man not in weddings clothing. Not prepared for the wedding.

He was bound by his hands and feet and cast out into the darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Now clearly Jesus is speaking here of those who accept His invitation for salvation and those who do not.

But today I want to take it step further. I believe Jesus’ words apply to us as Christians as well.

What Does Matthew 22:14 mean?

This scripture at face value can be confusing.

When we read chosen it seems that the decision is not ours.

In fact, there are entire religions who base their beliefs on this word saying that God has predetermined those He wishes to have with Him.

This is simply not true.

There are too many other scriptures that you have to ignore to believe this.

Most famously John 3:16

But also Titus 2:11 “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.”

Romans 10:13 “for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.””

So then what does it mean?

The word chosen here represents those who have accepted His invitation and given their hearts to Christ and turned from their flesh.

However, the decision is always ours.

The invitation was sent to every single person. But only those who have accepted this invitation and prepared themselves for the wedding banquet are themselves chosen.

What Does This Mean to Us as Christians?

I believe every one of us as Christians have a calling on our lives.

So often our minds go to the same thing when someone says calling.

PREACHING.

That couldn’t be farther from the truth.

If all Christians were pastors, I think we’d have a lot less Christians!

Everyone in the world is unique and God has given His people unique abilities to reach those people.

Let me be clear today. You have a calling on your life.

God has a plan for you.

Many Are Called

I have spoken of this before.

So often our talents in the world are actually what God wants to use us for.

Case in point, my mother.

My mom has the patience of a monk. Luckily I got some of that from her.

She also loves children. Especially kids in need.

My mother was a special ed teacher for over 35 years in the same school!

But do you know what she also did for about the same amount of time?

She taught Sunday school. She provided the foundation for so many children to become mighty men and women of God……myself included.

I have seen and heard of people who thought their talents had no use in God’s plan just to see it produce fruit in ways no one could have imagined.

I have seen cooks reach thousands through food with Holly Furtick

Victor Marx has reached possibly millions just by being the fastest person to disarm people.

The only limit God has is our unbelief. God can do anything if we trust in Him.

Few Are Chosen

God has called each and every one of us into His Army

But the chosen receive that name by choosing obedience.

And that decision requires you to choose your calling over your comfort.

God’s work is hard.

God’s work is dirty.

God’s work takes sacrifice.

God’s work sometimes hurts.

But God’s work is uncomfortable.

I have hunted for most of my life, and I live that very definition.

I’m a hunter, not a succeeder!

But when I moved here to Colorado I decided to really get into hunting in the mountains.

I learned very quickly what discomfort is.

The first year I went with my brother was an absolute disaster.

Neither of us had enough warm gear and basically froze from the time the sun went down until it came back around what seemed like 3 years later.

Our sleeping bags were no where near warm enough for the temps.

We got to the point that we would come in in the evening hurry up and eat and just crawl into our bags with all the clothes we can get on and just freeze through the night.

Our 7 day trip turned into a 4 day trip……… He hasn’t been back since.

That trip taught me two very important things.

Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable.

Discomfort is one of the biggest causes for quitting.

We all have a default state of comfort and a range of discomfort we are willing to endure.

As a hunter I had to learn to push that bar further allowing me to stay in the elements longer.

As a Christian God will so often call us to push that comfort bar further and further into His calling.

When I was young I was so scared to get on the platform and play the drums. Having everyone watching me was so nerve racking, What if I messed up? What if I threw a song completely off?

Later, I would become the youth pastor at our church. I was so scared to get in front of those kids and look like a complete idiot. What if I say the wrong thing? What if I do the wrong thing? What if I lose kids?

I then became a pastor and started a Thursday night service. Again, I was so uncomfortable. What if no one comes? What if my messages land flat? What if I say something offensive to someone?

Then God led us to shift to a Sunday service but with one caveat. He told me to lead worship. Ok now we have crossed into territory that was clearly marked DO NOT ENTER.

But you know what all of that anxiety and all of that fear that I had…….

Was for good reason! All of those things happened.

When I played the drums at our church when I was a kid one of our musicians had to sit there and tap his foot so I could keep the beat because I had a tendency to just take off and go so fast my dad couldn’t keep up with the words!

When I was a youth pastor I looked foolish more times than I care to count. I took our entire youth group to a retreat without ever registering a single one of them. I also didn’t have the money to pay for them with me.

At its peak we had over 20 kids in our youth. At it lowest I had like 6.

Then I became a pastor and you know that crazy fear of no one showing up………NO

ONE

SHOWED

UP

We had 1 family on week 1

We had absolutely no one on week 2!

And now here are doing a Sunday morning service with me as your Worship leader.

Enough said haha!

But let me tell you this…… God has been with me through it all! He stretched me through all of this. He made me push what I made my limits so that He could work in the limitless.

I became a very skilled drummer through all of those Sundays and have since played in many bands and worship teams.

I learned how to fail forward as a youth pastor. To never let satan take hold and to truly trust God.

Those first few Thursday nights made me trust in God and not my own understanding. I had a plan for how it was going to go.... so did God. Guess who’s worked?

And now probably the biggest level of learning comfort in the discomfort is where we are now.

God really stretched me with this, but you know what. He has shown me that His Spirit moves where His people open their hearts to Him and allow Him to move. The music or leader of it really doesn’t matter.

I have seen so many people moved in the Spirit during our services. I looked down and saw Isabel lost in worship last Sunday and I almost couldn’t contain myself.

But I have seen it with so many of you. God moves where His people ask for movement!

Prepare for the Discomfort

It was a few years after my brother and I’s epic failure that I decided to attempt this adventure again. My boss had never been on a big game hunt and after months of forging a relationship, we decided to do a week long hunt together in southern Colorado.

The day we got to our area and set up our tent, it started snowing.....… And did not stop.

The first day was just a scouting day. A chance to get a lay of the land before the real deal started the next morning.

By that first day my boots had soaked all the way through.

Every day I had to wake up and take my boots and put them on the tail pipes of the truck while it was running to try and dry them.

Every day I had to put ziplok bags on my feet to keep them dry.

I had 18 layers of Walmart insulation although I think just walking around in shorts and a t shirt would have been just as effective.

I stopped eating by day three. I was sick and my body was just wanting to quit.

Our last night there, our roof collapsed multiple times from the weight of the snow.

That morning my alarm went off at 4 am advising me that it was time to get up and get ready to get on the mountain again.

I sat up and looked over at Kip who made no attempt to move prompting me to lay my head back down.

By the time we started moving at around 7 we both decided the hunt was over.

I was not prepared.

Make no mistake when God calls you and you obey, there will absolutely be discomfort.

There will be days you feel defeated.

The enemy will always be whispering in your ear your failures and that you are not nor will you ever be enough.

The weather of this world will beat on you relentlessly.

And if we are not prepared, we might not make it.

Prepped

After that second failed hunt I started to take my preparation seriously.

I found a company called First Lite who makes high level outdoor clothing.

I bought a pair of dedicated mountain boots.

I started preparing my body for the altitude and exertion required.

The mission never changed.

The mountains did not lower themselves to me.

The weight in my pack did not get any lighter.

The challenges of the weather never subsided.

Yet I was able to further. Stay out longer, and generally be in a more positive state.

Not because anything around me changed, but I changed!

I readied myself for the challenges that lay ahead of me.

Ready Yourself

You have a calling on your life and whatever it may be there will be challenges that come. Mountains that stand in your way.

You must ready yourself.

Put on the full armor of God

Ephesians 6:11–18 “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all…”

The belt of truth is by which other pieces of the armor are attached. The basis of our walk is truth. Because Jesus is the way and the TRUTH!

Breastplate of Righteousness.

Protects the vital organs specifically the heart. Righteousness is having your heart right with our Father.

Feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

One of the easiest ways for the enemy to shift us from the rock is to strap worries to our feet. For us to carry anxiety.

However, the gospel is the peace that passes all understanding. It is our firm foundation.

The shield of faith.

One of the hardest things for us as Christians is facing the attacks of the enemy and this world as we try to walk in the calling He has on our lives.

This simply tells us to put our trust and our faith in Him. The shield will protect us.

The helmet of salvation fittingly covers our head. The battlefield of our mind.

So often our minds are the primary object of attack by the enemy. But we know we have salvation through Christ and He continues to work in us.

Finally the sword of the Spirit.

Everything til now was the protection that God provides to us. But He doesn’t leave it there. The sword is both.

The sword is the word of God. It defends us from attack but it is also the means of our offensive.

In our calling, the sword is the tool God uses to spread His word through you!

Get Ready!

God never said we would be comfortable.

But we can learn to live in the discomfort and thrive.

We can also prepare ourselves for where God is leading us.

With the right attitude and the right equipment we can walk in the calling He has for us and become THE CHOSEN!