Has the Lord Knocked You Off Your Donkey?

In Acts 9, Saul of Tarsus gets a lightning fast rude awakening that knocks him off the donkey he was riding going from Jerusalem to Damascus.

Listen to the Word of God.

"As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.

“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

Have you ever been knocked off the donkey you've been traveling here and there in life, not necessarily persecuting others as Saul did, but going along your merry way doing what you want to do, instead of doing what the Lord wants you to do.

Has the Lord ever said to you, "Now get up and go. and you will be told what you must do”?

We all get knocked off our donkeys. Some of us more than others. But whenever it happens, and it's the Lord speaking to us internally or through events and others, it's behooves us to get up and follow the Lord's direction. Even if we are initially blind to what we are called to do, we need to get up and go, full of faith that he will open our eyes to what needs to be done when he is ready, like Paul did.

Knocked Off My Donkey

The Lord knocked me off my donkey in 2010.

It was in the Spring of 2010 when the Lord knocked me off my donkey where I was comfortably perched.

     I was sitting in my lounge chair recovering from a bad cold. My mind was wondering. I was looking out the window thinking about how I was going to volunteer in some way to help people when I retired. I also thought about the book I would write someday. I had my eyes closed, looking through the window of my imagination to what I thought my future would be.

     Then it happened. It wasn't as dramatic as God speaking to Moses or any of the Old Testament prophets, but it certainly caught my attention. A question broke into my train of thought like a flash of lightning. "Why are you waiting to help my hurting people?"

     Wow! I couldn't believe how distinct those words reverberated in my head. I thought about them as I dozed off. Not to be ignored, the Lord spoke to me again, but in a different way. That same day, I was reading the Epistle of James. Two passages stood out. In James 1:27, I read about how "pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress." True religion is to serve.

    In James 4:13-15 I read, "Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and get gain'; whereas you do not know about tomorrow. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that.'" Why was I waiting to serve?

   Within days of hearing the Lord speak, I began seeking opportunities to volunteer. I volunteered for a church health ministry, and began delivering for Meals on Wheels. These experiences introduced me to the needs of the aged, and the realities of death and dying.

    Through these experiences, and the Lord's direction to use the strengths and talents with which he blessed me, I was encouraged to pursue education and certifications to better help his hurting people. I now minister to the spiritual needs of the elderly, and comfort hospice patients and families. I also walk as a Christian life coach alongside those who need direction in their lives.

    I began writing reflections about the Christian walk as the Lord inspired me, reflections that would eventually be posts on my Christian life coaching web site and the basis for the seven books I've written since being knocked off my donkey.

Throughout Scripture, many were called to do what the Lord asked them to do. Moses, the Apostles to name a few. Some acted immediately and followed the invitation or command to get off their donkey and go. Others delayed and only moved when the Lord knocked them off their donkey through others and events.

Which example will you follow?

So, go ahead and tightly hold on to the reins of your donkey, your life as you live it today. But be prepared to dismount and go to your Damascus when the Lord calls you to go.