At work, I’ll often ask for a volunteer without saying what it’s for. Sometimes someone will ask, “What does the volunteer have to do?” Other times, someone will say, “He will do it!” Everyone laughs because the person they pointed to usually isn’t paying attention. Other times, if not one raises their hand, I’ll just pick someone and say, “You just got volun-told.” But the best is when someone simply says, “Hey, I’ll do it!” Sometimes the assignment is difficult, but other times I take it easy on them because they’re the only one to volunteer.
In Isaiah 6, Isaiah was taken to Heaven where he saw the Lord and His train filled the temple. After Isaiah saw the Lord, he felt the guilt of His sins. An angel flew over to him carrying a live coal from the altar, touched his lips with it, and said, “Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.” It was then that God asked for a volunteer. Verse 8 says, “Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” (NLT)
Isaiah didn’t hesitate. He said, “Here I am. Send me.” He didn’t look around to see if anyone else was going to raise their hand first. He didn’t look at the ground trying to avoid eye contact. He didn’t even think an angel might be more qualified than him. He simply volunteered because God needed someone. I don’t know if he was scared or second guessed himself. I often wonder what I would have done in that situation though. Would I have been so quick to raise my hand?
Today, God’s call for messengers still goes out. He’s still looking for volunteers to carry His message of love and hope to a desperate world. Are we willing to say, “Here I am. Send me”? Are we willing to volunteer to show His love to the least of these around us? He’s not always asking us to go around the world. Often times He’s asking us to go across the street. That doesn’t require a passport or hundreds of dollars. It simply requires you to volunteer. When God asks, “Whom shall I send,” what will you do?
Devotions by Chris Hendrix 