And God spoke to Noah.
Genesis 8: 15

to start a whole new world! A new generation in a new environment. What a story! God destroyed all mankind and only Noah and his family survived it. Can you believe that? What a man he must have been for God to say that He found him righteous to start all over again with his family.

I am always amazed when I read this story. There are so many pictures and types and shadows to be seen. Today I only want to look at one little aspect. This is, where to start if you desire to start something brand new from scratch! I am sure the Lord will speak to you and add revelation to you as we go. But let me share first, out of this passage, the principles that the Lord has given me.

Timing is everything!

The biggest mistake you can make is in thinking that you have done this before. Perhaps you have started ministries before or have done things for the Lord and now you think that it will be the same this time. You just go and start the way you always started out. You take the vision the Lord has given you and you just run with it. First bad mistake!

You never take a vision from the Lord and just run with it! You must realize that timing is everything. Think about good old Noah. I mean he was a couple of hundred years old already and had some experience one would think. But Noah did not just rush to do something. He was not an expressive jumping out of the boat and starting this new thing in this new world!

No, Noah went about it very carefully. He first “tested the waters” so to speak. Yeah, in this case it is exactly what he did. He tested the waters and sent out a raven first and then a dove to find out if they find any place where they find a resting place. He checked to see if it was safe to get out there.

He was in no rush at all. You get the impression that he really wanted to make sure that the Waters ceased and that it is alright to get out there! It is important that when you start something new, that you never just rush into it without testing the waters and seeing if the timing is right to do it.

I don’t doubt that God has been speaking to you about starting this new thing. But is the time right? Have you tested the waters? Is it now? Is it safe to step out and do it? I know that it never feels safe and you will walk on water with the Lord anyways! The principle remains: Test the waters and do not be pushed to do anything!

Remember, the Holy Spirit always leads, he never pushes! Make sure you are lead by the Spirit and not driven by any need. Not even the need for finances. The Lord is your provider. He knows when to take the next step and he has enough resources to bring you through, ok?

He Will Take Care of the Details

I remember when I started a ministry and left the old work behind and started out in a new region, without any income. My wife and I moved and started the new ministry and then suddenly the Lord stopped it all and said that we were not ready for this yet! Nooo! I had burned all bridges, had no income coming in and the only possibility I had to generate an income was now taken from me.

You can imagine that I did some praying in this time. I asked the Lord to provide and boy did He! A couple of days after that decision, a farmer called me. We did not know each other well at all and he was living away from us, about an hour by car. In fact, he was interested in our ministry and I had just told him a week prior to that, that we will not work with them.

So I thought that maybe he was offended that I told him off the last week. It was exactly the opposite. He said, “My wife had a dream last night and in the dream God told us to bring you a freezer and fill it with meat. Also to give you potatoes and vegetables and whatever else you can use.” When they brought the freezer with the meat and all the vegetables I told them, that we just stopped all ministry activity and that I was wondering how we would survive without having people who would support our ministry. How I was praying just the other day, that the Lord would provide for us and how much of a prayer answer this is for us!

The hard farmer with his tough hands and strong body started crying when I told him and the tears were just running down his cheeks. Heck, I was crying too and we just stood there and thanked the Lord together! This was such a sign for me that the Lord is well able to look after us. The country we lived in at the time was so expensive that you could not afford meat a lot. But the whole summer we had so much meat, that we almost had meat every day, because the farmer decided afterwards that when the freezer was empty that we could just come and get it filled again!

So the Lord will always look after you. Never rush into a ministry or something the Lord told you, just because of need! Noah did not step out and there was enough food in the Ark for them to survive. God had it all under control and he would not let them starve.

Well, when do you start then? When do you take the step out of the boat and walk and start this new thing that the Lord has showed you? There is a very simple answer to that question… When God says so!

Remember? It says in Genesis 8-16,

And God spoke to Noah, saying, go out of the ark...

First The Lord Must Speak

Never just assume that because the Lord spoke something to you, that you can just go out there and do it. You might think that this was acceptable in the past and has worked for you years back, but what has worked before must not work now. And it is certainly not the Lords pattern for starting things.

Even the Lord Jesus didn’t just start his ministry when he wanted to. No, he started it when the Lord spoke to him and when the dove came upon him. The father spoke, confirmed him and said, “This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.”

Has the Lord been speaking to you and saying, “Go ahead, what has been birthed within you in the ark is now ready to be shown to the world and you can step out now”? Has He spoken to you and told you to go and step out of your save comfort zone yet?

I think Noah was ready to just jump out and go and conquer the new land and check it all out. Can you imagine? He was in this boat for so long now! It is about time to step out there and do something. Do you know the feeling?

“Lord, I can’t bear it anymore. I’ve heard it all and we have tested the waters. It is time to jump out now and get going. Why can’t we just go out there and get things going? Lord, it is time – we have seen the signs now. We sent the spies to check out the land. The birds have found solid ground and the signs of new life are there. We are ready and the world is ready for us as well!”

Just wait. Wait until the Lord says, “GO!” It will save you a lot of trouble! Remember good old Moses just wanting to step out there and save his fellow Israelites? He ended up killing a man because he took it into his own hands, but he still needed to be prepared for 40 long years afterwards in the desert! It is well worth waiting till the Lord gives the go. Believe me. You don’t know what the Lord knows!

It could be that the people are not ready yet. Maybe you’re not ready! God alone has the full picture and this is why He will give you the go ahead when it is time. Simply rest in Him when this happens. Learn to stay in His presence and take the time to be changed and to learn from Him.

Worship Him First

So now the Lord gives you the go ahead the next step is to eagerly go out there and get it all started! Is this the right way? Well, Jesus’ first step was a time of fasting and prayer in the desert. He did not just rush out there and start the new thing. What about Noah? The first thing Noah did was to build an altar to the Lord.

When the Lord has told you to go out there and start the new thing, run to Him first and give Him all glory and honor! Learn to have a lifestyle of prayer and of waiting on the Lord. Even if you feel He’s let you loose and you want to run out there and do the stuff.

Remember… never be pushed. Always be lead and always keep doing it through Him and in Him. He is the vine and we are the branches. Without Him we can not bring forth any fruit! So the first thing to do when He gives the go ahead is to dedicate yourself completely to Him!

What a great man of God Noah must have been! He did not just step out there and start to multiply and possess this new land, this new earth. No, he had developed a relationship with the Lord and even when things got really exciting, he remembered Him first! Is that not awesome? What a man of God!

You can have a relationship with the Lord like that, where you share with Him not only your failures, but also your successes. Where you put Him on the throne, even if He gives it into your hands and says, “Go do it my son.” That is so awesome!

The Lord Will Confirm the Calling

The Lord loved that. He was well pleased with the smell of the sacrifices and He loved to be ministered to by Noah. What? God wants to be ministered to? Yes, of course. He can feel love and anger and all the things we have too! So why not minister to Him?

The greatest thing is that the Lord once again confirmed to Noah that he should go and be fruitful and fill the earth. He was again giving confirmation that he should go out and do the stuff! Not only that, He even gave him a sign that this will never happen again and that He will never destroy the earth and the people on it again like before.

God gave the rainbow as a sign and he let fear fall upon all the beasts and gave the men dominion over them. He even allowed man to eat them. Everything increased. The new was better then the old.

Can you see that if Noah had just gone off without listening, he would’ve probably gone out there and lived like in the past. But God had better promises for him prepared and wanted to bless him abundantly!

God will always confirm your calling if you just wait for him and confirm the new thing He wants you to do. Do not just rush into it, but trust Him that He is well able to help you and do it. And hey, He might even give you a sign like the rainbow!