Radical Obedience

Sunday was oddly emotional. 

I sat in our living room watching Saddleback’s live service. It was Pastor Rick and Kay Warren’s last Sunday as the lead pastors of Saddleback Church. I was home with a sick kiddo, participating in service via a screen, at a church we have only been attending for a few weeks and yet, I found myself still deeply moved and in tears. I have never personally met Rick or Kay, but I have a deep appreciation for their humility and faithfulness to whatever God calls them to. They say “yes” even when it’s hard. They persevere even when they want to give up. And God has used them to touch countless lives all over the globe for decades.

People sent in videos from all over the world thanking Rick and Kay for their lives, their dedication, their friendship. Many of them said things along the lines of looking forward to sitting with them someday over a meal and talking. Shared space where genuine relationship takes place. It was clear that Rick and Kay had not just said “yes” to God and begrudgingly obeyed. They had not made God’s call on their lives about them. Rather, their genuine love for God, the Kingdom, and people is evident in all the stories I have heard from those who know them personally. Fame and fortune have not become a snare to them, but a means by which they are able to reach more people for Jesus. 

What humility. What sacrifice. What grace.

I was blown away by how their story touched me. I read “Purpose Driven Life” in high school and remember the radical shift I felt take place as I read words and saw things I had never heard or seen before. God’s purpose for my life was highlighted in new ways. And I highlighted more of that book than any other I have owned aside from the Bible. It is one of the only books I still have from high school. I kept it, not because I hoped we would attend Saddleback or work there one day, but because of its profound impact on my life. 

So, as I sat watching this beautiful tribute to Rick and Kay that was actually a larger celebration of God’s faithfulness, I realized how they had touched my life over a decade and a half ago. That the ways God used them to touch my life in turn touched others’ lives through me (I specifically think of how I would quote things from “Purpose Driven Life” in conversation with others). 

…and I am just one person. One person who has never met Rick or Kay. However, since moving to Orange County, I’ve met several people who have been personally influenced by them.  And all and only because of Jesus. Jesus made this possible. God chose to use Rick and Kay…and Rick and Kay said “yes.” They said “yes” no matter what would come. Imagine if they hadn’t? The millions upon millions (if not billions) of people whose stories would not be the same right now… I don’t say this to say that God’s will would be any different right now, because He can do whatever He wants and use whoever He wants. God would still be working out His plan through other means. But it wouldn’t look the way it looks right now. And the deep spiritual blessing Rick and Kay experience would not be the same either. Their obedience is profound. It’s radical.

I found myself in tears. I want to be radically obedient like that. 

Am I willing to say “yes” to whatever God has? Even if it’s hard? Even if I can’t see where I am going or how it is going to end? Even if I what I thought God had is different than where He takes me? What if God wanted to use me like that? Am I willing to endure and persevere? 

This takes me to Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane before the crucifixion. He sat praying, pleading with the Father to take this cup from Him. Jesus, the perfect Son Who was going to sacrifice Himself for all mankind’s sin, was asking the Father to change His will. Jesus knew the agony ahead was going to feel unbearable. And He didn’t have to endure it. He could have returned to heaven and left us to our demise. But His love was deeper. He was willing to accept the Father’s will to free us. He had to say “yes” to the unimaginable in order to give us life. And He did. Praise God He did. 

If Jesus can radically say “yes” to the unimaginable to free me for all eternity, then I can say “yes” to whatever it is He has for me right now, in this moment. Even if it means saying “no” to my flesh: to eating out of emotion, to responding in irritation when I’m tired, to isolating when I don’t want to spend my energy, to binge watching shows when I don’t want to feel or think. I can say “yes” to moving across the country when I don’t know what will come. I can say “yes” to peace when chaos surrounds me. I can say “yes” to trusting God with myself and those I love when everything feels out of control. 

May I be as obedient as Jesus. 

And I honor Rick and Kay’s example of obedience. I am so grateful to be able to watch such faithful followers.

Today, I want to practice having my, “yes” on the table at all times, so that when God speaks, I am ready and willing to respond…even if it’s difficult. Even when it goes against what my flesh craves in a moment. Even when it goes against logic. 

Rest. Breathe. Restore.

1. Take a few moments to sit quietly before God and ask Him to speak to you.
2. Read the story of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-56, Luke 22:39-46 or Mark 14:32-52). What stands out to me about Jesus’ prayer? about Jesus’ obedience to endure the unimaginable? 
3. What does God want to say to me about obedience?
4. Is my “yes” on the table? Am I willing to do whatever God asks?
5. What area(s) do I need to practice obedience in?
6. When things are difficult, when I feel uncomfortable, when I feel out of control: what do I turn to? If it isn’t Jesus and His Word, how can I practice replacing my “yes” to these things with a “yes” to God? to His love, grace, mercy, and rest?
7. Who in my life practices radical obedience? Ask God to strengthen and bless this person/these people. If you are able to reach them, take a moment to encourage them in their obedience!