The first step

My church is in the middle of some big transitions right now and so there has been a lot of talk about hearing the voice of God. Specifically, hearing His voice and knowing when He’s calling you to move.
The thing about moving is that it can be hard. It requires change. It requires sacrifice. It requires giving up some measure of comfort.
And if you don’t think those things are true, then I’ll assume you’ve never moved before.
Fifteen years ago, I had just graduated from college and started my first real job. And by real, I mean that it didn’t involve baby-sitting any kids and I had to wear a suit. I moved to a city where I essentially knew no one because I knew it was where God was calling me to be.
I spent about four months being absolutely miserable at my lack of anything resembling friends and a social life, but I held on to the fact that I knew I was in the center of God’s will for me.
About a month later, I was re-introduced to the man who became my husband and fifteen years later I am in that same city, surrounded by more family and friends than I could have dreamed of back in 1994.
I’ve been thinking a lot about that time lately because it marked my first tenuous steps to fully trusting God with my life. It was the first time I really took a leap of faith. And it all worked out.
It’s good to remember His faithfulness, especially being in a season of life where I’m feeling called to take other steps. Steps out of my comfort zone, steps towards His plan for my life.
In the book of Joshua, we see the Israelites as they’re about to cross over the Jordan. Joshua 3:13 says, “And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord – the Lord of all the earth – set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.”
Apart from God, that doesn’t even make sense. The waters are going to stand up in a heap? Well, sure they are. That’s a natural state for a liquid.
But it happened. As soon as the priests feet touched the water’s edge, the water stopped flowing. The key was that first step of faith, the kind of faith that gets your toes wet knowing that God is going to take care of the rest.
So, if you’re like me and feel like He’s calling you to move, it may be time to get your feet wet.