Delight Yourself in the Lord

I had the vision of dancing with Jesus. I heard the voice of God tell me he had given me time to write. I was quickly closing in on
my word count goal for my novel and we were wondering what God had in store.

The kids should be able to adapt to New Zealand, right? A greater purpose for our move should at least start to sprout, no? I could be writing at home, couldn’t I?

We called Canada on Skype quite regularly and it was very difficult to hear about everything my Dad was going through with A.L.S. Could God be allowing us to return?

We put out some fleeces. That a reference to what Gideon did to confirm God’s leading in his life.

Ours were not as dramatic as his, but they were meaningful to us.

We made friends with people from all around the world. All of them said how much their kids loved New Zealand and how easily they adapted. Fleece #1 – “OK Lord, as a sign to us you want us to stay, take away our kids homesickness. If we have delighted ourselves in you, give us your desires so that they will be the desires of our heart.” Returning home grew as the desire of our heart.

God has always given me vision for the future that drives my passion. We obeyed his call to New Zealand without knowing why he wanted us there. Fleece #2 – “Lord, I don’t even need doors to open up immediately, just show me the area I can have eternal impact in this nation or from this nation and that will be enough.”

I guess I expected what I experienced before – a glimpse of the possible future. Instead of a concern for the nation, my passion for writing increased.

Finally we asked people we trusted what they thought. I have various people I rely on for godly advice when I need to make a decision. The lines have blurred over time but initially I could group them in three categories: people who know me, people who know the situation, and people who know God. Fleece #3 – “God, speak through your people, we don’t want to be out of your will. When we know what you say, we will obey what you say.” I expected some to tell us to stay and some who would want us home. I would weigh appropriately any that I could predict. All had different perspectives. All had the conclusion: return home to help your family.

God leads us by our desires. Not in the sense that we are spoiled children demanding our way, but rather as a loving father who gives us our desire to have his desires.

Make sure your motives are true and then ask God boldly for your desires… but see James 4:3 re: motives.

–Trevor Lund