Big Problems; a Bigger God

We spend so much of our limited prayer time telling God about our big problems. We complain about our relationships, our finances, our jobs, and the list goes on. We ask God to bless us, to provide, to meet our need and we expect an instantaneous response. And, when we don’t get an immediate response, we question the goodness of God and perhaps even the ability of God to really provide. Sometimes, we even doubt that God wants to provide for us. We start feeling sorry for ourselves and then we begin to replace God time with me time. This is a trap, I believe many Christians fall into: we pray and expect an immediate response, but when God calls us to do/be/start something, we hesitate, we delay, we rationalize and make excuses. Worse yet, we might even pretend like we didn’t hear God. We ask two or three or four times for God to give us confirmation so that we know that we know that we know that this is REALLY what we should do/be/start. If we ever start what God asks us to, we rarely see it to completion. Most times, however, we don’t even respond to what God asks of us. And then later that day or the next day, or the next Sunday when we have our religious quiet time with God, we tell God how messed up things are and we beg “in faith” (if we can even call it that) for God to answer us.

Why is it okay for us to demand immediacy from God, but to practice hesitancy with God?! Father, forgive me for doing this too many times. I pray that you would teach me to respond in faith immediately. I pray that instead of spending my prayer time telling God how big my problems are, I pray that I would tell my problems how big my God is. We live in a world full of problems and each one of us has battles we fight everyday. I am asking you to take a stand for the sake of the Kingdom. Will you begin to speak to your problems, worries, fears, temptations, illness, doubt, discouragement, etc and tell them that though you have a big problem, you have a bigger God?

The book of James 1:22 says this, “Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourself; do what it says.” In Galatians 5:6 it says, “The only thing that matters is faith expressing itself in love.” Faith without action is not really faith. Believing in something is not faith. If you believe something you will act accordingly. For example, if you believe that drugs are bad for you, but you use drugs anyways, you obviously do not really believe that drugs are bad (example from Pastor Joel Hunter).

If we say we believe in God or have faith in God, but do not take action accordingly, it must mean that we don’t really believe that God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do. If we believed it, we would act like it. We serve a God who makes promises — lots of people make promises, but don’t come through. BUT, the God we serve doesn’t just make promises, he FULFILLS the promises He makes. As we do our part in obedient faith, God will do His part in fulfillment.

May you be filled with courage and joy and peace and grace and forgiveness and passion today as you pursue God in active, faith-filled obedience.

Unity in the Church

Focus Scripture:
“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:3)

Reflection:
I am convinced that one of the greatest weapons of the enemy is getting us to believe we are all alone. Never battle alone; Community…brothers and sisters in the faith is so very important! The enemy also seeks to attack the church, that is to say the people of God, by causing us to focus on what divides us rather than on what unites us. Now, I don’t want to give the enemy too much credit so let’s be clear – the choice to work with other believers is ours. I know it is easier and more convenient (at least we think) to “go it alone,” but division creates ineffectiveness and even lack of motivation. Imagine what could happen if the people of God actually worked together instead of constantly competing with each other. To be honest, it sickens me and I have to assume that it disgusts and angers God to see such rampant and intentional division and animosity within His church.

Re-read the focus scripture. God does NOT tell us to create unity; He tells us to preserve it (to keep it).

Application:
What are you (what am I) doing to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace? Am I even concerned with unity or do I actually advocate (whether knowingly or unknowingly) division? What can you (what can I) do this week to preserve the unity of the church?

Prayer:
Father God, forgive us for being so eager to embrace our differences as believers. Holy Spirit, bring revelation and conviction to help us understand that what unites us is truly stronger than what divides us! Spirit, show me how I can preserve the unity of the church and then give me the desire and motivation and focus to actually do something about this “disease” infecting Christ-followers. Lord God, we trust in You; lead us we pray, in Jesus’s name. Amen.

Using Your Gifts to Serve

Focus Scripture: 1 Corinthians 12:4-5

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them.There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.”

God gives each of us a unique assortment of talents and opportunities. And our heavenly Father instructs us to be faithful stewards of the gifts that he bestows upon us. But we live in a world that encourages us to do otherwise. Ours is a society that is filled to the brim with countless opportunities to squander our time, our resources, and our talents.

So we must be watchful for distractions and temptations that might lead us astray. God has blessed you with unique opportunities to serve him, and he has given you every tool that you need to do so.

Today, and everyday, accept this challenge: value the talent that God has given you, nourish it, make it grow, and share it with the world. After all, the best way to say “Thank You” for God’s gifts is to use them!

*This post is taken from my devotion book, Download: Devotions to Start Your Day

Surrender & Trust

Focus Scripture: Matthew 16:24-25 (MSG)
Then Jesus went to work on his disciples. “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self.

Reflection:
Why is it so hard for us to surrender? Is it pride, selfishness, worry, fear, desire for control? Or is it a lack of trust? Trust requires ultimate vulnerability and it requires you to be okay with NOT being in total control. There seems to be a prevailing view out there that surrendering is a sign of weakness. But, it is only in surrendering that you can experience true freedom and fulfillment!

The purposes and plans of God far exceed anything I could ever imagine – read Ephesians 3:20. When I fail to surrender my desires for the future to my Creator, I am sacrificing His good, pleasing and perfect will for my life. I may attain what I set my mind and heart to, but will it bring fulfillment? I believe that people – especially Christians – will constantly have a feeling of unsatisfaction unless they surrender to the will and plan of God. If you do things your way, it might work out BUT, you might miss out on ALL that God has for your life. I don’t know about you, but I for one do NOT want to miss out on what God has in store for me.

Application:
What would the world look like if the people of God actually surrendered their lives, finances, skills, and time to the will of God? I challenge you this week to join me in being more intentional about putting to death the selfish desires of your flesh and instead embracing a lifestyle of surrender. I am convinced that if we do this, we will be able – maybe for the first time – to see just how beautiful the world can be and how purposeful our own lives can be. Will you join me?

Prayer:
Father in Heaven, we don’t entirely understand what it means to live a life of surrender. I pray that you help us to be people who give up on our own selfish, God-excluded aspirations and instead pursue a life of God-directed dreams. Give us the courage, faith, humility, and desire to surrender. In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

The Divine Exchange

Have you ever found yourself bogged down with worry, fear, anger, busyness, frustration, and/or impatience? I am assuming we all have felt one or more of these emotions at least once (dare I say two or three times) each week. Now, have you ever stopped to contemplate or think about why you feel this extra weightiness? The source of these feelings is either insecurity or discontent with your own life OR heartache or empathy for a close family member or friend. On rare occasions, some may experience a compounded effect resulting from the combination of both your own worries and those of another. However, my point in discussing this topic is not so much to discuss the source of these heavy and exhausting emotional conditions, but rather to enlighten my readers about what I will refer to as the “Divine Exchange.”

What I have just described above is Phase 1: Identification & Analysis – What is wrong and Why do I feel this way?

Phase 2 is what I call: Internalization & Inaction – This is when you make comments like, “I am supposed to feel this way,” or “It is what it is,” or “It will always be this way.” Do not give in to these kinds of thoughts because they are merely self-defeating, discouraging, cyclical lies. The only way to break free of this phase is to courageously make the Divine Exchange with The King of kings. Let me briefly describe what I mean by sharing a scripture:

Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”‘

Check it out in The Message:
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Analysis and Application:
If we take our worries, fears, doubts, concerns – call them whatever you want – and give them to Christ, we receive in exchange an easy and light yoke. What you are carrying around in your heart and mind, even if you have good intentions in carrying it, is not yours to carry. Give it over to the Lord and receive the freedom you desire and deserve. May His will be done in your life this week and every week!

Thoughts on Opportunity & Influence

Father in heaven, show me a greater glimpse of your glory!

As Christ-followers we need to look for opportunities to show Christ to others through our joy, our peaceful spirit, our grace, our forgiveness, and our love. So often it seems that I am not actively looking for or making the most of the God-given opportunities that come my way. Maybe you have had similar experiences. If so, join me in asking the King to break your stony heart and to soften your hardened heart. Father, make us vulnerable before you and allow us to be intimate with you so that we can hear and discern your will for our lives. Above all, help us Lord to make the most of each and every opportunity!

Think about your influence. Who do you influence? How do you influence them? What message(s) do you send to others? Do the people at your job, at school, in your own family even know you are a Christ-follower? I have been contemplating this very thought. I am wondering if the students at the school I teach at know who I really am. Do the football players on the team I coach know that I am sold out for Jesus? Does my family realize that I live for the King and seek to serve Him and His people above all else? I guess there are two ways to address this issue: either you can boldly proclaim your faith to others OR you can live your life in such a way that people can tell that there is something special about you. I believe Christians should be actively doing BOTH. There are times to boldly proclaim, but more often we need to simply heed the words of the Apostle Paul:

“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:1-3)

Christ has given each of us the opportunity to influence others by living a Godly life – let’s be obedient and do just that!

Application: In order to determine what opportunities the Lord is giving you, I challenge you this week to spend some significant time in His presence and the Word. The Lord will speak to us when we spend tie with Him. I have tried to make excuses of busyness and I have not time before; no more!  I am drawing a line in the sand and making a commitment to make worship and prayer time with God a priority. I have learned that whatever things in your life you make your top priorities, those are the things you value the most. How much do you value your walk with the Lord? The time you spend with Him cultivating your relationship is the only way to answer that question. Join me in seeking God this week. Let’s hold each other accountable.

Christ Must Increase; I Must Decrease

Help me Lord and Forgive me God for my misguided priorities and my flawed perspective. I desire humility and seek forgiveness for my pride. Lord, I exalt thee!

The secret – at least for me – of knowing your God-given purpose is to spend time communicating (talking, but especially listening to) God. It may mean, like it does for me, that you need to inconvenience yourself to spend time with your King. I have discovered that I am actually pretty selfish. Not with material possessions or even my money, but with my time. I want to “spend” my time on what I want. I want to do what I want to do and in the process I forget about God’s desires and plans for my life…unless or until it is all of a sudden convenient for me to remember. This remembering God or making time for God usually occurs oh somewhere around 10 am on Sunday mornings and 7 pm on Wednesday nights (at youth group), and maybe occasionally during my quiet time in the morning. Forgive me Lord for my misguided priorities and flawed perspective. Forgive me for my selfishness.

In John 1:26-27, John the Baptist tells the Pharisees questioning him, “…among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” Upon further investigation I learned that In Bible times disciples would perform all sorts of “acts of service” for their rabbis (teachers). But, loosing sandal thongs was expressly excluded as disciple work for a rabbi because it was considered slave work. In other words, John is saying that he is not even worthy to do the lowest of low tasks for the Son of Man who will be coming after him.

Later, in John 3:30, John responds to one of his complaining disciples who says, “Everyone is going to him (Jesus) – to be baptized.” John says to this disgruntled and selfish/prideful follower of his, “He must become greater; I must become less.” John goes on to say that he is like the friend of the bridegroom at a wedding – who WAITS and LISTENS for him (the bridegroom) and is FULL OF JOY when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. When John heard and saw Jesus baptizing, he said, “my joy is now complete.” Why would he make such a remark? John the Baptise realized that his God-given purpose of preparing the way for Jesus had been fulfilled. John fulfilled his role and moved out of the way to let Jesus do his thing. It’s as if John realized the inter-dependency of his humility and the resulting glory given to Christ.

Application: When people are complimentary to you and thanking you, and praising you, be aware enough to move out of the way of God’s glory and direct the compliments, thanksgiving, and praise heavenward to the King of kings and Lord of lords.

Do Not Worry About Your Life

“Do not worry about your life.”  Matthew 6:25

Initial Thought:
Do not worry…is that a joke?  I am sitting here thinking, Jesus, you are kidding right?  It is basically an innate human instinct to worry about something, anything, a lot of things, EVERYTHING!  Moreover, the second half of the verse makes it super specific: Do not worry (next to impossible) about your life (definitely impossible)! Clearly Jesus does not understand the day and age we are living in.  Clearly, He does not know the many obligations, responsibilities, and commitments that I have on my plate.

Upon Further Reflection:
Perhaps, Jesus Christ knows me all too well.  Perhaps, these words are given by Jesus to the crowds during His famous Sermon on the Mount because they were not just timely way back then, but because He knew that they would be ever so applicable to the here and now…for me and for you.  Could it be that the very reason why I worry so much about so much is because I have so much to do?!  Could it be that I (and you, perhaps human beings – especially Americans) have so overextended ourselves that our default setting is simply to worry?!  If this is true – which it appears to be, at least in my life, what a sad and purposeless way to live!

Let’s Dig Deeper:
Chris Tiegreen in his book At His Feet writes: How often do we view this verse as a commandment from on high?  It may not carry the force of a “Thou shalt not,” and it may not have the emphasis of a “Go into all the world,” but it is imperative nonetheless.  “Do not,” Jesus says, and Paul echoes this same command in Philippians 4:6: “Be anxious for nothing.”  These are our liberating orders.  We are told to do something we hate doing anyway.  Why?

Application:
Have you ever considered what your worrying says about your view of God?  When we stress and strain over a situation, are we affirming His providence and abundance?  Are we embracing His grace?  No, our anxiety reveals our mistrust of God’s sovereignty. Tiegreen calls it “an emotional slander of His [God's] character.”  I/We may justify our worry by observing all the tragedies around us or by believing that life today is so overbearing.  However, tragedies happened to Joseph, Moses, David, Paul, Mary, Jesus, and many others and yet God ordained them all for good!

Let’s Get Personal:

• Think about your life, your commitments, your responsibilities and obligations.  Are you satisfied with the life that you are living or do you need God to help you re-prioritize your life.  (I know I do!)
• What excesses do I/You/We need to cut out of the to do lists/the calendar in order to minimize busyness and maximize Godliness?
• Reflect on this before you close this blog or shrug your shoulders and say, “Yeah I hear you, but….Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows.  It empties today of its strength.” (Charles Spurgeon)

Seasons of Fruitfulness

Scriptural Text | Matthew 13:23
“The one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.”

No Christian is fruitful all of the time. There are silent years in the lives of Paul, Peter – even Jesus – about which we know nothing. These are the years of pruning or preparation before a time of abundance. This is the scriptural pattern of God’s work in our lives as described in Psalm 1: “He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season.”

But, as the saying goes, “There are two sides to every coin.” The other side of the coin is that every Christian is fruitful some of the time. A continual lack of fruit should prompt a believer to ask these kind of questions:

• What is hindering God’s fruitfulness in my life?
• Is there anything I’m tolerating that stands in the way of God’s full work in me?

I am reminded of the parable of the sower in Matthew 13 (also in Mark 4 and Luke 8). There appears to be three categories of enemies to the sower’s work: the evil one (v. 19), trouble and persecution (v. 21), and the worries of life (v. 22). The Christian who does not actively stand firm in opposition to any of these enemies will bear the consequences of fruitlessness and miss out on the joy of God’s providence and blessing.

The call to action is a holistic self-examination. Ask yourself, “Do I struggle with a discrepancy between the portrayal of the Christian life in Scripture and my own actual Christian experience?” If so, you may be in a preparation season OR there may be a hindrance from the enemy. The next question quickly becomes, “How do I know the answer to that kind of question?”

Fruitless periods in a Christian’s life call for discernment – a quality often lacking during the difficult times of life. But, God promises wisdom to those who ask. So ask. If we seek God’s guidance and prepare to accept whatever He might say, He will show us what hinders His work in our lives.

We are called to be Passion-filled Christ-followers

Dear Men and Women of God:

Before you read any further, click on this link and close your eyes.  Listen and worship and glorify the King of Kings!

That song literally brought tears to my eyes and truly revealed to me the glory and wonder of God!  He and He alone is worthy and we are so insignificant and unworthy.  Yet, because of His love and grace and mercy, He justifies and sanctifies us and qualifies us to be His co-laborers!  We are called to be His hands and feet!  We are called to bring hope to the hopeless; joy to the depressed, restoration to the broken, strength to the weak, and love to the outcasts!  The time for us to rise up and be the bearers and bringers of hope in our world is now!  Will you join me in doing the little things on a daily basis to make a difference in our world by making a difference in the life of just one or two people every day!  For if you look at the example of Christ, that is exactly what He did.  He said, “Zacchaeus come down from that tree, I’m going to your house today.”  He said, “Mary Magdalene, no one is left to condemn you.  Then, neither do I condemn thee, Go and Sin NO MORE!”  Christ said to Peter, “Where I am going you cannot go.  If anyone wants to follow me, He must deny himself, take up His cross and follow me!”  And so my brothers and sisters and Christ, I am asking you to cease being a Christian in name only and to start right now today being a Christian and lifestyle and action by truly and wholeheartedly following the example of Christ!

The Application:
May these words from Eugene Peterson’s The Message, Matthew 10:40-42 be a source of encouragement for you:

“We are intimately linked in this harvest work. Anyone who accepts what you do, accepts me, the One who sent you. Anyone who accepts what I do accepts my Father, who sent me. Accepting a messenger of God is as good as being God’s messenger. Accepting someone’s help is as good as giving someone help. This is a large work I’ve called you into, but don’t be overwhelmed by it. It’s best to start small. Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty, for instance. The smallest act of giving or receiving makes you a true apprentice. You won’t lose out on a thing.”

Additional scriptures to read, reflect, and meditate on:
Romans 12:3-8
1 Corinthians 15:58
Philippians 2:1-11

Closing Thought:
“…you have never locked eyes with another human being who isn’t valuable to God.  When this fact grips you to the core of your being, you’ll never be the same.  You will live in awe of the scope and depth and breadth of God’s love, and you’ll treat people differently.”  – Bill Hybels

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Strap Your Sword To Your Side | Stand Firm And Fight For The King!