Now v. Later

Since I was twelve years old I have known that God has a plan for me to go into missions. And once I embraced God's calling I would usually say, "Yeah, probably later down the road I'll be in a foreign country serving God as a missionary..." But recently I have been thinking a lot about this "topic" and

Who am I to say it will be later??  

 This summer I am [going] to Mexico for eight weeks for an internship with a missionary.  I am so excited to serve, I so desperately want to bring Glory to God's name!  But in this recent pondering, I know that God is preparing me for something to happen, to my heart. And it scares me, but without God what else do I have to live for??  I've been having feelings of unhappiness and uncertainties about school and what I want "to do" with my life.  Why at 22 years of age (when I graduate) am I supposed to start a career that I will be in for the rest of my life? (Yes, I understand that tenure is key as a teacher.) In the Education department they prepare you to teach in a school immediately after you graduate/student teach by drilling in your head that you need to be filling out applications and such. But that's not what I want to do, its not what I am being called to do...I want to use the passions that God has put in my heart, I want to teach in a Spanish speaking country for a few years. And to do that I need a teaching degree, so in a sense I am being prepared to jump straight into what I want to do, but the experience is going to be so different than what I am being "prepared" for. 

Who am I to say later? Who am I to say now?  Who am i to say?
"For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord ... " Jeremiah 29:11

When the time is right I plan on saying "Yes LORD" and dropping everything.

The first disciples who were called. Simon Peter, James and John.
"So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him."  Luke 5:11

"Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him." Luke 5:27

Luke 9:62 "Jesus replied, No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

Though I plan on dropping everything and following him, Will I?
              >> Do I? <<
He HAS already asked us to give up everything, [Luke 9:23] "Then he said to them all: If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me."
When you ask him to come into your heart because you believe that HE IS GOD, that is the cost. But we don't take on full responsibility. The society that we have been raised in is lax, the hypocritical christian mainly exists in America. In other countries, you either are a Christian or you are not. In many cases, being a Christian means you will be kicked out of your Family, your village, sent to live elsewhere not knowing if you will ever be accepted anywhere else. 

Will I be different?

"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father"  Colossians 3:17

Rather than go when I think is right, I will go when God tells me.

But today, I will be a follower of Jesus Christ. Tomorrow, I will be a follower of Jesus Christ.
I will carry his name every day.