Making Bold Moves

I'm going to be honest with you, friends. This devotional is going to ride solely on what my college age pastor preached on this week at groups, and I'm not ashamed! Because if you had asked me 3 days ago if I felt I was ready to write this devotional, I would've said "Nope." But when I walked into groups last night with a tough weekend and an even tougher relationship on my shoulders, God said He would take care of me. And He did. 

Justin talked about "Bold Moves." My bold move yesterday was getting myself dressed to go to these groups, and to be honest the one thing that convinced me was the free food. I'm always down for free food. But I don't know if you've ever felt that the pastor is preaching straight to you and your struggles, but this is what I felt last night. Suddenly I wasn't just there for the free food. This is the statement he started off with: "You won't move very far in life if you aren't willing to make bold moves." Let that sink in. What bold moves have you taken lately to move in life? Moving states or cities or even countries aren't the only bold moves. It's also leaving a job you're not happy in, switching a major because it doesn't speak to you anymore, or cutting off a toxic relationship holding you down. Obedience to God is costly. Bold moves aren't simple and care-free. They're hard, thought-out, and time consuming decisions. And that's OKAY. 

Before you can make bold moves, there may be a shift you need to make in your life. There were four presented that helped me take stock of what was going on in my life: Leave, Learn, Live, and Lead. 

Leave - it's not too late to leave the places you've been in for so long you can't even remember when you weren't here. This means both physical and emotional places. Not just the roommate situation you're in, but also the relationship you're in that you're too scared to say what you feel. This may not be the answer for you, but it may be part of the answer. 

Learn - it's time to learn how to live God's way, you can't rush your growth. Before you make a bold move, have you studied God's word and asked Him what He thinks about this change? Do you feel Him leading you there or is it opinions from those around you? It's okay and necessary to prepare, even Jesus had 30 years of preparation before He went off to his calling.

Live - How are you doing with practicing and showing Kingdom values? Are you engaged, serving, and pouring out? Or are you too focused on yourself to see what the Kingdom has for you? I struggle with this...A LOT. I say one thing to God in my prayers, and turn around and say another thing to a co-worker who is frustrating me. I have a hard time with the concept of grace and patience. I recently found out when Bob Goff was struggling with patience, he carried around a bucket EVERYWHERE (planes, meetings, coffee dates, etc.) to remind him to fill his "bucket," physical and metaphorical, with patience. I'm not so sure we all need to carry about buckets our whole lives, but I definitely need to learn how to give grace freely, and then live it out! 

Lead - The Bible says that knowledge without practice is nothing, are you discipling people younger than you? 

For me, the shifts I need to take are multiple. Learning what God has in store for me instead of trying to follow the same path everyone else has taken, living out the values I believe in (like patience), and speaking my mind in a relationship that is taxing on both my physical and mental health. Is God calling YOU to make a bold move? What shift do you need to make before this bold move is possible? 

One last thing Justin said that was what I would call a mic drop. He said, "You can either make a shift or drift." The Kingdom is not one of take, it's one of power. You have to learn to depend on God. Don't sit around twiddling your thumbs for another 4 years wondering why nothing good comes your way or why you're still so unhappy. Do. Something. About. It. And learn dependence on God along the way.

-Elisa