I love the part were Vicky says "Faith dwells in the inner heart, but obedience is the multifaceted, observable, external manifestation of faith." Some time ago I put it all together in my head in kind of a backwards way. Lack of obedience is a manifestation of a lack of trusting God, which ultimately is a lack of faith. I guess maybe I was right. It has stuck with me and God often speaks this to me when He's speaking to me to do something.
I've recently found myself in a difficult situation at work and haven't been sure how to handle it. I was given the opportunity to voice my concerns, yet I didn't say anything. I must say that I didn't sense Him urging me at that moment to speak my concerns, but I now realized that I was listening for Him either.
This lesson reminded me that my obedience doesn't promise comfort and that everything will be easy going. Noah might have been safe and "dry" in the ark, but I can't imagine it was fun or even remotely comfortable. Think about the stench alone. YUCK! Yet, Noah was obedient and faithful to endure. He was richly blessed as a result.
In my situation, I immediately sensed God's disappointment. I "rationalized" every reason in the world to keep my mouth shut. One big reason was fear of the outcome. I didn't want things to become uncomfortable and I imagined every possible thing that could go wrong if I were to speak up. God provided another opportunity today and I heard Him urge me to just say it. I did. I can't say I said everything that needed to be said, but I did begin the conversation. I'm hoping I didn't screw up yet again and God will open more doors for me to discuss other areas of concern in this situation.
I have to be comforted by "Steadfast obedience over time within difficult and incomprehensible circumstances, despite the opposition and rejection of others, follows the example of Christ and will ultimately result in incredible blessings from God."
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