My Response

I shared this thought in staff meeting this week, and it has been hanging in me for the last couple of days.

In the Message, Ephesians 3:14 says, "My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth."

Paul was addressing being in jail for proclaiming the Gospel. While, I could say much about the faith and dedication and attitude of Paul, this is striking me a different way right now.

The obvious is to ask the question, "What is my response to the trials of life?" Let's take it one farther, "What is my response to life?" How do we respond to the good, the bad, and the indifferent of daily existence? How much better and more effective would our lives be if this was ALWAYS our response?

Way too often we pray as an afterthought. We relegate prayer to a compartment of our life. We make communication with God something that is separate and sanitized. Communication with God should be as raw and gritty and normal as that with our spouse or best friend. God is the ONLY One who can do anything about what we face, the highs and the lows. He is the One responsible for giving us life and it is His plan that is before us. Why would we NOT go to Him? He will give us comfort in the pain and hurt and trials of life. He is the One who deserves glory and honor in the triumphs.

I know, not every situation allows for us to physically get on our knees. I know some that are not able to anyway due to limitations of the body. Surely, we each understand that this is a visual for prayer. Nehemiah didn't have time to kneel down and pray when the king addressed him. The Bible tells us he prayed "under [his] breath." Nehemiah 2:4. His first response was to go to God.

Our first response should be to go to God. Period. No caveats, no exceptions, no others, just God!

This is easier when we remember that He "parcels out all heaven and earth."

Updates

Yesterday afternoon I received a notice from my computer that updates were available for some of my software. This is not that unusual as software developers are constantly working to improve their products.

As the updates were downloading and installing, it occurred to me that as people we need to make sure we are getting our upgrades. My computer checks on a regularly scheduled basis for new versions of my software. It could check daily if I desired.

From time to time, the updates stop and the developer will issue an upgrade. This is different in that it often involves more features, not just improvements, and it usually requires spending more money for the upgrade. Updates are free.

We need to check daily if there are areas in our life that need to be updated and even at times upgraded. The Holy Spirit uses the Bible and our prayer time to help us make sure we have the newest “updates” with what God is doing in our lives. There are times that the Spirit will show us an area that needs major attention and we must “upgrade” by changing how we do some thing(s) or the way we think in some area(s).

If we are not participating in God’s plan to keep us up to date, we will miss out on the latest thing He wants to do in us.

A computer that doesn’t get proper maintenance and updates will over time begin to slow down and loose its efficiency and eventually crash as files get corrupted and programs get fouled in their source code: conflicts arise and the operating system gets clogged with too many processes (PC's anyway :-)).

A Christian that doesn’t receive the proper correction and instruction from the Holy Spirit and God’s Word will begin to slow down in their faith. They will loose their trust in God and eventually become cynical and jaded causing a “crash” in their walk with God. This will cause conflicts and compromise to arise within them and their thinking will become clogged with too many distortions of truth.

Romans 12 tell us to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. In computer speak this would be a low level reformat of the hard drive which cleans out the old junk and preps it to receive new uncorrupted code. Once that is done, a plan of proper, on-going maintenance is needed to keep the junk from coming back.

What if......

What if... ? Powerful question.

What if we let go of all of our pre-dispositions to the way things are supposed to be done and started with a new slate, a fresh look at what needs to be done. Is that possible? Is it possible to open our minds and let our creativity expand beyond what we know to what could be? What if we could?

I am becoming more and more able to cope with questions without answers. I like knowing why. I want to know what is going on and have a fix on everything around me. Yet, as I journey through life, I am finding that is not as often possible to have the answers as I would like. In dealing with this, we can either scream louder for answers and demand our way; deny the fact and pretend we have the answers; blame the questions and declare the right things aren’t being asked or it is wrong to ask; or we can accept it and learn to walk in the understanding that some things are bigger than us and beyond our ability to know.

With this last mindset comes a few other things: amazement at life; wonder at nature; joy in little things; peace in storms; hope for tomorrow; and a new way of seeing situations. Instead of looking at everything for the sinister plot, the evil motive, or the hidden conspiracy, we come to the point where we are seeking the opportunity of God to impact a life, expand His Kingdom, and serve His purpose.

• What if we moved beyond fear and trepidation and boldly proclaimed the love of God and reality of Christ to those around us?
• What if we stopped seeing church as a form of worship on Sundays and Wednesdays?
• What if we went to where people already are instead of expecting them to come to us?
• What if we found new ways of presenting the Gospel in real and relevant ways in real situation in real life?
• What if we stopped relying on programs and models and forms to get the job done and started trusting in the power of God to work through us?
• What if each person in the body of Christ got into “the game” and did their part?
• What if we put aside petty differences and juvenile arguments and joined in unity to accomplish God’s mission?
• What if we followed the example of Christ and not the traditions of man?
• What if each one of us ventured out to do what God has called us and an individual to do with reckless abandon?
• What if we lived out of our faith that God is real and is working instead of by our sight and human understanding?
• What if we dared to ask God for the big, the impossible? And, then actually lived in expectation?
• What if we looked for what we can offer and give instead of what we can get?
• What if you accomplished that dream in your heart?
• What if ... ?
  

Intercession

I don't often do this, but I wanted to post this from Steven Furtick's blog. I thought it was very good.

The Need to Intercede

Lisa Shea, Project Manager, Office of the Lead Pastor

A while ago, Pastor Steven asked me to take the role of his intercessor. It’s quite an honor and I take it very seriously. An “intercessor” is a person who prays on behalf of another. You don’t have to be appointed to be one. We are all called to pray.

If you’d like to commit to intercede on behalf of your leader, here are some tips to get you started:

• Commit to praying scriptures over your Pastor regularly and while he is preaching. There is nothing more powerful than God’s Truths spoken over their lives. One example is that it “is not by wise or persuasive words, but by the demonstration of the Spirit’s power”. I also pray that the words spoken come straight from the heart of God and are “sharper than a double edged sword”

• Pray continually for God’s wisdom, revelation and knowledge to be poured out on them.

• Sensitivity and confidentiality is crucial. If your Pastor wants the entire church to know his burdens or battles, he can tell them.

• Pray protection over your spiritual leader. They are prone to burdens and attacks you may never know about. Put on the armor of God for them as found in Ephesians 6.

• Listen to God intently. He can show you things to pray for so you can be on the offensive. Spirit led prayer is the most powerful and effective.

I want to do my part to support Pastor Steven as he fulfills the call of God on his life. Be determined in your prayers for your Pastor and see what God will do through him and your church!

Dear Lord

I am amazed by you! Your love, Your faithfulness, Your patience.

You take us from the depths of ourselves and raise us to the heights of You. You give us life worth living. You grant us possibilities of what is yet to come.

You are God. You are my God. Personal, true, real, present.

Move us, move me, from the place of status quo and stagnation. Move us past relying on what was and even trusting what is to a state of believing what could be, what will be in the grand design of You.

You are God. That is all I need know. You have the future in the palm of your hand. You have the details worked out. You alone know what is best.

You are God.

Send forth Your people, send us into the possibilities that You have laid out in front of us that others may also know that You are God. Let us go into the everyday mundane and bring the divine of You. May we be the answers to the prayers of others who are asking that someone go to their loved one. May we become the answer to the prayer that there would be more workers bringing in the harvest.

Thank you for the privilege of Your presence. Thank you for the awesome gift of being Your ambassador, Your voice to those around us. Help us to proclaim the message that You are God.

In Jesus’ Name
Amen.

Unbelievable

I just read what may be one of the most disturbing stories of the holiday news season (click here for the story). A Wal-Mart worker was trampled to death in NY as angry, anxious, and outrageously materialistic shoppers crashed through the door trying to purchase something they probably don't need and don't have the cash for. I don't know that I have the words to express my outrage at the selfishness and absolute inhumanity of these people.
First of all, I am not that eager to spend money on things to spend all night in line in front of Wal-Mart. Second, there is nothing that I can think of that is worth getting into a shoving mob situation in order to get inside of a store.
Have we become this self-focused? Has our society really reached the point that being the first to get a bargain on a TV is more important than human life? Are things so vital to our identity and self-worth that we have thrown out decency and respect? Or is this an isolated incident in a place that is worse than the rest?
Whatever these answers, our country needs prayer and it needs an awakening of God's presence and reality.