He brought us out from there in order to bring us in, to give us the land which He had sworn to our fathers. (Deuteronomy 6:23)
In order to get new orders, the Lord has to end your current assignment.
Reassignments
Moses was reassigned from shepherd to deliver Egypt. Someone else had to take over the sheep.
Joseph was reassigned from favored son, to slave, to prison, to Pharoah’s second. Huge change!
Paul was reassigned from missionary to prisoner, where he continued to be a missionary! He wrote much of the New Testament while he was a prisoner, and, when he was in prison, he even reached Caesar’s household with the gospel.
I was reassigned from a job I loved to retirement, with all the challenges and opportunities inherent in that. I couldn’t both work and retire.
Losses, Opportunities, and Stress
Any move from one assignment to another (whether “bigger” or “better” or “smaller” or “worse”) has costs. You probably know about “change points,” that list of questions assessing your stress level. In that assessment any change, “good” or “bad” comes with stress points.
And there are always losses, even when the change is for the “better.” Moses probably didn’t care that he didn’t speak well when all he had were sheep. But he didn’t want God’s new, lofty assignment, because he was slow of speech and tongue. If I were placed back in the work force, I’d lose precious, unscheduled time with family and abundant time to read and study.
Have you been reassigned?
Take a moment and think about some of the reassignments you have had. Did the reassignments bring welcome challenges and opportunities, or did they seem mainly to involve loss? Looking back, can you see the Lord’s hand?
For us, children of the King, we need to be conscious that we are still in His service, He just changed our assignment.
And, even for the King, He has to take us out of the old place in order to bring us into the new.
Principles of Reassignment:
We are in the King’s service and it is His sovereign choice whether to reassign us, and give us new orders. We are still in His service, and must seek to do His will.
The change in our area of service is a great opportunity to recognize our shortcomings, our total inadequacy, and humble ourselves before our great and awesome God. This is a time to learn how to be humble.
Any reassignment is a call to humility. If you’ve been reassigned to what you believe is a lower, or much lower, position, it is an opportunity to humble yourself. If you’ve been reassigned to what you see as a higher, or much higher, position, it is an opportunity to see your inadequacies and humble yourself.
Our new role is also a time to learn from Him. “How do You want me to go about this?” “What is Your path for me in this new situation?” “How can I glorify You in this change?”
He prepared work for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Your new assignment includes God-given work.
And, always, thank Him for His work in your life, and rejoice.
