Opportunities

If I fail to see the opportunities God has prepared for me day by day to minister to the lives of others, it's usually because I'm waiting around--impatiently--for people to take advantage of their opportunity to do things for me. It's a subtle case of anti-discipleship. Usually accompanied by a case of self-pity and the murmurings. And, of course, multitudes of missed opportunities.

Blessed

The blessed man or woman meditates on God's Word day and night. In other words--all day long. Is the Word so enthroned in your heart that it controls your every thought? Do you think biblically all day long in every situation?

"Blessed is the man . . . whose delight is in the law of the Lord and In his law he mediates day and night"
So begins the Bible's hymn book: Do you have a singing heart? What are the lyrics? "Joy bells ringing in my heart . . . with the Savior here below with me everywhere I go . . . joy bells ringing in my heart."

Spiritual Busyness

Beware of the disease of spiritual busyness. Nothing is more dangerous to one's intimacy with Him. How do I know if I have it?

Do I have:
A sense of spiritual elitism--look at me and what I'm doing for God.
Irritation at those who are not looking--and being impressed. Especially if it's God
A critical spirit toward those who are not as busy as I think they should be.
Complaining prayers--"Why God aren't You getting on their case?"
Worry that the work can't get done without me.
An inability to see what God is really doing in the lives of those around me.
A head knowledge that is afraid to be tested by experience.
Faith in my doubts. I believe that He can--but won't.
A walk that "is clear as ice and just as cold."

Cure? Time at the feet of Jesus. Lots of it. Immersed in His Word. Falling at His feet in submission to His will when He does the one thing I didn't want to happen. Joyful sacrifice of the most precious thing for no other reason than I love Him.

This prayer: "In the cross, in the cross, be my glory ever; till my raptured soul shall find, Rest beyond the river." Yes, Rest is a Person.

Honest Prayers

God is not afraid or intimidated by honest prayers. I always think of the prophet Habakkuk who kept asking God "How long, O Lord, will I call for help, and Thou wilt not hear?" Those honest prayers say, "I don't understand what's going on, but I care." Such a prayer didn't anger God. In fact, when He did respond, Habakkuk got a theology lesson, a deeper understanding of God's character--His sovereignty and His love, a renewed confidence in God's control over the affairs of men, and a heart that could sing in the darkest hours. Some answer, eh? Don't be afraid to tell God what's really on your heart. And don't be afraid to keep asking Him until you get an answer. He always answers. And there is so much to be learned from Him. And so much more to be learned about Him. And so much more transformation to take place in your life. It all starts with an honest prayer--or as James puts it--an effectual, fervent prayer.

New Every Morning

If our God is always faithful, always compassionate, and His mercies are new every morning, how should we be responding each day to those we encounter in our daily walk? Exactly. If those you interact with were told to list your attributes would faithfulness, compassion, and mercy be on the list--on the top of the list?

Blessed

"For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk with integrity. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in Thee!"

Today in the dark moments, He will be your sun.
Today in the battle He will be your shield.
Today in your neediness He will lavish you with His grace
Today as you minister to others--we are all called to be ministering servants--He will use you to glorify Him through your life--to make His presence visible to those around you.
Today He will enable you to walk in a manner consistent with His life--the Life and the hope of glory that lives within you. He will empower you to walk worthy of your calling--to be all that you are in Christ.
Today He is the Lord of hosts--the God of battle--the God of victory. The God of peace.

Blessed--impoverished in spirit yet rich in His grace--is the man who trusts in Thee! Exclamation point blessed.

Called

"Paul, called to be an apostle by the will of God."

I hope that you understand--and embrace--the truth that your calling is just as surely by the will of God as the Apostle Paul's calling. Whatever God has called you to be at whatever stage of life you find yourself, it is a sacred calling. And it's not as if God was thinking, "I need somebody to do this. Who's left over?" His choice was deliberate, planned. He created you for your "assignment." And it's a vital assignment. Paul himself writing to the church under divine inspiration tells us that those parts of the body that we believe to be the least in importance or actually the most necessary--the most vital. Please approach your day and your calling with the same commitment, excitement, and sense of purpose that Paul approached each day. That our Lord approached each day. Called to be an . . . by the will of God. That's you. Do all to His glory--in His strength. To the praise of His name.

Two Gifts

I think two of the greatest gifts are, perhaps, somewhat paradoxical.

Gift One: To graciously and humbly allow someone the opportunity to serve you.

Gift Two: To graciously and humbly accept with a heart full of gratitude the things others do for you.

They're really the same gift: The gift of love.

Pride is their enemy.

Storms

You will never be in a storm that catches Him by surprise.
You will never be in a storm that He is not with you--in the boat, resting, unafraid--saying, "Trust Me, fear not, I am your God."
You will never be in a storm greater than His confidence that you will "weather" it.
You will never be in a storm that you can control or that He is not controlling. And remember, He is love.
You will never be in a storm that "excuses" you from a life of obedience and praise.
You will never be in a storm that is not designed to enable you to spread wide your wings of faith and soar on those winds of adversity. And at the same time, to walk and not be weary, Yes, at the exact same time. You are a new creation that is empowered to soar and to walk in any storm. In every storm.
You will never be in a storm that He will not still when the time is right--the winds and the waves obey His voice.

You will be in storms.

Humility

Humility:
A rejection of the pressures to live up to other people's expectations--or even their imaginations. An increased sensitivity to His claims on your life.
A refusal to place expectations on others as a necessity for their "earning" your love, friendship, and encouragement.
An unflinching view of my sin--"against Thee and Thee only have I sinned"--and the broken and contrite heart that is it's beauty.
An unhesitating--and continual--giving of good things to those who have done--and are doing--evil against you. Starting with forgiveness and overflowing with kindness.
A refusal to think the worst about anyone, to imagine that you know someone's motives--and that they can't possibly be good or the product of a deep sorrow they are struggling with in their life. A desire instead to give the benefit of the doubt, to love at all times like the Friend. "Love covers a multitude of sins."
A full acceptance of the truth that our battle is not with flesh and blood. And that we have no chance of victory unless we put on the armor of God--not our own tin shields of self-sufficiency and spiritual hutzpa.
A ready obedience that never presumes or worries about the outcome of the obedience.
A casting of all our cares on Him--our guilt from yesterday, our struggles with today, and our fears of the future. An embracing of the peace that comes as the adversary's roar is silenced by the reassuring, omnipotently unfailingly, victorious hand of the God who cares.

God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.

Sixty-nine

Sixty-nine years is such a longshort time. So many things the Lord has taught me. Many of them more than once. So many things He is still teaching me.

The most extraordinary things are the ordinary things. The most beautiful things are the simplest things. If we could only understand true riches. Give a poor man a million dollars, and it may be the worst thing you could do for him. Give him an encouraging word, a smile, a touch of Jesus' love, and you've made him rich. And he'll sense it. Is there anyone more miserable than the one who has no sense of his dependence on the God of Love? The Promise-Keeping God of Love?
The most dangerous day in the world is tomorrow. It is only for today that God promises His provision--His promise of all your needs met and all the strength you need to glorify Him this day--this gift of joy. When we try to borrow from the future--be it years from now or tomorrow--we only amass a pile of worry, doubt, and faithlessness. This is the day. Seek first the kingdom of God. One day at a time.
The fruits of failure and struggle and sorrow--faithfulness, strength, a sense of His presence, joy, hope, contentment, forgiveness, mercy, grace, transformation. Every good and perfect gift comes from above from the Father of Light.
If today I can touch one life with His loving presence, I have fulfilled my calling.
I can do nothing about yesterday. That's His day. He can be trusted to infuse my yesterdays with His goodness and mercy--all the days of my life.
I am never on more dangerous ground than when I lose a heart of gratitude. There is no such thing as a bad day since I spend each moment of it in His loving embrace.
"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Yet, until He's ready, I must set aside the "far better" for the faithful servant-hood of today. Nothing else will do; nothing else but such faith will please Him. Nothing is more delightful and necessary than pleasing Him.
As the body ages, the soul is renewed. I'm growing younger--more eternal--every day.
May my daily prayer always be no matter how many days He graciously gives me: "O to be like Thee! blessed Redeemer, pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love; make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling, fit me for life and heaven above. O to be like Thee! O to be like Thee, Blessed Redeemer, pure as Thou art! Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness; stamp Thine own image deep on my heart."

Wisdom

Wisdom is rooted in the fear of the Lord--a deep desire to make every decision as it affects one's relationship with God. It is not the fear of what God will do to me, but the fear of my hurting His heart of love for me. A Spirit-filled sense of His presence is essential. Saturation with God's Word is the means by which one becomes Spirit-filled. In other words, the depth of one's wisdom is rooted in the depth of one's relationship with God's Word--the thoughts of God.
The love of God's commandments found in His Word--obedience--reveals God's wisdom and His purposes. To develop within me a reverent heart allows God to bless me with discernment--the ability to recognize the best choice; the excellent choice. It also infuses me with an alertness in my daily walk to opportunities to meet the needs of others around me. And it enables me to learn and grow from the sorrows and disappointments of life--to reject bitterness and to embrace the ministry of comforting. I become a man or woman of integrity--there is no difference between who I claim to be and who I actually am in Christ; my walk is spontaneous, Spirit activated. Eager to acquire more insight into the meaning He alone can give to one's life, I hunger for His Word, for His presence in my prayers, and for His beauty to radiate from my life.

"Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding."

"Fools"--the ones who say in their heart that there is no God-- "despise wisdom and instruction."

Do you desire wisdom? You need not learn some deep, dark secret. Saturate yourself with the Word. Let the Spirit take what you know in your head and transform it into the life you live. Become a genuine servant of God.

Struggles

God brings struggles into our lives to reveal two things to us---who we really are and who He is. The trouble comes when instead of praying for insight, I pray merely for deliverance. Deliverance is a guarantee. He knows what we need before we even ask. In fact, I will not encounter anything "down the road" of life that He has not already provided for. My future is not uncertain. Our God's love is not reactive but proactive. What I need to learn to pray is "Open my eyes that I might see glimpses of truth Thou hast for me. Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine."

 And, God does not reveal to us things in another person's life so that we can sit in judgment. He reveals those things so we can intercede for them, work toward restoration, and evaluate our own need of a deeper commitment and transformation. In every situation the first person I need to hold up to the light of God's truth is myself. Another person's struggle is not a reason for me to pat myself on the back spiritually, but to embrace confession and to hunger for a closer walk with Him and the light of His presence. Knowing, of course, that walking in the Light will continually reveal the darkness that needs to be purged--cleansed--from my own life.

 I don't know how many things God saves me from each day, but I know one of them: He saves me from myself.