Shifting

I love it when you can feel the momentum shift in a situation. Sometimes you feel like the battle is headed for your side to be defeated and then . . . GOD! You bow down, confess your sins, thank God for his faithfulness and when you lift your head back up, you can see the enemy retreating and you regain your passion to fight.

That's what happened tonight. Our team just took the offensive.

Stand firm then and resist the devil and he will flee from you.

Maybe you have your own story of God's faithfulness when you thought defeat was imminent. I would love to hear it.

Written on Me

What is written on me? What message am I sending as a Christian? What image do I convey to the lost, the cynical, the scared, the hopeless? If I am the church, what does the sign in front of my building say? Is it cheesy, hypocritical, indifferent, uninteresting, judgmental?

Like a whirlwind in my mind, these thoughts are spinning faster and faster and faster. Not out of control, but clearly with a purpose that the momentum in my brain will ultimately cause a reaction in my physical being in how I act and speak and think.

A postcard invitation for our church was laying on our kitchen counter. The upcoming service will be about "If you only had 30 days left to live" and how it would effect your life. Sadly, I really hadn't thought about what my response or answer would be. I still haven't, because my thoughts were radically redirected. Someone I care very deeply for and who is far from Christ, picked up the postcard and read it. They asked lots of questions. Not about Jesus. They asked questions about our church and why certain service times had changed. They asked about other matters concerning the church and the people there. They looked the card over so closely and noticed the finest details that I had honestly not seen. There was small print in the background. I thought it was just a design and never noticed the words. This person read those words and contemplated them. They spent time considering how they would live out their life if they only had 30 days left to live.

Their reaction to the postcard impacted me greatly. What is the message I am sending? Would anyone want to know Jesus after having spent some time with me? Would they think that I am any different than the rest of the world or am I just boring and indifferent? What about me would make them think that Jesus is worth following? I know this person is reading the 'fine print' on my invitation to come follow Jesus.

I have to wonder - what is written on me?

Resentful or Grateful?

Do we resent the responsibilities that come with answered prayer? That was the question posed to me last week. Before you read further, please stop and reread the question slowly: Do we resent the responsibilities that come with answered prayer?

If God has blessed you with a home - do you resent the time it takes to keep it clean and cared for? If God has placed you in a ministry of some sort - do you resent the time it requires or the sacrifices you must make? If God has blessed you with a job (which can be an answer to all sorts of prayers) - do you resent going to work? Are you being responsible in how you handle the money God has blessed you with?

Seriously, do we resent the responsibilities that come with answered prayer? Think about some of things that God has blessed you with in response to the prayers you have prayed. What is your attitude towards those answers? Are you being a good steward with whatever it is He has entrusted you with?

Does your gratitude and stewardship warrant God entrusting you with more? If God has found you worthy to be the caretaker of something He needs done on this earth, how would your performance evaluation read? Do you resent it? Do you even think about it?

Do we resent the responsibilities that come with answered prayer? I don't know - do you?

Knocking on Wood?

Need to vent a moment. Recently, I have heard more people say the phrase "knock on wood" than I care to count. One person was carrying some boxes and "knock on wood" - he wouldn't drop them. Another was having an outdoor event and "knock on wood" - it wouldn't rain. AHHHHH!

Go ahead - knock on wood. See if it really helps.

I know my family tells me I over-spiritualize too much. But please, in an even exchange for the same number of words you could say "Jesus help me." And He would.

Something New

I love bible studies of all sorts. Several of Beth Moore's dvd series have captured my heart and mind for over two years now. But this summer I am doing something I have never done before. I am doing Jennifer Rothschild's "Me, Myself & Lies" bible study with the Living Proof Ministries blog community. How much fun will this be.

The workbook arrived on Friday and as soon as I turned it over I knew Divine intervention had taken place. It says: "Ever wonder what you should say when you talk to yourself? We all talk to ourselves all the time." I knew it! I just knew it. I am not the only person that talks to themselves. Hallelujah.

This study is also apparently an answer to prayer. The cover reads "Me Myself & Lies . . . a thought-closet makeover". God has a sense of humor. I have been asking Him to do a makeover on my summer wardrobe for several weeks now. Perhaps I should have been more specific.

Friday's Food for Thought

When you get a drink of water today or ride your bike this weekend - think and pray on these things.

Go here Blood: Water Missions or here Ridewelltour for more info.

Are You Hungry?

Growing up I remember people would get a hankerin' for something. Not sure what a hankerin' really is, but I think I got one. A hankerin' for some in-depth, give-it-to-me-straight bible preaching. Do you know what I mean?

Now I like dessert - alot. I like junk food - alot. But my body knows when it needs a real meal with real food. No tofu. I need red meat with some serious side dishes. If I eat enough of the good food, there usually isn't any room or real desire for the dessert and junk food.

Just like my body knows when it has had enough dessert and needs meat, my soul knows when it has had enough dessert-style feeding and is craving some dig-your-fork-into-it Word of God. God made us that way. Our flesh likes the fluff, our soul needs meat.

If we feed our flesh only desserts and things that just look tempting and make us feel all good, we will become sickly. Same goes with our souls. If we only feed on surface preaching that never causes conviction, challenges us, pushes us and makes us uncomfortable from time-to-time, we will get sick and our soul atrophies. The atrophy will target our hearts and minds. We will spiritually die.

When exactly did Jesus invite us to the table to sup with Him and only put out the desserts? I missed that verse. The author of Hebrews tells us that we need solid food to mature and that if we don't mature, we will not be able to tell good from evil. If we don't regularly feed on the solid Word of God, we will get sick.

I want to pull my chair up to the table of God, grab a hold of my fork and feed on the feast of His Word. When I do, I won't need dessert, for He alone will be enough.

Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." John 6:35