This past week I have been thinking about the story of Lot and his family. It came about when I started to reflect back on my move and how it was coming up so quickly. I knew the Lord was transitioning me, because I felt it in my spirit. My original move was supposed to be in October. As previously stated, I didn’t know where I was going, but I knew I was moving.
After a lot of prayer the Lord spoke to me and said my next move was for me to be in Memphis. Now this move to Memphis was supposed to be in October once my lease was up. My pastors were getting ready to move, and another one of my close friends had decided to move as well, but her move was going to be in July. I was still sticking to my October move date because that was when my lease was up.
Then all of a sudden, I started to feel a sense of urgency, like I couldn’t wait until October to move. My move needed to be quick. At first, I was thinking is this my flesh? Or is this a sign from God? Do I need to move now?
Of course I started to pray about it and asked the Lord to reveal to me when He wanted me to move. I then had a dream where I was in a wilderness all by myself and I was trying to find my way around, but I was all alone. As I continued to pray about the situation, I felt in my spirit that the urgency to move was supposed to be NOW!
I’m not going to lie; I was trying to hold on to my October move date, because there were some things I didn’t want to leave behind. I was comfortable in my place here in San Antonio. But… the Lord had other plans; He knew I needed to move quickly. (You can read about how the Lord confirmed my move in my blog titled: Be careful what you pray for.)
Let’s bring it back to the story of Lot and his family. Long story short God spared Lot’s life as well as his family. God was going to destroy the city of Sodom and Gomorrah (S&G) because “their sin is extremely serious.” Genesis 18:20 NASB
God shared his plans with Abraham about destroying S&G. Some commenters would say that Abraham started to intercede for S&G when he began to ask God to spare the city if God could find TEN righteous people to which God agreed. Unfortunately, God could not find ten and destroys S&G EXPECT for Lot, his wife, and two daughters. God sent angels to rescue them and sent them out of the city before “The Lord rained brimstone and fire (lava) on Sodom and Gomorrah…” Genesis 19:24 NKJV
A few things I want to point out from this story. One, you never know who is interceding on your behalf. There are prayers that are lifted up on your behalf, and you may never know. In this case, Abraham’s prayers saved Lot’s life. So, never underestimate the power of prayer.
Two, sometimes God will send “Angels” to get you out of your current city, your comfort zone, your current situation, just to save your life. Lot didn’t know the angels were coming, but in a moment, his life was spared. He listened to the angels and got out of the city. The story talks about the two son-in-laws of Lot who didn’t listen and their lives were lost in the destruction of S&G.
Three, we have to be discerning to the times and seasons around us. If God says go, then go! We can’t miss the season God wants for us because we want to stay in our comfort zone, or in our current season. We can’t see the future, but God can!
He can see if a current city, a state of mind, or a current situation will destroy you. He can also send help and rescue to you, but you have to be willing to say “yes, I’ll go!” Not in your time, but in God’s time. My pastor once said, “you can’t miss your season or you’re going to have to wait for the next season to come around.”
In my case, this meant leaving when God wanted me to leave, not when I wanted to leave. He can see in my future, and I have to have the faith and trust in God, that when He tells me to go, I go! I don’t want to wait for another season to come around, I want to experience the season when it’s supposed to happen.
I don’t know the meaning of my dream in the wilderness, maybe San Antonio was my wilderness, and now He wants to take me into a new season in Memphis. I don’t know what my future holds, or what I would’ve had to endure if I had not listened to God’s voice and move when He said move. But… what I do know is that if I follow God’s leading, and not look back, that my life will be spared, because I was obedient to His plans.
Don’t look back, keep your focus on God, and watch him lead you into your new season! It’s not going to be easy, you may have to start over, you may lose some friends, you may lose some promotions, but God is a good God and will restore what was lost. Job lost everything, and he was restored with double because he didn’t lose his faith in God. Don’t be sad or discouraged walking into your new season; EMBRACE IT!