Sunday we had the privilege of sharing the morning with Kelly Randolph, the Associational Mission Strategist for our local church association.
Kelly shared a passage that has deeply impacted his life, since his call to ministry at 17 years old.
In Isaiah 6:1-8, the commissioning of Isaiah gives us a pattern of discipleship:
Humbled by God’s holiness, sinners receive forgiving grace that prepares them to embrace God’s calling.
It is one thing to know about God. It is another thing entirely to experience God. The experience of God is a traumatic event. To experience the glorious holiness of God is to become traumatically aware of our own sin.
That awareness of our condition prepares us to receive the solution – the grace of God in the Jesus Christ.
In a moment, Isaiah experienced both. Moving from dread to delight, Isaiah was prepared to wholeheartedly accept God’s call on his life.
“Here am I. Send me!”
This experience came at a time when Isaiah’s internal and external worlds were in chaos. The holiness of God became a calming and ordering force in his life.
Are you experiencing some kind of death or turmoil in your life?
Are you experiencing a painful awareness of your sinfulness?
Maybe God is preparing you for a greater embrace of his calling!