Enduring the Process - Obeying the Voice of God

by Jessie Garcia

Like a sound that has echoed through time, the words from the Prophet Samuel, “It is better to obey than to sacrifice ”(1 Samuel 15:22 KJV), have been a constant reminder to let us know where our focus should be. We all want to get to the right place, have the right things, and be in a place where we can sit back and enjoy the fruits of our labors, but it is easy to find ourselves taking shortcuts to get there sooner.

Throughout our life, we have been consistently taught to know the difference between what is right and what is wrong. As adults, we spend a lot of time with our children trying to develop a strong character in them so they too can understand the difference between right and wrong. Even as adults, knowing what is right may not always be the best choice at that moment. We make sacrifices to survive. In our desperation, the sacrifices we make may be good at that precise moment but might eventually yield consequences that are unbearable to deal with.

To give my wife some peace and quiet at home, I often will take my son out for dinner. A guy’s night out (he’s only six years old). The kid’s meal at the place where he enjoys eating comes with a dessert. I am trying to teach him to be independent.

so when the waitress asks him, “would you like your dessert after the meal or would you like for me to bring it out now?” I let him make that decision. He knows that I do not allow him to eat his dessert first, but he always asks to have it brought out with his meal. When the meal comes, he quickly goes for dessert first. I give him the look and he says to me, “What’s the difference if I eat it now, it’s all going to end up in the same place.”

When we read the story of King Saul, it is easy to overlook some interesting points of this story that go beyond Saul’s disobedience. His disobedience resulted from a bad decision, which was a result of his desperation. His desperation came from the emotion, and the emotion was driven by thought. If we play it forward, it will look like this, “If I do not do something, I am going to lose. If I lose, I will probably die, I don’t want to die so I am going to do what seems right at this moment!” Saul disobeyed, but what drove him to that point to make a bad decision? His orders were simple, “Wait.” What is the fear of failure? What is the weight on his shoulders that the kingdom of Israel depended on him? What is his drive for success?

As my son was trying to make it known to me, “Does it matter what order I eat in? It is all going to the same place.” I question myself, “Was God going to eventually give Saul the victory?” Yes! We will end up in the same place, but God knows the road that lies ahead of us and His timing is perfect. Doing things out of order or sooner than the indicated time may cause an unbalance. If my son would eat the ice-cream first, it may cause his stomach to hurt because it is trying to digest the hard food first, but the ice-cream is in the way. Saul’s job was to wait for Samuel before they went into battle. It was a simple task. Elisha told the servant of Naaman to go to the Jordan river and wash seven times.” It was a simple task yet, it was difficult. The servant said to Naaman, “If the prophet would have required you something more difficult, would you do it?”

What are we sacrificing today? Are we sacrificing our ability to do simple things to get ahead? Are we sacrificing the Lord’s voice over our desperate situation? Are we so eager to achieve something great and become known that we are willing to sacrifice whatever it takes to get there? Do we sacrifice our convictions, morals, ethics, and values?

We all want a nice home and a nice car, but are we willing to sacrifice our family working two jobs to achieve the perfect home and car? We want church growth and ministries, but are we sacrificing prayer meetings and Bible studies? There are many sacrifices that we can choose to make, but sometimes all that God is asking from us is just to do the simple things, “Seek His Kingdom and His Righteousness first, and all else will be added,” (Mat. 6:33 KJV). It’s a simple commandment, just seek God. It is better to obey than to sacrifice. It’s the simple things that make a difference.

With over 20 years of ministerial service, I am a dedicated servant of God. My passion is to live and work for God and bring others into an intimate relationship with God. I understand that this life comes with many challenges and many have stumbled along the way. I am committed to helping those get back up and continue their journey towards a successful walk with God. God’s Kingdom will advance with strong men and women building strong families.