The Simple Beauty: What NorthStar Teachers Have to Say About Obedience
By Chesed F.
Picture this: you are sitting at church on a bright Sunday morning. The strong scent of the older woman’s perfume in front of you is tickling your nose. You are begging your stomach to stop gurgling so loudly that the people in front of you turn their heads. The pastor has reached the final five minutes of his sermon. He is giving the congregation final reminders for the week. Loving others, reading your Bible, and obeying God. Wait a second, obeying God? You question in your mind, How in the world am I supposed to obey a distant creator? What possible directions could he have for me? Why would he even need to concern himself with my obedience? Well, NorthStar Bible teachers and spiritual leaders answered this in the hopes of bringing students closer to God and giving younger generations a deeper understanding of God.
When asked, “What is your first memory of hearing or feeling the voice or presence of God, and acting on it?” there were a variety of experiences that were shared about how the voice of God has directed and comforted in the midst of the difficulties of life. Jason Harvel, a Bible teacher at NSA shared about how hearing the voice of God saved his life. “It was the only time I heard the audible voice of God, like in my ears. I am driving down the road with my wife, it’s nighttime. And a car in front of us spun out, flipped over, landed on its tires, and slammed into a wall. It’s just, it was really horrific. I jumped over the barrier to go and help them. I started trying to open the door, and I heard in my ears; ‘Go to the other side of the car.’, like a command in my ear. By the time I get to the other side of the car, another car comes along and has the exact same accident, and if I had been standing where I was when it happened, I would have been steamrolled. I wouldn’t have been without divine intervention.” Mr. Harvel’s story introduces a beautiful facet of obedience in the Christian walk; God is for you, and his commands are meant to save you, and bring about His will in your life.
When asked, “What is a story in the Bible that exemplifies perfect righteous obedience to you?” many teachers responded by citing the Garden of Gethsemane, when Jesus was praying to the Father, seeking God’s will. Dr. Bill Carroll stated in his response to the question about perfect obedience that the Garden of Gethsemane, specifically Matthew 26:39 was his example of perfect righteous obedience. Dr. Carroll said: “There’s the example of what Jesus wants (His desire), but he knows full well that He has a mission and a purpose, commissioned by the Father, that he must fulfill. He sets aside his own choices and desire to do what God the Father wants accomplished. Perfect, righteous obedience always puts God first.”
When asked, “Has God ever asked you to do something and you doubted it was the voice of God?” Mr. Cornelison shared about how to discern between God’s voice and our own voice telling us the things we would like to hear. “I think it hits us in those times where we are truly trying to know His direction for us. I know there have been situations where I wanted a certain thing and I struggled knowing whether I was hearing God or just trying to hear what I wanted. The solution to that is always in the Bible. When we turn to God’s Word, we receive peace, assurance, and direction.”
The final interview question was “What would you tell younger students about how to live out their obedience to God?” Every response was deeply encouraging to read. Even though we may be young, and there doesn’t seem to be very many opportunities for “Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane” levels of world-altering obedience; your obedience to God can still begin in small ways today. Dr. Bill Carroll answered with this: “I would tell students to ‘walk by faith, not by sight’ (II Corinthians 5:7). A personal relationship with God is cultivated from intellectually learning what God has declared to be true and real, volitionally choosing to take God at His word, and accepting his pronouncements as being true, and emotionally responding by taking confident action in accordance with God’s will.”
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Chesed F. lives in Colorado with her mom, sister, and golden retriever named Khusi. She is sixteen years old and has been a student at NorthStar for two years. Chesed has been dancing for eight years, with a specific focus on ballet. As well as being on the Navigator staff, Chesed is a member of National Honors Society and spends her free time volunteering to help underprivileged children with literacy. She hopes to pursue a career in law and hopes to always incorporate the beauty of writing and words into her daily life.