I have no idea what Hebrew punctuation marks look like or how—or if—they were appropriately translated into the English versions we have of the Bible, but I love the fact that in many of the versions (NIV, NKJV, ESV, NASB, etc.) Isaiah 6:8 contains an exclamation point!

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” —Isaiah 6:8, NIV

I will confess that I often stand in surprised wonder at those who are not willing to go wherever God leads or at those—I’m sorry moms and grandmas, but it must be said—who are not willing for their children or grandchildren to go wherever God leads. It just doesn’t support our belief in who we say God is when we selfishly cling to people or things in ways and by words that don’t live out our teachings that “His way is perfect.”

Perhaps because the Lord chose to use my father’s ministry as a pastor in several different churches throughout my life, I have this deep-rooted philosophy of “wherever He sends, I’ll go.” Yes, it’s hard to leave behind friends and family at times, and yes, there is a part of me that would love to live in the same place for a very long time, but there is a greater joy in letting God be the One to make those decisions for me (that’s the great principle of submission, by the way).

I often say, “I love wherever I am.” And I truly do. But I also often add: “But if the Lord said, ‘I want you to move to _____ tomorrow,’ I’d say, ‘Okay,’ and I’d start packing.”

So when the opportunity or the need arises somewhere, I often say to the Lord—in tones of an elementary-aged student eagerly raising her hand and literally waving it in hopes of being called on by the teacher—“Here am I. Send me!”

For me personally, leaving where I am and heading into a new adventure and a new means of serving Christ is relatively easy. However, that means that, for me anyhow, staying is hard. Maybe it’s because the day-in, day-out life of just conistently serving Him requires a discipline that I am still building into my life—little by little and, yes, day-by-day.

I will share that I was very recently presented with an awesome opportunity to serve in a ministry I love, in an area of the country that I love, and with people that I love. My hand immediately raised, and I began waving my arms in eager anticipation of getting to go—for all the right reasons, I might add.

Yet, as I sought the Lord in Scripture, He continued to show me verses like the one I shared the other day: “Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.” (Psalm 37:3, NASB) In my zealous desire to get to be the one He allowed to fill this role, I thought, Well, maybe He’s telling me to go dwell in that land! (By the way, after you’re done reading this post, you can access the one I just referred to by clicking here.)

But as the days went by and I continued to seek His perfect way, He showed me through His Word and through wise counsel from those who highly regard His Word that the words I needed to say instead were, “Here am I, Lord. I’ll stay!”

Don’t get me wrong. I love where I am and what I’m doing, and I didn’t seek an opportunity to leave. But when the opportunity was presented to me, I longed to “get chosen!” But in obedience to His perfect way, I had to make the difficult phone call to decline this particular opportunity.

God has been teaching me to live out the well-known phrase, “Wherever you are, be all there.” So I will be “all in” right where I am—unless or until He chooses for me to serve Him somewhere else. That could be tomorrow. That could be next month. That could be next year. Or, it could be…never.

The bottom line is that when we honestly acknowledge that God’s way is perfect, our hearts must truly, sincerely, and deeply be willing to go—or to stay.

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