5 Things You Shouldn’t Expect When You’re Following God

Our transition to full-time RV living is almost complete. We've broken in our new rig with a consecutive eight-week run at our seasonal campsite and we've begun purging stuff by selling, trashing and donating stuff. In the course of following what we believe God is calling us to do, we've told our story numerous times.

Our journey has been met with excitement, questions, and sometimes blank stares. And exciting as it has been, there has been a roller coaster of emotion for me. You may not be moving into an RV but even the smallest of decisions and change in your life can cause unexpected natural results.

5 Things You Shouldn't Expect When Following God

#1 – Enthusiasm From Everyone You Know

When we're in our line of convergence, doing what God has called us to, going where God has called us to go not everyone will get it. The reality of following Christ is that your decisions won't always be met with enthusiasm. It's an odd thing, watching people you love and care about look at you like you've lost your mind. Strangers and acquaintances who can't see your vision are one thing but when those close to you aren't on board it's hard. This is when knowing that you know is so important. Godly counsel is one thing, but your faith cannot be based on the opinions of others. The positive opinions of others is not a prerequisite for your success. 

#2 – Easy Street Emotions

When you make a decision to take a missions trip, change careers or college majors, change your wardrobe or move into an RV there can be a time of emotional processing that you must walk through. I haven't spoken much about my emotional processing because frankly, people don't understand (see #1). Sometimes your roller coaster of emotions is perceived as insecurity in your decision, second guessing or confusion. My tears come when I am in the house alone. When I look around and recall how God gave us this house and the memories we have here I do cry.

The process of detaching from your old season as you move into a new one will include an array of emotions. That doesn't make you weak in faith. It makes you human.

#3 – Life's Landscape to Remain the Same

When you make a decision to change your life at God's prompting you can't expect the landscape of your life to look the same as it did before. Something as simple as realizing they way you dress, act or talk isn't God-honoring will require changes that shake up the way you live your life. You cannot step into the new while holding on to the old. Those words echo in my mind a hundred times a day as we go from 1600 square feet to 300.

#4 – Opposition to Allude You

All of Hell wants to stop you from advancing in your calling and drawing closer to God. Opposition sneaks in around the edges, under the doors, and through the open windows. It won't always knock on the door and sometimes it causes much chaos and confusion before it is even noticed. Our opposition hasn't come in camping woes or packing problems but in bad attitudes, restless sleep, and homeschooling hardships. You must stay spiritually alert and keep watch for the enemy's tactics.

#5 – Faith to Stand Still

I recently attended the Supernatural Life Conference not really knowing what I was going to encounter but knowing I had to go. Holy Spirit prompted me the moment my friend told me about it over a month before the event. For some, attending conferences is part of their regular growth but for me, four days away from home, hotels, and an overload of Jesus are not normal for me.

Going to that concert grew my faith through testimonies, amazing (and intense) worship, powerful speakers and the freedom to drown out everything else but God for a few days. The act of stepping out in faith grows our faith in a supernatural way. I've seen my husband, who four years ago wouldn't have considered praying for someone, lay hands on a dying man and pray. I've seen him reach to and comfort the man's son with words of truth. All things, I believe, are a growing of his faith because we have stepped out in faith.

It's like when the boat is gone and you're in the water all you have to hold on to is Jesus and so Jesus becomes more and more a part of you and it can't help but come out.

What is God calling you to do in this season? It doesn't have to be an earth-shattering event, a monumental move or a large life change. But what if the very thing He is asking you to do now is in preparation for something bigger down the road? Follow God isn't always easy but it is always rewarding.