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Archive for the ‘Spiritual Growth’ Category

Trajectory

Posted in Church, God, God Stories, Holy Spirit, Prayer, Salvation, Service, Spiritual Growth, Vision, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 3, 2015| Leave a Comment »

God changed the trajectory of thousands of lives last week at Gauntlet X.  Over 4500 youth and 1300 volunteers descended upon Daytona Beach, Florida and we celebrated God’s great love in a most amazing way.  As of Thursday afternoon 1062 people had accepted Christ as their savior and 1529 had been baptized in a mass ocean baptism at sunrise Thursday morning.  But it didn’t stop there.  God continued to move on the bus rides home.  In some buses the open mic was used and as young people gave their testimony to what God had done, what He had delivered them from, what He had saved them from, then remaining hold-outs were drawn to accept Christ as their Lord.  I heard of two buses that had nine saved on one and ten saved on another.  Amazing!

This hits near to my heart on a number of fronts.  I came to faith at age 23 at a retreat so I can definitely relate to going away and coming back a changed person.  I then worked as a youth volunteer for about 10 years until my work demands and family obligations became too much and the youth work had to be set aside.  In a way it felt like slipping into something warm and familiar chatting with the young people, hearing the earnestness in their voices, answering questions that as an adult we don’t often spend a lot of time on, but as teenagers they seem all-important.

The Wednesday night service will remain etched in my mind forever.  After a simple, straight-forward message Pastor P gave an altar call.  It appeared like close to 300 responded.  We then began celebrating what God had done.  For 5 – 6 solid minutes the 6000 of us left shouted and clapped and praised the Lord.  And then the miracle began.  Even though the volume was tremendous and constant we heard a burst of shouting above the din.  Another person had stood to go forward.  A few seconds later another stood.  The clamor continued but as we watched every 5 – 15 seconds another person would rise and go forward.  This went on for another 30 minutes. It was the most amazing thing.  There was no prompting from the stage.  No impassioned pleas from Perry.  Just loud, heartfelt, sustained praise of the Most High God… and the Spirit of God moved.  We saw the manifestation of the verse, “The Lord inhabits the praises of His people.”  Someone kept track and said Perry preached for 41 minutes and the altar call then lasted for 52 minutes.  In reality the Holy Spirit continues to move from that event as many more have given their lives to Christ since then.

As I ponder the impact of what God has done and pray for my young friends who have crossed from death to life I am awed.  God has changed the trajectory of so many lives.  Lives that were headed down dead-ends are now turned and heading on the right road, the road of God’s choosing.  In some, self-loathing and destruction has been replaced with life and joy.  In others, a self-centered heart has been made new and is being shaped by the Spirit of God to be God-centered and Others-centered.  I am convinced the changes will be profound.  The ripples of this move of God will impact families, schools, churches (not everyone who comes is from our church), communities, our state, our nation, and the world.  There were four persons who traveled here from Israel to attend.  One, a young man named Israel, gave His life to Christ and became a completed Jew, one of the Jewish faith who now recognizes that Jesus is the Messiah his people have been waiting for all these years.  Halleluiah!!!

As I have prayed about the significance of what God has done, I am thoroughly convinced that this move of God is not a stand-alone, one time event.  It is fit into His plan of rebirth and renewal for His people around the world.  I find it hard to contain my enthusiasm for what God is doing and going to bring forth.  What politicians, governments, advocacy groups, and various well-meaning citizens have tried to do, God, by His Spirit moving in a receptive and obedient people will accomplish.  He may use some of those groups above, but true, lasting change comes from the Spirit of God moving in individual lives, united with other changed lives, becoming a move of God that transforms society.  I believe that course correction is underway.  Please join me in praying for God’s grace to be manifest in lives, families, churches, communities, our state, nation and around the world.

God is SO GOOD!

Be blessed today and be a blessing as the Father uses your love, your gifts, and your obedience to impact the world right where you live.

My new friends as we head to the first session on Monday night.

My new friends as we head to the first session on Monday night.

Over 6100 filled the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach experienced God's grace in a mighty way.

Over 6100 filled the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach experienced God’s grace in a mighty way.

My new friend, Jaylen, heading into the surf for his baptism.

My new friend, Jaylen, heading into the surf for his baptism.

1529 people publically declared their allegiance to Jesus Christ as their Lord in baptism.

1529 people publically declared their allegiance to Jesus Christ as their Lord in baptism.

For over 1500 baptisms it took over 2 hours to coordinate and baptize. I hearkened back to the Day of Pentecost when 3000 were added to the Church in one day.

For 1500+ baptisms it took over 2 hours to coordinate and baptize. I hearkened back to the Day of Pentecost when 3000 were added to the Church in one day.

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Barnabas – Son of Encouragement

Posted in Church, God, God Stories, Responsibility, Service, Spiritual Growth, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 1, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Do you have a specific calling from the Lord?  All followers of Jesus have the great commission which applies to the Church universal and we each have a gift or gifts that God has given us for the proclamation of the Gospel and the edification of the Church.  However, I suspect that many of us are uncertain whether we have a specific calling from the Lord.  You see, this morning it just became very clear to me what my calling is even though I have been a follower of Jesus since 1983.  The fact that I just received this crystal clarity doesn’t mean I have not walked in my calling.  As I think of the times in my life that I have felt the most joyful, the most fulfilled, they have been when I was walking in my calling.  Before I go further I will tell you that my calling is to be an Encourager.

Looking back on one of my formative God stories I realize that God spoke the call to me, but I concentrated on the wrong part of the word He gave.  In May or June of 1989 I awoke in the middle of the night knowing God was present.  I slipped out of bed and onto my knees ready to pray for whatever burden the Lord put on my heart.  But no desperate need arose for me to pray about.  I remember thinking / praying, “What is it Lord?”  Then I heard Him speak to my heart.  “I am going to have you say special things to special people.  And to prove it, I’m going to take care of your house today.”

For years I have paid more attention to the miraculous provision God made in providing a home for us out of the blue the next day.  But I am struck this morning by the truth of the calling captured in that first sentence.  “I am  going to have you say special things to special people.”

A few years later I experienced another profound revelation from the Lord.  I was feeling led to undertake a three day fast for the first time.  As I pondered this, a friend who attended a Pentecostal church approached me at work one day and said, “Dan, during worship in our service last night, the pastor had a word for you.  He said if you will fast for three days on water only, then the Lord will show you what you are to do.”  I was blown away.  Until that time, I had not mentioned to anyone what I was considering.  So during Holy Week that year I undertook a three day fast.  I will never forget it.  Most importantly I did receive a clear message from the Lord.  Funny thing, it was while I was mowing the lawn on Saturday toward the end of the fast.  The Lord said, “I have not called you to be a preacher and I have not called you to be a teacher, I have called you to be a man of prayer.  You will preach and you will teach, but first and foremost I have called you to be a man of prayer.”

You see I had the notion I was waiting for God to call me into the ordained ministry.  I loved Him.  I thrilled at reading and sharing the Word.  And I desperately wanted people to experience the new life in Christ, the abundant life in Christ that I had found.  My vision of calling and ministry was fairly narrow and was confined to becoming a minister in a church.  Even as my understanding grew, I did not grasp the fact that I had a calling and, with some degree of consistency, I was walking it out.

So the point of today is simple.  God has a general calling on your life which is to honor and glorify Him, but He also has a specific call on your life.  The following steps will help you find your specific calling.

1) Begin by asking Him to guide you and use you.  As you lean on and trust in Him, He will lead you to your calling.

2) What are you passionate about?  What brings you the greatest joy?  For myself and for many others, we are most alive and impassioned when we are doing what God has created us to do.

3) What are you good at?  The talents we possess are gifts from God.  They are given to us, first and foremost, to glorify Him.  They generally also help to provide for us, although that is not always true.  An example comes to mind.  Early in my faith walk, I told God I would gladly go into the mission field.  I pictured using my engineering skills during the day to help people in a third world country build wells and construct homes by day followed by bible studies and preaching at night.  But the call for me to actually go into foreign missions has not yet come.  It seems likely to me that one of the reasons is my struggle with languages.  For some, like our youngest children and my cousin Richard, languages come very easy, but not for me.  In lieu of actually going overseas on foreign missions, we have been able to support and encourage others who have that calling.

4) What do other people compliment you on?  Sorry, while this can include your mother, it has to be more than just her.  When we walk in our giftedness, it will bless others and some of those people will let you know.  I am not talking about stroking our vanity, but words of affirmation that we are doing what we are supposed to be doing.

Our calling will in some way support the Great commission – the growth and building up of Christ’s body in the earth.  Don’t limit this to just the preaching and teaching of the Word though.  I know God is the great physician who ultimately heals us, however He most often uses doctors and health professionals to be His agents of that healing.  The difference between a person who is walking in their calling as a medical professional and a person who does not recognize what they do as a ministry is the motivation.  One seeks to minister to people and meet their needs through God’s strength and provision.  The other does not have this foundational truth driving them.  I have heard of doctors who pray with their patients through the healing process.  To me that is a great indicator that they are walking in their calling.

Just because you have a specific calling does not mean that these are the only ways God will use you.  He is the omnipotent Creator of the universe.  If you are available and obedient He is more than able to give you the grace in any and every situation you find yourself.  However, recognizing your calling and seeking to put yourself into positions to grow and use the talents you have is a sure path to fulfillment in God’s amazing economy.

Have a blessed day today and may you flourish in the place where God puts you.

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Responding to the Nudge

Posted in God Stories, Holy Spirit, Prayer, Spiritual Growth, tagged , , , , , , on June 23, 2015| Leave a Comment »

I’ve heard it said that the first ability we need to cultivate in our relationship with God is availability.  Being ready and available to do what He says in His word and what the Holy Spirit nudges us to do is foundational to growing and thriving as a Jesus follower.  Last night I was reminded of that in a very powerful way.  I had a conversation with a gentleman I worked with briefly 15 or so years ago.  After not seeing Al since that time we met again here in Washington where we happen to be working on a project together.  Over dinner he shared a bit of his faith story and it surprised me that I likely played an unknown role in his spiritual awakening.

Our faith conversation started when I mentioned that I had been in church all my life, but it wasn’t until I was 23 that I realized that God was interested in a real, living relationship and not just some dry, ritualistic participation in church.  He mentioned that his story was similar and his awakening to that fact began during his one of his visits to my plant in Calhoun, Tennessee around 2000 – 2001.  He said he was sitting in a meeting and he noticed Proverbs 3:5-6 written up in the corner of a blackboard in the conference room.

Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

He said he was at a point in his life that he was very successful.  He didn’t have any needs being unmet.  He described a life that many people long for – a happy marriage of almost 30 years, two great daughters, good health, a great job he enjoyed, financially sound – in short, a life that he was satisfied with.  But something about that verse on the blackboard just poked at him.  I call it a Holy Nudge.  And it began a search.  From that moment he began to seek out what it meant to trust in the Lord with all your heart and to submit to Him.  Well what happened to him is what God promises to everyone who will seek Him with all their heart – He found that living, vibrant relationship with God that has molded and shaped his life since then.  He responded to God’s nudge in that small conference room and his life has been changed from a good life to a great life in union with His Heavenly Father.

My heart swelled because I remembered my days at that plant.  I worked there for 17 years.  One of the lessons I learned while there was the vital importance of responding to Gods’ holy nudges. I can vividly remember two holy nudges early in my time at Calhoun that shaped my faith walk and put me into a position to be used in my friend’s life… whether I knew it or not.  One was a failure on my part that God has redeemed.  The second is part of that redemption and directly impacted my friend, Al.

I had only been at the mill a couple months when I was asked to attend a four-day communication workshop being held at a nearby hotel.  The leader’s name was Sid.  Sid was a large, jovial guy who liked to ask probing questions.  He began the week by telling us that he had recently had a serious health scare as the doctors had told him that he had the big C – Cancer.  But just a week or so earlier he had gotten the all clear from the doctors – no more cancer,  he was fine.  Later that first day Sid had us perform an exercise of sharing our “lifeline” with the class.  We took 10 minutes to draw a chart that represented our life to the current date.  We were to identify 2 or 3 defining moments and share them in a succinct manner.  He shared his lifeline first and mentioned the low point of thinking he might die of cancer and then his line turned up when he was told he was cancer-free and that life was going great.  As I drew my life line it had a major positive step change when I met the Lord at age 23 and I spoke briefly about that.  I remember that Sid challenged me pretty strongly about my step change.  Thinking back I remember I felt intimidated by the force of his challenges and felt even a bit like I was being attacked for my faith.

I was probably a bit more demur the next two days of the workshop.  On Wednesday afternoon, Sid said he was shutting down the workshop 30 minutes early and he was opening up a bar tab for us so we could stay and chat.  It was at this point that I got a very clear Holy Nudge to stay and speak with Sid.  I remember it vividly because I argued with God a bit about it.  I rationalized that since I wasn’t a drinker, I would feel out of place.  I was working on a piece of furniture for the house and I reasoned that I could use the extra time to make good progress on my project.  Even though God was nudging, I was coming up with reasons NOT to do what He was asking.  I even remember telling myself that as hostile as Sid was, he probably was only going to belittle my faith some more.  To my chagrin, I have to tell you that I walked out and went home to my project.  I can tell you now that I felt bad about it as I wiped stain on the entertainment center.  I even paused more than once to pray for Sid.  But I felt the conviction of the Lord as I was substituting a “religious act” instead of following God’s Holy Nudge.

The next day was the last day of the workshop.  I think I may have even told the Lord that I would stay and speak with Sid after the class or something like that.  The day started fine, but just before lunch Sid told us that he wasn’t feeling very well and that he was going to end the class early.  He mentioned that he had experienced angina a few years before associated with a heart attack and that he was feeling angina this morning.  He was going to head over to the emergency room to get it checked out.  I remember I volunteered to drive him, but he had already made arrangements.  I headed home and I can honestly say I was really praying for Sid now.  But I also expected that everything would be fine since he was heading straight to the hospital.

At work the next day, Ben, the assistant plant manager swung by my office to see if I was okay.  I relayed to him that I had enjoyed the class, but that I was concerned about Sid since he had headed to the hospital.  Ben realized then that I had not heard the news.  Sid had a massive heart attack at the hospital that evening and did not survive.  I realized that I had been in a position to offer Sid God’s Words of Grace the evening before he died, but I had rationalized and walked away.  I was ashamed and saddened to my core.  I had grieved the Holy Spirit and I missed an opportunity to obey the One Who gave His all for me.

Thankfully, God’s grace and forgiveness extends to us even when we fail Him.  Over time His forgiveness brought restoration to my broken soul.  I knew I had sinned greatly.  I knew I directly disobeyed the prompting of the Holy Spirit.  But the same Holy Spirit reached out to me, lifted me up out of my sorrow and self-pity, and spoke life to me again.

It was probably a little less than a year later when I was asked to supervise a large team of maintenance personnel on a multi-day paper machine outage.  I was a 30 year old engineer who had never really worked on tools like a craftsman, and yet I was supposed to direct, coach, and support the efforts of about 2o maintenance technicians performing a dozen or more jobs.  The work was going over the weekend of Palm Sunday.  The first day was Saturday and honestly, that day is pretty much lost to my memory.  I vaguely remember feeling overwhelmed more than once with the large amount of demands that I struggled to keep up with.  As I drove in to the plant on Sunday morning I remember clearly speaking out my frustrations to the Lord.  I even said, “Lord, here it is Palm Sunday and I am heading to work and I won’t be able to make it to church.  That’s just not right.  I won’t even be able to have a real time of prayer since I’ll be so busy.”

The Lord spoke to my heart, “Pray with your Team.”

“What Lord?”

“Pray with your Team.”

Rationalizations rose up in my mind… “I barely  know these guys… Am I allowed to do something like this? … What will they think?”

But then I remembered Sid.  I remembered what disobedience felt like.  And I remembered that I had committed to the Lord after ignoring the Holy Nudge with Sid, that I would obey when He clearly asked me to do something in the future, no matter how crazy it might sound.  Well His voice was crystal clear this time.  So I gave the results to Him and I obeyed.

I didn’t have much time to think about it, I just did it.  I handled the normal safety topic and explanation of jobs the same as I had the day before, but as I ended I then shared briefly that my preference on a Sunday morning was to be in church rather than working in the mill.  Also since I believed God was present with His followers everywhere, including when they had to work at the mill on a Sunday we could take the time to acknowledge Him while at work.  I then let the men know that I would like to start our work day with a word of prayer and that it was fine if anyone didn’t share my belief.  They could stay while I prayed or head on out to the job.  Noone moved.  Then we prayed.  I felt the Spirit of the Lord take it from there.  I’m not sure exactly what I prayed, but I know I was being obedient and that God was pleased.

That started a pattern that has remained a part of my life.  I have had a number of leadership roles.  Not every meeting results in a Holy Nudge to pray with the group… but a surprising number have.  The Lord led me to start and lead a number of prayer groups and bible studies during lunch periods and before work as well.  As Al was telling me his story last night, I was moved to tears.  One of the other habits I got into was using the blackboards and dry erase boards during our lunch time bible studies and prayer times.  And sometimes I would get a Holy Nudge to leave a verse behind… just in case.

You almost never know how your obedience impacts someone else’s life.  Thank you Lord for giving me a glimpse of this one.

Obey immediately when He gives you a holy nudge and rejoice in being a partner in the Father’s work.

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Treasuring Your Wife

Posted in Marriage, Responsibility, Spiritual Growth, tagged , , , , , , , on June 8, 2015| Leave a Comment »

I love my wife.  I realized I loved her fairly early in our relationship and it was with great joy that she said yes to my marriage proposal after we had been dating about 5 months.  During this time I have never not loved Lisa.  I wish I could say that she has always felt loved, but I know that at times she has not.  This realization has been one arrived at through a rather drawn-out season of learning.  The Lord kept bringing me back to Ephesians 5:25 until I finally learned and acted upon His prompting to take love to another level.  Here is my post with my friend as we walk through Proverbs.  This is from Friday’s reading in chapter 5.

Proverbs 5:18.  “May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth.”
Lisa and I have been married for over 30 years.  Any couple that has been together for any time has had their share of difficulties.  We have had ours although in God’s grace, none have been too serious.  Probably our most persistent issue has been that we get too busy with our jobs, activities, and doing things for the kids that we forget to take time to nurture our marriage.  Make no mistake – the most important earthly relationship a married person has is the one with their spouse.
I went through a season beginning about 7 years ago that the message the Lord laid on my heart was Ephesians 5:25.  “Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for her…”   This went on for about 4 years.  During that time I repeatedly tried to “Band-Aid” an acceptable response.  I would take this prompting to mean that I needed to “do more” for Lisa, which I would do for a while, but I would soon drift back into busy-ness.  I would again notice the lack of passion and depth in our marriage and I would seek the Lord and He would point to the same verse.  Now I have sought to walk closely with the Lord for 32 years.  I know Him to be real.  He has actively guided me.  For the majority of the time prior to this, there were things He would bring to light that needed changing in me, sometimes it might take me a little while to get it right, but usually in short order He had brought about the change in me He desired and the next lesson would begin.  So for a single lesson to continue for 4 years was different and very humbling.  God had to eventually break me in a very painful and powerful manner.  You can read about it in depth in this blog in the post entitled “Broken Legs, Mended Hearts”.
Here are a few truths that I learned from that season that tie into this verse in Proverbs.
1) Our relationship with our wife is the best barometer of our relationship with God.  If we can’t get the relationship right with the most important human being who we can see, we will struggle with the relationship with the most important One who we happen to be unable to see yet.
2)  God knows the deep things that must be rooted out in our lives.  He loves us enough that He will do the work that needs to be done to get them out.
3)  The first step is not adding more “spiritual” things to our to-do list.  The first step is dying to self and allowing God to replace our wishes, wants, and desires with His desires.
There is an amazing thing that has happened since I reached a deeper place of dying to self and better serving Lisa.  God immediately put a fresh love for Lisa in my heart.  Before anything actually changed in our relationship, God was already making changes inside of me that would become the fertile ground that grew a renewed and deeper love between us.  In a practical way, my love began expressing itself in her love language again which is Quality Time.  My love language is Acts of Service which isn’t on Lisa’s love language radar at all, so all my work to try and show her love in my love language missed the mark.  As God worked in my heart I didn’t have to consciously think about how to show her love.  Since we have been through the Love Language training and recognize the truths of the Five Love Languages my brokenness now sought to effectively demonstrate itself to her.  However since our love had gotten stale and we both were so busy, we had forgotten the need to be intentional in this area.  Once I started truly dying to what I wanted, I became focused upon pleasing Lisa and our relationship has grown and blossomed.  It has been really great the past three years or so.
Oh, I almost forgot.  The fact that I was dying to my desires did not mean that my deepest desires now were totally neglected.  The good ones, the godly ones, the best ones now became the desire of my wife.  God began prompting Lisa to meet my needs at a much deeper level too.
There is a lot of godly wisdom in the verses of Proverbs 5, particularly about avoiding the temptations of the wayward or adulterous woman.  However I have found that if I focus upon doing the BEST thing, I don’t have to spend nearly as much time and effort on not doing all the wrong things.  Dying to self and loving your spouse in practical ways are two sides of the same coin.  Here’s to doing the BEST thing.
I hope you enjoy today’s reading.  Drop me a comment or ask a question if you would get a chance.  I’d love to interact with some of my readers.
Be blessed and be a blessing to someone today.

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A Sweet, Sweet Fragrance

Posted in God, God Stories, Service, Spiritual Growth, Vision, tagged , , , , , , on June 5, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Two and a half years ago my wife and I felt prompted to make an addition to our home.  It seemed a little odd since we were facing an empty nest within 8 months as our youngest of four was about to graduate and head off to college.  As we continued to pray the nudge became a clarified vision and so we began the process.  The addition was to add a pool and a garage with an apartment over head.  We designed it, found a builder who worked wonderfully with us to get it done before the two weddings we had that year, and by Memorial Day we had a new swimming pool and pool house.  One of the most exciting aspects of the process for me was the opportunity to design and add the landscaping.

One of the coolest features we designed was a cedar pergola to connect the pool house with our home.  This turned out really nice creating a rather strong contrast of the red cedar against the grey-brown brick of the buildings.  Additionally it framed a small courtyard that needed the creative landscape touch.  One of the things I envisioned were vines climbing up the pergola and providing an additional degree of natural shading as well as seasonal color.  I found some plants that appeared like they would work and I added them into the plan.

Today, two years after completion of the project I regularly begin my day talking to the Lord on the pool house porch.  This morning I was struck by the wonderful fragrance that wafted in and around the little courtyard from one of the honeysuckles that we planted.  The plant has climbed the 12 feet to the top of the pergola and is covered in delicate pink blossoms.

As I breathed deeply I thought about how that little honeysuckle is like believers who grow into committed followers.  Two years ago the plant arrived in a pot that I easily held in the palm of my hand.  We were careful to plant it in good soil.  We amended the soil and added the appropriate fertilizer.  We also watered it whenever conditions warranted.  A regular task through the growing season has been the training of the plant.  You see honeysuckles spread broadly in their natural state.  They tend to be invasive and a nuisance.  We had in mind a vertical growth that looped up and over the pergola.  So on at least a weekly basis we have had to maneuver the branches into the correct direction.  Additionally we have pruned it removing dead and damaged growth as well as branches that weren’t heading in the right direction.

There are parallels with the growth and training of this little plant and followers of Jesus.  The start of our life in Christ is a very delicate time.  If the enemy can’t stop us from hearing and responding to Jesus’ call to save us, he will double down to keep us from growing in our faith.  He hates all Christians, but if he can prevent us from becoming effective, then at least he doesn’t have to worry about us working in tandem with God to expand the kingdom.  During this period of vulnerability it is crucial that new believers be properly connected to a vibrant body of believers who will ensure they are fed, nurtured, and encouraged.

A major challenge for new believers is the process of sanctification that we begin when we say YES to Jesus call upon our lives.  Salvation is God’s gift given the moment we say yes to Him.  Our new life in Christ begins then.  It would be wonderful if all bad habits and sin tendencies were immediately removed at that time too, but it doesn’t work that way.  My personal experience is that some of my sin tendencies disappeared immediately.  Some did not.  1 Thessalonians 4 talks about living to please God which we do as we sanctify ourselves from the old habits and sins.  In a very close comparison this is like the pruning that takes place on that little honeysuckle we planted.  Unhealthy branches and branches that aren’t going the right way have to be removed.  The same is true in our lives.  And these things take action on the part of the new believer usually in alignment with the body of believers they are connected to.

Time is also a similarity between our honeysuckle and the believer.  I have seen a few new believers “flame out.”  In every case they jumped forward with great enthusiasm and vigor, but they wilted within a relatively short time frame.  They had not taken the time to grow, to develop the roots of faith needed to withstand persecution and the various attacks of the enemy.  Jesus talks about this in the parable of the sower see Matthew 13:1 – 23, but especially verses 20 & 21.  As I mentioned before the early stage of plant growth is a very vulnerable time.  The roots must develop depth to be able to withstand a dry spell.

I have a lot of perennials that I have planted.  One of the worst things you can do for a perennial is water it too often.  This results in shallow roots with no depth.  If you then leave for a week or two and there is no rain you are liable to return to dead plants.  This is one of the reasons that the Lord doesn’t just make life all fun and games.  We must experience times of difficulty, challenge, and dryness to cause us to persevere, stretch ourselves, and grow our faith.

Finally I mentioned the wonderful fragrance coming from the honeysuckle.  In the old testament the burning of incense was a prescribed act of worship.  Symbolically we view the drifting up of the incense smoke and fragrance as representative of our prayers and offerings rising to God.  As we spend time in the Word of God, the Bible; as we sit under good, solid teaching; as we apply ourselves to serving others; as we seek to hear and obey God, we will grow in our faith.  It may be all small steps, but they are steps none-the-less.  We begin to take on the mind of Christ more and more.  We are like that honeysuckle stretching, reaching, and growing.  And in our season to blossom, we will burst forth in fragrant, beautiful bloom.  Our devotion and love of the Father will manifest itself in the flower and fruit of a life established and growing in Him.

Let me finish the story about why God gave us the vision to expand.  About the time we finished building, my sister’s house sold essentially out of the blue.  They looked around for some place to live, but that wasn’t working out.  Again that nudge from the Lord convinced us to offer up our home.  The day after our youngest son moved into College, my sister and her family moved in with us.  The extra room made it work fine.  And then 8 months later, our oldest son who had moved away for what seemed like a good job opportunity, realized closer to family was important.  So their family of 4 moved in with us.  So when the vision was given we wondered why soon-to-be empty nesters would be adding on rather than downsizing.  We didn’t know, but we clearly sensed the Lord’s leading so we obeyed.  And because we did we have been blessed to grow so much closer to our grandsons, son, and daughter-in-law as well as my sister, brother-in-law, nieces, and nephew.  I’m convinced that despite the challenges that three families living together will invariably bring, we have all grown through this experience.  And I believe that part of that sweet fragrance is the love and service we have given to one another these past two years.

Be blessed my friend and be a blessing to someone today.

Our Fragrant Honeysuckle

Our Fragrant Honeysuckle

Climbing the pergola this honeysuckle looks and smells wonderful.

Climbing the pergola this honeysuckle looks and smells wonderful.

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Listen to be Wise – Proverbs 1

Posted in God, Marriage, Spiritual Growth, tagged , , , , on June 4, 2015| Leave a Comment »

I have a friend who agreed to walk through Proverbs with me over the month of June.  We are going to each read a chapter a day and then share our thoughts about one verse from the chapter that impressed us.  Here are thoughts from Proverbs, Chapter 1 on June 1.

Chase’s choice – Proverbs 1:7  “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
      “The fear of the Lord” here to me is submission to the Lord, an open heart and mind to him. My bible states when we fear something, we either run from it or submit to it. I agree, my salvation was very similar to this as a lot of people’s may have been the same way.
      Once we have the fear of the Lord, it is a healthy fear as the fear we have of electricity or parents.  It is a healthy fear or respect which causes you to act appropriately. But while seeking wisdom the fear or submission unto the Lord is the controlling principle of wisdom.  This principle should not be abandoned and a person cannot just fully focus on the idea that we must just acquire wisdom alone. I believe that is where the fools despising wisdom comes in.  They do not begin with that respect or appropriate fear.
My choice – Proverbs 1:5 “let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance.”  and Proverbs 1:33 “but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”
On proverbs 1:7 you made a wise choice.  I always picture God’s awesome majesty, holiness, and righteousness when I consider “the fear of the Lord”.  Romans 3:23 says that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”.  That being the case, we all have reason to fear the judgment that we correctly deserve.  The hope of favor with God can then begin to make us desire to walk right and submit.  When we combine His majesty, holiness, and righteousness with His love, mercy, and grace – we have the awesome combination that causes us to joyously submit.
My verse was verse 5, “let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance.”  The last verse, verse 33, also echoes the theme.  In verse 33 it is wisdom itself speaking saying, “but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”  Verse 5 tells us what we are to do.  Verse 33 tells us what the results will be.  Wisdom is the correct and consistent application of knowledge.  I have met many very intelligent people who weren’t really very wise.  They struggled with making the correct application of the vast knowledge they possessed.  I love knowledge, but I have learned that I would rather be wise than just smart.
The common thread in these two verses is listening.  It’s funny, but I spent a lot of my younger married years listening to experts about things, but I spent the majority of my time with my wife and family telling rather than listening.  The Lord has shown me that my wife and even my children can be excellent dispensers of truth and wisdom.  That doesn’t take away from trying to learn from experts, but it means that I should not overlook or despise the sources of wisdom the Lord will use close to me.
One more thought that you may have also heard.  God gave us two ears versus only one mouth.  Wisdom is using this reminder that we are to listen twice as much as we are to talk.  I haven’t studied it so thoroughly as to say if it is exactly 67% listening to 33% talking, but I know the general rule is true.
Be blessed today and be a blessing.

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Turn Toward the Sun

Posted in God, God Stories, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Spiritual Growth, The Father, tagged , , , , on May 28, 2015| 2 Comments »

It is a coolish late spring morning where I live.  As I slipped outside into the early dawn my shorts and t-shirt provided slightly less warmth than I needed, but the beauty of the pre-sunrise sky drew me in and kept me from going back inside.  As I walked I meditated upon my study the night before on spiritual growth and the classical disciplines which help us in that growth.  As I look back on my life I can see that it has been a series of growth spurts and plateaus.  It is probably much like a tree which grows rapidly during the spring and summer and then rests through the fall and winter.  I suspect we all have “growth rings” of a sort.  I recognized two other things.  Deeper intimacy with the Lord and increased practice of one, and usually more, of the spiritual disciplines were present during the times of growth.

There is an essential order to the process.  It is crucial that we recognize and keep before us the goal of our life, the goal of spiritual growth is to grow in our intimacy with the Lord.  Jesus’ death on the cross was not simply so that we could go to heaven one day.  No, His death was to remove the curse of sin which separated us from the Father and opened the door to a life of intimacy with Him.  The curse is removed immediately, but intimacy comes over time as we collaborate with the work of the Holy Spirit inside us.  So the essential order is 1) accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, 2) make intimacy with God our primary goal in life, 3) practice those activities which lead to greater knowledge of and intimacy with the Lord, and then 4) experience all the benefits, privileges, and responsibilities of a life surrendered to Him.  The benefits, privileges, and responsibilities begin showing up as soon as we begin our spiritual journey, but what I experience today is so much more than what I did when I was a young Christian.

I had been exposed to small doses of the classical disciplines over the first couple of years of my faith walk by more mature believers, but the real breakthrough came when someone gave me the book, Celebration of Discipline – The PATH to SPIRITUAL GROWTH by Richard Foster.  It is succinct, well-researched, and written in a way that I could easily understand.  I recommend it to anyone seriously desiring to grow spiritually but unsure what steps to take.  In the near future I suspect my posts will include things we discuss in our Home Group since we will be studying this over the next three months.  I am very excited because I sense the Lord wants to do something new and fresh in our group and in me.

As I continued to walk outside a shiver hit me due to the chill in the air even as my excitement was building.  I stopped and turned to look at the sunrise just as the sun was becoming visible through the trees on the horizon.  Immediately the chill was gone and I sensed a warmth on the outside that mirrored the warmth I was feeling on the inside as I had been meditating and praying to the Lord.  In that moment I was struck by the fact that as we look to the Son, Jesus, and grow in intimacy with Him, God the Father draws us into His warm embrace and fills us with His grace more and more.

At Pentecost, God poured out the Holy Spirit upon the disciples as tongues of fire.  So it is when we make it our life goal to live in intimacy with Jesus, the Holy Spirit will warm us with His Holy fire.  The closer we get to Jesus, the more we surrender ourselves to the work of the Holy Spirit in and through us.  His fire is a refining fire though.  It will burn up the chaff in our life – those things that are not God’s best for us.  But with the purging and refining comes something so much better, so much greater – a deeper, richer faith and an intimacy with the Lover of our Soul that we were created for.

And that, my friend, is glorious!

Go forth to be blessed and be a blessing to someone God puts in your path today!

A pre-dawn sunrise viewed from our SC home.

A pre-dawn sunrise viewed from our SC home.

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