Given By Judith Johnson on Aug. 28, 2016

The sermon today concerns God’s call to each of us. The reading from Jonah 1 recounts the story of Jonah as he tries to avoid God’s call to Him. Judith shares her story of how she was called to ministry. Instead of being a defining moment of clarity, the process was more of a wandering through a forest. Small decisions of which things are helpful and which hurtful along with being influenced by each person she met shaped her journey. Throughout her life, she would God for help or a clear answer. Quoting a country song, “God answers every prayer but sometimes the answer is no.” Sometimes the answer we want may not be the answer we really need. Jonah believed he knew where he needed to be so went in the opposite direction God told him to go. God made sure Jonah arrived at the proper place anyway.

While God may not be so dramatic in our everyday lives, we are moved in the direction we need to go. We need to be open to these directions. Everything depends on our response. Do we accept the challenges before us or turn and run? To know for sure, one must explore and become involved. This can be scary. The path may seem overwhelming. All you need is to be open to the possibilities and respond.