Follow Wherever He Leads

When I first heard the Bible verse, John 15:16 being read out by a church elder, that Jesus said, “You did not choose me, but I chose you ….”, I was amazed and at the same time felt a great sense of wonder, undeserved privilege and humility. Deep in my heart, I believed that I was chosen out of my family of ten siblings to follow Jesus and be part of His kingdom. At that very moment I was convicted and accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour. One year later I was baptised in the same church where I heard this Bible verse for the first time.

But why did God choose me or you?

Chosen Out of Love to Be Saved

God chooses us out of His love and mercy and for His glory. He chooses us not because of who we are but because of who He is. God’s choosing of us is linked to His love and gracious character and not our merit. We are not saved because of our good works but solely because of God’s grace.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God –not by works, so that no one can boast.(Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV)

1 Peter 2:9 says we: “are His chosen people, a royal priesthood and God’s special people chosen to proclaim the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His wonderful light.” We are chosen to declare God’s praise and to give Him worship. Therefore, all of our lives should be lived in constant amazement and humility that we owed it all to God that we are saved.

Chosen for a Specific Purpose

God commonly chooses the one we least expect, the one without qualifications to meet the world’s standard, ordinary people like you and me for a specific purpose and to be His hands and feet and His voice.

John the Baptist lived alone in the wilderness, wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist living only on locusts and wild honey. He was homeless and unconventional yet he was chosen as God’s messenger, “a voice in the wilderness “ to prepare the way and to proclaim the arrival of the Messiah. He was given the unique privilege of introducing the world to its Saviour at His baptism at the Jordan River (Matthew 3:13-16 NIV).

The twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus were ordinary, illiterate Galilean fishermen. The story of these twelve Apostles’ three-year journey with Jesus wonderfully illustrates how they were transformed into His disciples to share the Gospel eloquently and bravely in front of the leaders of Israel, converting thousands in the city of Jerusalem and beyond. Jesus knew that they could do more with their lives than just catch fish for their countrymen. It all started when Jesus told them, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19 NIV) They followed and Jesus prepared them to become heroes of the faith and leaders of the early Church.

This is the encouragement we all need. When we obey and follow Jesus, He can take anyone of us who are quite ordinary, unqualified and clueless and transform us to play a vital role in God’s plan for His kingdom, just as He did with His Apostles.

Chosen to Display His Glory

Throughout the Bible, God uses the marginalised people like the lepers, the lame and the blind as His instruments to display His glory. When He gave sight to a man born blind at birth, He told His disciples:

“Neither this man nor his parents sinned but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” (John 9:3 NIVUK)

The Bible also tells us that God chooses “the foolish things of the world to shame the wise and the weak in the world to shame the strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:27) The life story of Joni Eareckson Tada, a quadriplegic, is an outstanding example of how the weak was used to shame the strong and to display God’s glory.

Joni Eareckson Tada

A diving accident turned Joni into a quadriplegic at the tender age of 17. Facing relentless pain in a wheelchair every day, Joni struggled with bouts of despair and depression in the early stages of her disability. However, through her daily prayers, God gave her the strength to overcome her weaknesses and to accept the stark reality that she has become the neediest person on this planet.

She was determined to use her disability to fulfill God’s sovereign purpose and to give Him all the glory. Her organisation, Joni & Friends, has been serving individuals and families affected by disability for over 40 years. Her numerous best-selling books, radio programs, disability workshops and Wheels for the World ministries have transformed the lives of the disabled worldwide. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic which has driven families with disability further into isolation, Joni’s House, an international disability centre, located in some of the poorest areas, was founded to serve such families with medical and mobility support, essential resources and spiritual care.

Her success in serving the disabled and sharing the name of Jesus Christ to the world has fulfilled her purpose to bring honour and glory to Him. Joni’s success despite her severe disability reaffirmed that God uses our weaknesses to display His power and glory.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV)

Chosen to Fulfill a Mission

God chooses us because He has a purpose in mind for our lives. He chooses us so that we could also join in His work on this planet earth.

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10 NKJV)

The Bible is full of stories of people who were used by God despite their unfaithfulness, flaws and failures to fulfill God’s mission.

Abraham, was far from perfect. He lied about his relationship with his wife, Sarah, on two occasions for fear of being killed. He and Sarah doubted that God would keep His promise to give them a child. Abraham gave in to Sarah’s suggestion to have a child through the woman, Hagar (Genesis 16:3-6) Despite this act of unfaithfulness, God stayed faithful and gave Abraham and Sarah a son, Isaac and chose Abraham to be the father of the nation of Israel.

Moses had a speech problem and lack the confidence to speak publicly, but God gave him Aaron so that Moses would fulfill God’s purpose to free the people of Israel from slavery and lead them to the Promised Land.

Paul vigorously persecuted Christians and approved the stoning of Apostle Stephen before he was personally chosen by Jesus to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Jesus turned His greatest enemy into His outstanding disciple and the most dangerous threat into His greatest voice. No one is beyond the reach of God’s grace when he is chosen to fulfill His purpose.

“This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel.” (Acts 9:15 NIVUK)

When God Calls

When God places a call on us, it isn’t an invitation, it is a command we can’t ignore. He will equip us with whatever we need when we are called. Our role is to acknowledge the calling, follow His orders and persevere through the trials. Most importantly, we have to make this process a priority over everything else in our lives.

Every believer in the body of Christ receives a special ability or gifts according to His will. God uses our gifts to fulfill His purposes in our families, small groups in business and in church if we’re brave enough to follow Him wherever He leads. When we are called, God empowers us to become capable of encouraging people, teaching, leading and showing mercy. Others who see us at work will recognise that the Lord is working through us for their benefit. When we are in the right place and at the right time, we may just become the right person God calls to do the right thing for Him. In this way God’s glory is displayed through us.

When we recognise the power of each weakness, we become strongest at our weakest because in God’s almighty power we find our strength. When we trust Him, He uses our weaknesses, disabilities and sufferings to reveal His glory to the world at large. So whether we are able-bodied or disabled, weak or strong, let us not be afraid to follow Him, obey His call and let Him lead us to accomplish great things in His name.