A Standing “Yes”

This past week, I had two separate conversations with different people—yet both shared a strikingly similar story. At some point in the last few years, they each made a decision to give God a standing “yes”. They told the Lord that no matter what He asked of them, their answer would be yes—before even knowing what He might require. 

Both of them shared how that decision led them into some really difficult—and often uncomfortable—places. God asked things of them that seemed wild, unreasonable, even risky. But here’s the amazing part: As they said yes in faith, God showed up in ways they had never experienced before. He worked miracles. He opened doors. He brought transformation. Their obedience became the pathway to some of the most life-changing experiences of their lives.

Was it easy? Not at all. Was it worth it? Without question.

As I listened to their stories, I was reminded of the prophet Isaiah’s bold response to God in Isaiah 6:8. After encountering the holiness of God and receiving His cleansing grace, Isaiah heard the Lord ask, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” Without hesitation, Isaiah replied, “Here am I. Send me.” That’s the kind of heart God is looking for in us: one that says yes before the details are laid out; one that trusts God more than it fears the unknown.

This is what it means to follow Jesus. It’s not a one-time decision, but rather a lifestyle of ongoing surrender. When Jesus called His disciples, He didn’t hand them a detailed itinerary—He simply said, “Follow me.” And they left their nets, their tax booths, their plans, and said yes. And because they said “YES”, they saw the Kingdom of God revealed. They saw miracles. They saw lives changed. And they saw their own lives transformed.

God still works this way. He wants to use each of us. He is inviting us into His Kingdom work. But He doesn’t force His way in—He patiently waits for our yes. Are we offering Him our “yes”? Are we giving Him full access to our life? Or are we holding back, waiting until things feel easier, clearer, or more comfortable?

My prayer for all of us is that we would give Jesus a standing yes. That we would say, “Here I am. Send me.” That we would live with open ears and obedient hearts—ready to follow wherever He leads…even when it’s hard, even when it doesn’t make sense. Because when we do, we place ourselves in the midst of His abiding presence, and the miraculous works that occur in and through Him. And we’ll discover, just like my two friends did, that God truly does “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20).

Jesus is calling all of us into something bigger than ourselves. But the question is—Will we say YES?

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