What Would Your Story Say About You

Key Verse: “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” I Timothy 4:12 (KJV)

Have you ever wondered if God was telling your story to someone else what he would say? Really, think about it for a second. What do you think he would choose to tell someone else about you? I sometimes wonder what He would say about me when I come across a scripture like Job 1:8 that says, “And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” What a testimony Job had. 

In God’s word, there are many testimonies highlighted. Places He shares people’s stories with us to give us examples of both obedience and disobedience.  People’s personal highs and lows given to us for instruction. Some are given to encourage us and to strengthen us while others reprove us.  

His word tells us about brave soldiers who stood for truth,  men who would only bow a knee to God, women of faith and people whom God pulled from obscurity and used to obtain great victories.  Women busy serving and some busy learning. Testimonies of men and women both young and old.  

 Obadiah’s story is highlighted in I Kings 18: 1-11. Obadiah was a servant during Ahab’s reign. He was surrounded by ungodly counsel and false gods. He faithfully served God even while he served under authority of a wicked king and queen.  He risked his life to hide the prophets of God from Queen Jezebel when he learned she was out to kill them. 

He was faithful even though he lived in a land of barrenness and drought. The consequence brought about by sin and disobedience.  

The people who lived around Obadiah no longer worshipped God.  Instead he was surrounded by gods made by human hands.  The popular choice of the day being Baal. It was considered old fashioned to serve God Jehovah in that day. The people of Obadiah’s culture had found other ways to worship. Serving God was no longer politically correct. Sounds a little familiar, huh? 

Yet, Obadiah was different. No matter how many other people chanted to other gods, worshipped in the groves and followed those in power down broken paths, Obadiah only served the true and living God. He had worshipped him from his youth and he meant to serve him when he was old. He was found to be faithful. This is the story about his life that God has shared with us within the pages of scripture.  

When I read stories like this and like those of Job, Ruth, Esther, King David, Joseph and others, again I wonder if God was telling my story what would he say about me and about my life. Would he highlight that I have served well? 

We like Obadiah are surrounded by ungodliness.  We live in a society of spiritual drought with fewer and fewer people who search for the old paths. Many that claim to know God but never bear any fruit of being a Christian. They have religion but not a relationship with Jesus. They say with their lips they love God but so often their hearts are far from him.  I’m sure this was exactly like the time in which Obadiah lived. 

But regardless of what others do or don’t do, God is watching our story unfold and recording it.  I for one want to please the Lord and serve him well. 

The enemy will often try and tell you that you are too young to serve God.  I Timothy 4:12 tells us different. “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”  God also gives us the example of Caleb conquering his mountain at the ripe old age of 85. (Joshua 14:16-15 Letting us know that we are never too old either to be a walking testimony of God’s grace and what it can do in someone’s life.  

So whether we are serving him in our youth or in our older years let us serve Him well.  You never know when God just might highlight our story too.  I want mine to be worth hearing and repeating don’t you?