Saying Yes, by Jacob

Saying Yes...

Saying yes to being scared.
Saying yes to uncertainty
Saying yes to God's Kingdom
Saying yes to wherever He leads
Saying yes to whatever He says.
Saying yes to...

A guy we met over in Cambodia invited us to a school he helps run in Spain. He told us about it and that we should come. Now, this is a leadership and missional community/discipleship school. Not a typical classroom, but a hands-on in what it means to lead and to disciple, especially around a table.

We hesitated...of course.

Please understand, I had the next stage of my life figured out: go back to Ohio, move to Columbus, get a descent job so I can get the last of our debt payed off, and start learning what discipleship is by just doing it. It’s a really good and wise plan!

But then he had this to say, “I just say ‘yes’ to whatever God brings. I say ‘yes’ knowing He will open and close doors to direct me where to go.”

I didn’t know what to say. The Lord has been slowly and quietly speaking to me about my trust issues while in Cambodia. I saw it often, in my struggle to open my hand and give, in my worry or anxiety over things I couldn’t control, over my frustration sometimes at little things that weren’t working out like I expected. And on top of that, I have had this “tick”, if I can call it that, for quite a while in the back of my mind- it’s this thing that keeps bringing me back to the need for real life-on-life discipleship.

...so we said yes! We don’t know what that means. Or where God will lead, but we simply said yes.



Saying yes is hard. I have never been good at saying yes to God. I think too much sometimes. I think through things too much and try to understand the end from the beginning. I want all of the information before I jump. And that is rarely the way God works. He just asks us to surrender.

Jesus seemed more concerned with how you live your life than what you say. That’s been another difficult thing for me to swallow. In other words, He is more concerned about how you live your life that reveals what you really believe about Him. And the call is always a life of surrender and trust. It is a life of just saying "yes" to the Lord.

Surrender is such a hard and neglected topic. Why surrender here when we literally have every comfort at our fingertips! Any type of food and numerous ways to cook it; any type of entertainment and numerous ways to indulge; numerous types of beds or couches or size house or pet or car or...etc. (you would be amazed at how difficult it is to stop using your oven or microwave for a month). Comfort and surrender don’t usually go hand in hand together. To be comfortable is not surrender, just like to have self-discipline is not always comfortable.

I want details, and He says, "Trust me".
I want to know what's expected of me, and He says, "Just trust me that I know what you can handle more than what you do."
I want to know the outcome and if it’s worth it, and He of course says, "The fruit and the outcomes are up to me, not you...just trust me."



This has been a hard journey for me! I've not been very good at it. I often fight, resist, and drag my feet rather unwillingly. I am afraid, and I don't like to surrender to what I don't know will happen. And not everyone agrees with what I have chosen to do, and how I believe God has been leading me. But, the reality is I will be judged by what I do or don't do. They don't get the luxury of being judged for me on their thoughts or expectations of my life.

To be honest, I am a little scared. But I am choosing to follow and trust. There is no other place for rest to come in Christ without just giving over control and simply trusting that He brings what is best and withholds what isn't necessary. That brings real rest, and I am then able to let go of anxiety and worry and stress and enter into God's rest.