(May 23, 2016)
“Do you not believe I can give you My best?”
Confession: In this season, more than ever, I know God is calling me to more than what I’ve been living for.
Back in February I sat down with our Core Team to plan for the year. As we began our meeting, I started out with a devotion in Genesis that marked the story of Abraham and God’s dreams for him, and compared it to With All Her Might’s own story.
The Call
Abram was first marked by a call. God gave Abram a vision of what his future could look like if he chose to follow God and the dream God had for him; God would make him the father of a great nation (Genesis 12:1-3). God put a dream in Abram’s heart that was waiting to be fulfilled. Then God made a covenant with Abram, stating his descendants, just like the stars, would be too numerous to count; and Abram, though he didn’t have a son, was declared righteous because of his belief in what God promised to him though he had yet to see it with his own eyes (Genesis 15:4-6). Finally, at the age of 99, God changed Abram’s name to Abraham and declared to him that in about a year’s time, his wife would have a son.
“And Staci believed the Lord, and the Lord declared her righteous because of her faith. Just like Abraham waited for his promised son, I am convinced there is more to come for With All Her Might. I am waiting on God’s promise to see this dream fulfilled.” – January 4, 2016
Call me silly, but I like to put myself in the position of those men and women of old. That if God did something for them, then surely He could do the same for me. If Abraham was considered righteous for his faith in what God was able to accomplish, then Lord, consider me too!
The Test of Obedience, Faith & Trust
“Then the Lord did exactly what he had promised.” – Genesis 21:1
A year later, God’s promise to Abraham would be fulfilled with the birth of Isaac. When Isaac grew a little older, God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son as a test of obedience. In a way, it looked as if God had deceived Abraham all along: “Sacrifice him… on one of the mountains, which I will point out to you (Genesis 22:2b).” But Abraham held onto his faith and chose to trust God, that if He said through Abraham a great nation would be born, then God intended to do exactly what He promised. As he arrived to the place he would sacrifice Isaac, he told his servants, “We will worship there, and then we will come right back (Genesis 22:5b).” Without a word from God to rely on other than His initial promise, Abraham led Isaac up the mountain.
“‘We have the wood and the fire’, said the boy, ‘but where is the lamb for the sacrifice?’ God will provide a lamb, my son,’ Abraham answered (Genesis 22:7b-8a).”
Abraham did exactly what God asked him to do; he built an altar and placed the wood on it, then he tied Isaac and laid him on the altar. As he raised the knife to kill his son, the angel of the LORD intervened: “Do not hurt the boy in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld even your beloved son from me (Genesis 22:12).” Abraham named the place, Yahweh Yir’eh, “The Lord Will Provide.”
When the Journey Seems Long
Abraham’s story holds much encouragement for With All Her Might. This dream God has placed inside me is too big to ignore, too full to contain, it must be released. Over the past few months, the phrase “higher ground” has consistently come to mind; an invitation to let go of things, both things that are good, as well as old habits, that are holding me back from allowing God to have my complete attention to focus on Him and the dreams He’s given me for With All Her Might. It’s as if God is speaking, “Staci, I have more for you… I’m calling you higher…” Lord, I’m coming.
I often go running in the hills of Hollywood. A trail in particular, I believe, is one of LA’s best kept secrets. It leads you as close up-front to the Hollywood sign as you can possibly get. But for as much as I love that path, I had never gone to the other side to see where it leads. I had always been curious; my theory was that if I followed it far enough, it would lead to the Hollywood sign. After about a year of not knowing, I finally decided to hike the trail.
If my destination was the Hollywood sign, then from the start I was heading in the wrong direction. The path led me to a residential area; I can’t tell you how many crossroads I came to and had to decide which way to go, which way I thought led most accurate to the sign. I even lost my way a few times. Somehow, I made it to another path that guaranteed me access to the Hollywood sign trail. Just as I started to feel accomplished in proving my theory correct, I realized the gate was locked and there was absolutely no other way to access the path. I waited a few minutes and was about to give up and go back when a resident of the area happened to be going on the trail and led me to a backway access that was clearly open had I looked closer for it. Another obstacle down, I continued on my journey. Though I still encountered a few more crossroads, it was now clear which path was right to take to reach my destination. It was certainly an uphill climb, but when I reached the top, all my curiosity, the sweat and strain, it was all worth it. The view from where I stood was incredible. It makes you think, “Why did I live without this before?”
If you’ve been around With All Her Might long enough, then you know that we are not an “end-all” to problems, sin issues and only ever see happy endings. You don’t just start to pursue a life “With All Her Might” and never fail or fall short. Instead, With All Her Might is an invitation to a journey, one that is lifelong, and involves twists and turns, uphill climbs and valley lows. It may be a lifelong journey; pain and risk, hard work and letting go are required, but there is also greater joy, greater strength, more beauty and more life to be discovered than I knew possible. Sometimes it makes me question, “Why did I live without this before?”
On the Mountain of the LORD, it will be Provided
“Then Staci waited patiently and she received what God had promised (ref. Hebrews 6:15).”
By itself, this past month has seemed like an uphill climb to meet with God on His mountaintop. I wouldn’t have necessarily chosen this path for myself, but God always knows better than I the amount of strength He’s given me and what I can handle. There have been crossroads, twists in my path I didn’t see coming, and uncertainty of where I was actually headed. Yet in the midst of all of that, there has been an insurmountable peace and steadfastness that I was indeed on the path of God’s choosing and in His will for my life.
God fulfilled a dream and gave Abraham his son, yet still tested Abraham’s character and the condition of his heart. God fulfilled a dream and gave me With All Her Might, yet has been using this time to test my character and the condition of my heart. I don’t see this testing as a bad thing though. Testing gives your faith a chance to stand on the promises of God and in His unalterable character; testing makes you hold on to what you know you can never lose.
Regardless of the many other dreams I have yet to see fulfilled in my own life, as well as for With All Her Might, I am standing mountain high, firmly secure and confident in the promises of God. This is where I leave doubt, discouragement, fear, pain, unforgiveness, and cowardice behind. And this is where I receive faith, courage, hope, healing, grace to forgive, and boldness.
Like never before in my life, I am on the path of God’s choosing; a path that leads to His best. He has called me higher and I have chosen to go higher.
“But there’s only one thing you need. [She] has chosen what is better, and it is not to be taken away from her.” – Luke 10:42
And just like that, I say hello to this new season of living.
Higher and Higher,
With All Her Might
With All Her Might 