And All God's People.....

I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd. John 10:16 (NLT)

This week I was blessed to be able to go to a church conference. The theme of the conference is based on discipleship and investing in people the way Jesus did. I am also blessed that my church invests in the mission of Jesus with their finances and support.

We’ve been on this journey with this same group of people over the last year. We’ve gotten together for three cohorts and discussed, worked through, listened to each other as we’ve talked about God’s kingdom. What are the steps forward? What should it look like? What are some of the obstacles we encounter and of course, how is God working?

The totally amazing thing is we are all from different denominations, different races, both sexes. And we all face similar challenges. But our one goal is the same. Share Jesus. He is our one true love. During this journey together, we’ve shared lots of praises and lots of heartaches. I have come to truly care about this group of people and their journey.

The last day at this conference, our leader gathered us together and we had communion. Words cannot explain how beautiful this was to me. We stood in a circle sharing the bread and the wine as we sang a hymn. Then we prayed. We prayed for God’s kingdom, for the journey he had us on and that his name would be glorified.

Friends, this is what God’s kingdom should look like. This is “My kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.” All of God’s people working together for ONE goal. That goal is for all of God’s church (read people here) to love each other and work together so others can love Jesus as well.

Let’s put aside our differences. Deep down we all want the same thing. To love and honor Jesus with our lives. We will do this best together. I pray this weekend you too can connect with someone and know the bonding that comes from hearts reaching toward God.

Let God

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭12:2‬ (‭NLT)‬‬

Have you ever tried to stop a bad behavior? And by bad I mean anything you are being convicted that you should not be doing. I have. Usually it goes like this.

I begin to feel a conviction (sense in my soul) that there may be something wrong with this behavior. Now, don’t get me wrong. If I am overtly sinning - like telling a lie or slandering someone, I know it’s wrong and I don’t have to wonder if I should stop that. I am talking more about a behavior that for some reason is not actually overtly sinning but God is saying “Stop”.

I begin to get the conviction and I’ll be honest, sometimes I am not pleased. It may be something that in itself is not a sin but maybe because I spend sooooo much time doing it, God is saying stop. Or maybe God knows this will lead me down a slippery path. Either way, I usually try to ‘discuss it’ with God.

I’m not sure why I do this. I know in the end I am going to admit that I trust him and I’m going to do what he says. I’m getting better.

OK. So I become convicted and I try to stop. And I try and I try and I try. Notice how many times I am trying? Obviously, I am not succeeding. It’s because I am trying on my own. I am not leaning into God for help.

I love today’s verse because it gives us the solution. But let God…..when we lean into God, focus on him, we begin to be changed from the inside out. Suddenly, God has changed the way I think. What was once appealing is no longer so. Where once I would try to rationalize, I now let it go. And in this process I find freedom.

Too often we think we have to clean ourselves up to come to God but the Bible says this is not so. God says come to me, let’s get to know each other and I will get you where you need to be. Our role? To do the things we can do to get to know Jesus. Spend a little time. Ask questions. Seek. (Kind of like you’d do if you wanted to get to know a person.)

God’s job is all the rest. And he will do it. He promises.

Focus and Run

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Hebrews 12:1-2 (NLT)

What slows you down? Seriously. Is it a co-worker that just doesn’t work fast enough? Is it a family member that maybe cannot keep up? Or are there things in your life that if you let them go, you’d be able to run?

You know, things like intentional sin. At this point a lot of us check the box and say “Nope, I don’t do that.” But, maybe that’s not true. I don’t think I have intentional sin in my life either but every time I do something that I have felt convicted not to do, that’s intentional sin.

On the outside it can look really innocent. And all of our stuff looks different. What I am being convicted of is very different than what you are being convicted of. And I am going to make a bold statement; each and every one of us is being convicted about something.

Maybe the Holy Spirit is whispering that you spend too much time on social media or watching TV. Maybe he’s whispering about your diet or health. He could be talking about the worry you carry around or the need to be in control. He may be asking you to be kind to others and less critical. The list could go on and on.

God is talking to us all the time. He wants us to strip off, let go, drop the things that are keeping us from a deeper walk with him. At first glance, these things may not seem like such a big deal but he knows our hearts. He knows what trips us up. And he knows that if we would just let it go, we’d be able to run like the wind.

How do we go about doing this? Keep our eyes on Jesus. We can’t change or be changed by looking at the very thing that snares us. We have to look at Jesus. When we focus on him, suddenly our perspective changes and there is a clarity.

So focus. Focus on Jesus and keep your eyes glued to him. When you look back at your life, you’ll see how he changed you from the inside out.

Live A Questionable Life

And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.  But do this in a gentle and respectful way. 1 Peter 3:15-16 (NLT)

This Bible text is interesting. “If someone asks you about your hope as a believer.” When was the last time that happened to you? I’m not talking about when we go up to people and try to tell them that we believe in Jesus. I’m talking about when someone comes up and because of the life we live asks us sincerely, why are we different.

You know why I don’t think people ask? Because we, as Christians, don’t look and act differently than everyone else around us. We don’t stand out.

We buy similar houses.
We do our jobs the same way everyone else does.
We drive similar cars and do the same things as all the other people.
We donate to charities and serve in the community the same way as folks who don’t believe in Jesus.

I’m not saying there is anything wrong with these things but I do think we are called to be different. Not separate, different. We are supposed to be part of the world we live in but when people look at our lives, there is supposed to be something that stands out.

Something that would make them ask questions about what motivates us.

The early church did weird things for their day. They fed strangers, helped people they didn’t know, they shared their resources with others. This made other people ask “What is it with those people?” And when folks asked, they could tell them about Jesus. And more and more people learned of Jesus’ love.

Today, let’s live our lives differently. Let’s live lives that are questionable so then we can (gently and respectfully) tell others about who motivates us to be different..

Praying Small

And all of this, all of these are the mere edges of His capabilities.
        We are privy to only a whisper of His power.
        Who then dares to claim understanding of His thunderous might? Job 26:14 (VOICE)

Not too long ago I spent an evening in the Emergency Room which led to a stint in the Intensive Care Unit. I was then moved to a hospital room and finally, discharge. When I left, I received instructions to follow up with a specialist. I did. During that visit she said, “This could be as easy as a quick procedure and the problem will be gone but I won’t know until we do more tests.”

So, I went home and started praying for the “quick fix procedure.” As I prayed (and asked other people to pray), I realized I was being short-sighted. Why was I praying this little, tiny prayer when God could do so much more? Why was I limiting the God of the Universe like that? What would make me pray so small?

As I pondered this, I realize that I (we) do this all the time. We pray small. We limit God with our human size thinking. Really, no one can actually limit God but we minimize who he is. We minimize his power and his answers by only looking for him in small ways.

God is so much bigger than we can think. He is so much more powerful than we can imagine.

So, I started praying for complete healing. And there it was, maybe this was the reason we don’t pray big. Maybe we pray small because we are afraid God won’t come through in a big way. What if he doesn’t answer our big, audacious prayers? Does that make him less capable; less caring? Nope. It just means that is not the way he decided to answer.

He didn’t answer my prayer for complete healing. There is more to this journey. But I’m OK with the answer. I’m OK with it because I know, and the Bible says, that there is nothing God won’t do for my good. There is no place he won’t go to save me. Sure, I don’t like this journey so much but I do trust the God that is leading. And because of that, I am going to pray really, big audacious prayers from now on! No little, wimpy prayers for me. I’m claiming the power that I don’t really understand. Nothing is impossible with God.

What's Your Favorite Fruit?

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)

The fruit that the Holy Spirit grows in our lives is:

love
joy
peace
patience
kindness
goodness
faithfulness
gentleness and
self-control

Which three of these would you like to see more of in your life?
Why?

How do these become more evident in your life?

Hint: Relationship

A Minute In It - What Are You Hiding From?

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the texts below and then ponder the questions at the bottom of the post.

11 Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites. 12 The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!”

13 “Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The Lord brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.”

14 Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!”

15 “But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”

16 The Lord said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.” Judges 6:11-16 (NLT)

Where was Gideon when the angel found him?
What was he doing?
What was he hiding from?
What did the angel call Gideon?
What did the Lord tell Gideon to do? What was he supposed to go with?
What was Gideon’s response?
What was God’s reply?
What in your life are you not doing that you are supposed to be doing?
What would be God’s reply to you?

Just For One

Two shepherds were getting ready to bed down for the night. As per their usual routine, they started counting the sheep.

Shepherd 1 (S1): 97, 98, 99….uh oh
Shepherd 2 (S2): What?
S1: One’s missing
S2: Are you kidding? I bet it’s that same sheep that is always exploring new fields. I’ll go look for it.
S1: Why?:That sheep causes trouble. Just let it go.
S2: No. I bet it wandered off not realizing it was getting too far from me. It is somewhere out there alone in the darkness. I am sure it is not even aware of the dangers all around. And besides, I love the little fella!
S1: How are you going to find it?
S2: I’m going to go out to the last place I saw it and call it. Maybe, when it hears my voice it will move closer to me so I can save it. And when I find it, I’m going to hug it and kiss it and carry it home.
Extrapolation from Luke 15:3-7

You know, Jesus did this. He didn’t hang on the cross for the masses. He hung on the cross for just one. That one was you. That one is me. He hung there in hopes that when we wandered off to the dark places and we are lost, we will remember. We will remember his voice, we will remember how much we are loved and we will move closer to him. To Jesus, each one is important. Each one is dearly loved.