Spring is coming and we are seeing green. I’m not talking about nature’s green, but the green color running through the streets in parades, clothes, drinks and even green food! I’m talking about St. Patrick’s Day.
Why do we have all these festivities on this day? It is a global celebration of Irish culture in remembrance of Saint Patrick, who was taken from his homeland and sold into slavery in Ireland. He worked in the fields, and in those years, he devoted his life to God. One day Saint Patrick heard the voice of God telling him to escape, so he went to the seashore where a boat was preparing to go back to his homeland. Many years later Saint Patrick had a dream that told him to return to the people that enslaved him in Ireland and tell them about Christianity. Saint Patrick returned to Ireland and is credited with establishing hundreds of churches and converting most of the population to Christ.
What if Saint Patrick didn’t listen to the voice of God and go back to the land that enslaved him? It’s easy to hear the will of God when he tells you to get out of a struggle, but to go back in, that’s tough. When faced with a hard decision, let’s look at how God used Saint Patrick because he was obedient to the will of God. If I were in Saint Patrick’s position, I think I would’ve pretended it was just a regular dream and not God’s calling. But I believe if you feel the need to tell someone or a whole country about Jesus, it must be God calling.
God gives us free will to choose whether or not we will hear him calling though. Why would God give us free will? That can be dangerous thing, don’t you think? Well God wants to be wanted, chosen, and needed, just like humans do. For example, you want someone to marry you for you and not because they feel forced to, but because they want to. A relationship without a free will would be like relationship with a machine. There is a chance of hurt, pain, and loss with the inclusion of free will, but that feeling of someone choosing to love you till death do you part is a feeling so great words can’t describe it.
God wants us to choose Him, so much so that He even sent His son Jesus Christ to pay the price for our sins. God wants us to have a relationship with Him and all we have to do is repent, turn from our own will, and turn to God’s will. Jesus shows us how He even had to ask God for His will to be done in the book of Luke 22:42, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” This was a difficult time for Jesus, but He gave His life for the will of God to be done in our lives. This may seem challenging to us, but look how challenging it was for Saint Patrick to return as a missionary to a land that once enslaved him.
God may be calling some of us out of a struggle and telling us to share to the world how faithful God is, yet some of us may be going into a struggle. It’s up to us to look at this struggle as an opportunity to trust in the will of God for our lives.
I believe when we walk in the knowledge of the word of God and do His will, then we’ll understand free will. This may not sound like free will, but it is, because He gives us a choice to choose to follow our own will or His; to be in a struggle or to be in opportunity. God is so gracious, He shows us the outcome of our choices in the Bible, good or bad. But we can only see them if we’re communicating with God and praying that His kingdom come, His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).
This will transform us, and our minds will be renewed, and through that we will be able to prove the good, acceptable, and perfect will of God in our lives. We will know God’s will, that we all might come to know and share in His knowledge, His word, His truth, His Son Jesus Christ, and be saved!
