The poet Robert Browning wrote these profound words:
I was not born
Informed and fearless from the first, but shrank
From aught which marked me out apart from men:
I would have lived their life, and died their death,
Lost in their ranks, eluding destiny.”[i]
If you believe that God has a plan for every life and that he desires us
to live out that plan, then you will be inspired by Browning’s words. How many
lose their way in this cruel world, only to live someone else’s life and die
someone else’s death. The tragedy is that when we do that, our destiny eludes
us.
God told Jeremiah that "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before
you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the
nations" (Jer 1:5). There it is—a divine plan for a person’s life. What
then is the road to this destiny? The next few verses answer that question: “‘Ah,
Sovereign Lord,’ I said, ‘I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.’ But
the Lord said to me, ‘Do not say, “I am only a child.” You must go to everyone
I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I
am with you and will rescue you,’ declares the Lord” (Jer 1:6-8). The key to
living our God-given destiny is in obedience to God.
Obedience to God is not always an easy thing. The prophet Jonah found
himself unwilling to obey God’s directives when asked to preach repentance to
the people of Nineveh. Instead of going to Nineveh in obedience, he boarded a
ship headed in the opposite direction (Jonah 1:1-9). Jonah hated the Assyrians
who were famous for their barbaric practices of torturing and slowly killing
their victims. If we think about it, we all have some of Jonah’s prejudice against
somebody. His disobedience caused him to be indifferent to the needs of others.
When a terrible storm overwhelmed the ship and all the sailors were afraid for
their lives, Jonah slept the sleep of indifference. His behavior was a
contradiction to his faith and puzzling to the people around him.
After being thrown into the sea and swallowed by a great fish, Jonah
experienced a change of heart. He came to see the truth about his life. Here
are his words: "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that
could be theirs” (Jonah 2:8). It may have taken a horrifying whale ride to get
Jonah to this place, but what he states here is true of us all. When we cling
to any idol, whether it be hate, envy or pride, we also forfeit the grace of
God that could be ours.
If we don’t want to live someone else’s life and die someone else’s death,
we need someone bigger than ourselves to direct the course of our lives—and
that person is God. In obedience to his will is the road to our destiny.
[i] Meyer, F. B. (2011-05-22). Jeremiah, Priest And
Prophet (Kindle Locations 129-132). Heritage Bible Fellowship. Kindle Edition.
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