When I worked in the restaurant business we knew that part of our success was measured in the time a guest had to wait for a table. You wanted to have some wait time-that indicated that things were busy- but you also knew that if people had to wait for too long they wouldn't stick around. The same principle applies to rides at theme parks. You know that the best rides will end up with lengthy wait times and you have to decide if you are willing to sacrifice that time by standing in line and waiting for your turn to go.
I feel the same way with God's growth plan for us. I can see parts of where He is guiding me and how He is growing His church, but it doesn't necessarily arrive on my timetable. The spiritual wait time is exciting because it means that God is showing part of His vision to us. We can see a piece of His plan and look forward with anticipation to seeing it come to fruition. The difficult part is using the wait time effectively-allowing Him to grow us even as we look to the future.
Maintaining faith and confidence in God's plan when it takes longer than we hope or expect can be frustrating, but He promises that we won't be disappointed with the end results.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Friday, April 15, 2011
Pre-Approved
The postal service delivers multiple offers in the mail each week for credit cards. Plastered across the front of the envelope are the words, "Pre-Approved!" Most of us just throw them away and are not fooled by that phrase that is intended to catch our eye and draw us in. We aren't suckered in by the marketing ploy and realize that everybody they send those out to is "pre-approved."
The funny thing is that we all are actually seeking approval. We look for it in our family relationships, our jobs, from people that we respect and even people we don't know that well. Constantly looking for ways to gain the positive affirmation of other people leaves us running through life like a lapdog who just wants to be called, "good girl/boy" and be scratched behind the ears.
We even impose the dynamics of the approval merry-go-round on our relationship with God. We believe the lie that we can be good enough for Him and that if we can maintain some level of righteousness that He will approve of us. We think that if we were pretty good in our choices and behavior this week that He loves us and if we had a "bad week" that He is disappointed and loves us less. We create human expectations for a supernatural relationship.
No wonder so many struggle with understanding the unconditional love that God has for us.
"As long as we view our deeds as a bridge to intimacy with and approval with God, we are depending upon our strength. God does not empower us to win His approval. We have all the approval we could ever need!" Andy Stanley, Louder Than Words
The funny thing is that we all are actually seeking approval. We look for it in our family relationships, our jobs, from people that we respect and even people we don't know that well. Constantly looking for ways to gain the positive affirmation of other people leaves us running through life like a lapdog who just wants to be called, "good girl/boy" and be scratched behind the ears.
We even impose the dynamics of the approval merry-go-round on our relationship with God. We believe the lie that we can be good enough for Him and that if we can maintain some level of righteousness that He will approve of us. We think that if we were pretty good in our choices and behavior this week that He loves us and if we had a "bad week" that He is disappointed and loves us less. We create human expectations for a supernatural relationship.
No wonder so many struggle with understanding the unconditional love that God has for us.
"As long as we view our deeds as a bridge to intimacy with and approval with God, we are depending upon our strength. God does not empower us to win His approval. We have all the approval we could ever need!" Andy Stanley, Louder Than Words
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Who Are You?
Husband. Father. Son. Brother. Pastor. NY Mets fan. Big voiced. Former teacher. Sports lover. Sarcastic. Wounded. Healing. Mainland family. Beach bum. Passionate. Quickly graying. Struggles with life balance. Created to teach. Loves to worship. Battles with consistency. People pleaser. Headstrong. Visionary. Hard worker. Affectionate.
We use a lot of different labels to describe ourselves. Some of them we readily admit to and others can be identified better by the people close to us. These all are part of our identity and create the picture of who we work to be and the image we portray to those around us. It is the difficult balance of who we are trying to be and who God wants us to be that causes tension in our daily lives.
If we would let our identity be one simple thing-follower of Christ-the rest of the labels we strive for would fall in line.
We use a lot of different labels to describe ourselves. Some of them we readily admit to and others can be identified better by the people close to us. These all are part of our identity and create the picture of who we work to be and the image we portray to those around us. It is the difficult balance of who we are trying to be and who God wants us to be that causes tension in our daily lives.
If we would let our identity be one simple thing-follower of Christ-the rest of the labels we strive for would fall in line.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Make a Difference
I read a newspaper article online this week about a woman named Chastity in the Daytona Beach area that has been missing for three months. She has a history of drug addiction and had been working on Ridgewood Avenue as a prostitute to support her habit. She is only 27 years old and the police don't expect to find her alive.
This story is repeated in newspapers throughout the country on a regular basis, but what makes this one different for me is that I remember her as a sweet, innocent 15 year old girl that sat in my health class at Mainland High School. I remember how she would come into class with a smile on her face and sit in the 2nd row. She was a good student and I enjoyed having her in class. She didn't seem to have any major life problems-none that she brought into the school with her anyway-and seemed well-adjusted. I don't know that anything was going on while she was in my class for those 18 weeks, but at some point she made some decisions that sent her spiralling down a destructive pathway for her life.
Reading this story has made me think about the people that we interact with and the opportunities that we might have to influence them. I can honestly admit that I didn't give the attention that was needed to each student that walked through my doors-either in the classroom or the church. I didn't always consider where they were coming from or what outside influences would steer them down the roads of life. Even now we tend to keep moving along in our schedules and don't see the people around us that we might have a chance to impact-especially when we are working with youth.
I'm not egotistical enough to say that an investment from me in this woman's life would have saved her from these decisions. It does make me realize what God-given opportunities are in front of me on a daily basis and that I don't want to take them for granted. I don't want to assume that a chance to impact a life today will be there tomorrow.
If we all share that same focus as Christ-followers and leaders we might stand a better chance of saving someone like Chastity.
This story is repeated in newspapers throughout the country on a regular basis, but what makes this one different for me is that I remember her as a sweet, innocent 15 year old girl that sat in my health class at Mainland High School. I remember how she would come into class with a smile on her face and sit in the 2nd row. She was a good student and I enjoyed having her in class. She didn't seem to have any major life problems-none that she brought into the school with her anyway-and seemed well-adjusted. I don't know that anything was going on while she was in my class for those 18 weeks, but at some point she made some decisions that sent her spiralling down a destructive pathway for her life.
Reading this story has made me think about the people that we interact with and the opportunities that we might have to influence them. I can honestly admit that I didn't give the attention that was needed to each student that walked through my doors-either in the classroom or the church. I didn't always consider where they were coming from or what outside influences would steer them down the roads of life. Even now we tend to keep moving along in our schedules and don't see the people around us that we might have a chance to impact-especially when we are working with youth.
I'm not egotistical enough to say that an investment from me in this woman's life would have saved her from these decisions. It does make me realize what God-given opportunities are in front of me on a daily basis and that I don't want to take them for granted. I don't want to assume that a chance to impact a life today will be there tomorrow.
If we all share that same focus as Christ-followers and leaders we might stand a better chance of saving someone like Chastity.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
What Do You Want?
In Numbers 11, I read where the Israelites were unhappy with the manna that God was providing each day. They started to complain and ask Moses to beg God to give them something else. Their rejection of manna as their sustenance was a sign of their disobedience to God and their dissatisfaction with His plan.
I see where the same thing happens to us. We pray and ask God for solutions to dilemmas in our life and then we are unhappy with the answers that He provides. We beg Him to make our job situation better and when that job ends unexpectedly we start to doubt His plan. We find ourselves praying earnestly for healing from cancer and when He chooses to end that person's life here on earth we are filled with disappointment and anger. We plead with God to change people's hearts and find that He wants to change us first.
God's answer to our prayers isn't necessarily going to be what we expect. In fact, from personal experience I can tell you that it most often is not. The question that we have to ask ourselves then is whether we are praying for God to work in our lives through His incredible grace and omniscience or whether we just want Him to give us what we want. Our answer to that question reveals whether we are engaging in a maturing, faithful relationship with a God who provides or if we are seeking a magic genie who will grant us wishes to satisfy short-sighted visions of need.
I see where the same thing happens to us. We pray and ask God for solutions to dilemmas in our life and then we are unhappy with the answers that He provides. We beg Him to make our job situation better and when that job ends unexpectedly we start to doubt His plan. We find ourselves praying earnestly for healing from cancer and when He chooses to end that person's life here on earth we are filled with disappointment and anger. We plead with God to change people's hearts and find that He wants to change us first.
God's answer to our prayers isn't necessarily going to be what we expect. In fact, from personal experience I can tell you that it most often is not. The question that we have to ask ourselves then is whether we are praying for God to work in our lives through His incredible grace and omniscience or whether we just want Him to give us what we want. Our answer to that question reveals whether we are engaging in a maturing, faithful relationship with a God who provides or if we are seeking a magic genie who will grant us wishes to satisfy short-sighted visions of need.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Where Are You Going?
In the book of Numbers, chapter 9, we see that when the tabernacle is set up, a cloud covers it that is the presence of God. When the cloud stays over the tent the Israelites are supposed to stay put. When the cloud moves off of the tent they are to pick up and follow where God leads them. According to Scripture that period of waiting was sometimes a few days and others over a year. The key was that the Israelites understood the importance of waiting for God's direction before they moved on.
As I read this passage this morning I wondered about our own obedience to God's leading in His church and in our personal lives. I think that sometimes we get impatient and try to move ahead before God really wants us to go. This leads to a lack of preparation and prayer on our part as we try to force-feed our own timetable on God's plans. I also believe that the converse is true and that we often don't move when God tells us to. We sit back and analyze and strategize for too long and miss out on the divine appointments that God has for us due to our lack of obedient faith.
If we could develop faith in what God is doing and a sensitivity to His Spirit I would wager that we would be ready to go when He calls us to move. Imagine the difference we would see in His church and our impact on those around us if we followed that closely.
As I read this passage this morning I wondered about our own obedience to God's leading in His church and in our personal lives. I think that sometimes we get impatient and try to move ahead before God really wants us to go. This leads to a lack of preparation and prayer on our part as we try to force-feed our own timetable on God's plans. I also believe that the converse is true and that we often don't move when God tells us to. We sit back and analyze and strategize for too long and miss out on the divine appointments that God has for us due to our lack of obedient faith.
If we could develop faith in what God is doing and a sensitivity to His Spirit I would wager that we would be ready to go when He calls us to move. Imagine the difference we would see in His church and our impact on those around us if we followed that closely.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Search My Heart
I have just returned from another trip to the American Indian Christian Mission in Show Low, Arizona. My mind and heart are still processing all of the experiences of last week and what God is continuing to teach me from our team's time there. I don't have all the answers yet, but I am asking God to search my heart and soul and reveal to me what I need to learn and apply here.
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