“I tried my way--it always ends up being a mistake / But You’re right when You say that You set the time for the plans You make.”
"On And On" by Chasen, From The Album That Was Then, This Is Now

When reading this part of the verse in "On and On" by Chasen, the word that stands out to me the most is You, referring, of course, to God.

I remember a few years ago, not long after I gave my life to the Lord, that I felt God revealing to me the calling He had on my life. It’s something that will never leave my mind as long as I live. I remember that I was sitting on my bed, but I can't recall what I was doing. Maybe reading, writing, or eating a piece of pie? But what sticks out to me in my mind is the words that God said: “You are going to speak to millions of people.”

Now if I was eating pie, I probably choked on it in that moment. I most certainly did a double-take, second guessing myself in that instant. I thought, "did God REALLY just say that to me? Did He really just say that I am going to speak to millions of people?"

I've discovered that there are clear times in my life when I know that I've heard God speak to me--and that moment in my room was one of those times. I just sat there in silence for a few moments, waiting to see if God was going to speak again. "Maybe it was a mistake," I thought. "Maybe God meant to go next door and talk to THAT girl."

It sure didn’t take God long to set me straight.

Not only was that word for me, but He went on to tell me all the many ways that He was going to use me to reach people. One of them was that He was going to use me as a writer. I had always written in the past. English was one of my best subjects in school, but after I had become a believer, it was almost as if I’d stopped writing. Perhaps that’s why I was excited, and nervous, when God told me that I’d be a writer.

"Can I really do this?" I asked myself. "What if no one listens to a word I write?"

God’s response? "It’s not you doing any of it. It’s Me. And My word never comes back void. Just be willing."

So let's skip ahead a few years later. In the middle of 2009, I started to get impatient. Well, more frustrated than impatient. I found myself with an entire hard drive full of stories, devotionals and reviews about everything that I was hearing from God, but it just seemed like they were collecting dust. There were so many times when I tried to force myself to sit down and make something happen, but I would always hear God in the background screaming at me, "Not yet! Wait for ME to tell you when to move!"

At the same time, I had friends and family asking me constantly what I wanted to do with my life. "Where are you going? Are you working? What is next for Sarah?" It was rather frustrating to hear because God kept telling me to basically, "stay put." But because of all this pressure to do something, I started making up my own plans, completely ignoring what God was telling me to do and doing whatever would make everyone else around me happy. Thank goodness God stopped me.

He had to remind me who was in control. Him, NOT me. God had to remind me of all the dreams that He had placed deep inside me, from before I was even born. He had to remind me that it was up to Him to make those dreams a reality and that I needed to be willing to move when HE told me to move. Willing. I really wasn’t being willing, and then obedient. I was being obedient and unwilling.

When I finally sat myself down and repented for the way I had been behaving towards God’s calling on my life, things started to change. It was when I opened my heart and became willing, crying out to God and saying, "I will move when YOU tell me to move."

It wasn't until I became willing, that God told me to move.

I joined NewReleaseTuesday.com about three days later, and it was on my first day as a member that I was asked to become a featured reviewer. I was stunned, not because I had been asked, but because when I finally laid down me and submitted to Him, He started to work on my behalf.

So here I sit, a few months later, writing my first devotional as a contributing writer for NRT. And the beauty of it? It's all God. He is the one speaking. He is the one moving. He is the one who is making everything He has called me to be--dreams, gifts and desires--a reality. I am just the person who finally opened her heart and said "I’ll do it when it's Your time." Being in this position is an answer to prayer, and I look forward to seeing and hearing from people who God is going to change through anything that He has me say.

So back to the song from Chasen, "On And On." I thought of this lyric as I sat down to write tonight. There is a part in the bridge of the song that says that in Your perfect time, Your plans and Your ways will unfold.

"Your," referring of course, to God.

It says in Hebrews 6:12 that we should not become sluggish, but that through faith and patience, we WILL inherit all that God has promised us. Maybe you find yourself in that place, where the "me" is fighting the "You" (God).

A word of advice? Give yourself up. "Me" isn’t going to win. "Me" isn’t going to get you anywhere. But "You" will.

When we submit ourselves unto God and say, "I am Yours and I am willing," He will reveal Himself to us in ways unimaginable. In HIS perfect time, HIS plans and HIS ways will unfold in our lives. He promised us that.

I want to encourage anyone reading this--don't give up, don’t give in, don’t try your own way. Instead, follow God. Seek Him and follow in His ways. Listen for His voice and move when He tells you to move.

You never know where "You" will take you if you will just let "You."