Tag: Devotions

God, make a fresh start in me,
      shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
   Don’t throw me out with the trash,
      or fail to breathe holiness in me.
   Bring me back from gray exile,
      put a fresh wind in my sails!

-Psalm 51:10-12 (The Message)

I believe God is getting ready to do something here at Tallowood and beyond.  Why do I believe this?  I believe this because I can already see evidence of the Holy Spirit stirring. 

In his Times article last week, Dr. Brooks shared the burden that the executive staff has for renewal and for calling God’s people to prayer.  This has been my burden as well and I have been praying to that end.

This morning, I met with to ministry friends to share and pray together.  One of these ladies shared how God had diagnosed the deadness in her life and began to change her.  She shared God’s work with her family which in turn has lead to the beginning of healing and change in her family.  At the same time, the executive staff at her church has also been burdened with a need for renewal. 

 The Spirit is moving!  Dr. Brooks has suggested “that this summer be a time of setting our sails in hopes that God might breathe a mighty rushing wind upon His people.  Will you join us in praying for God to pour out His Spirit?  Let’s prepare our hearts this week, this month, this summer and wait expectantly on our knees.

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.  -Romans 12:9-10

The last couple of weeks we have talked about what it means to be the Body of Christ.  We have talked about rejoicing with each other and mourning with each other.  We have talked about using our spiritual gifts and fulfilling our part in the body.

Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians and in his letter to the Romans, follows his teaching on the spiritual gifts immediately by writing about love.  In Romans, he writes “love must be sincere,” and “be devoted to one another in brotherly love.”  In 1 Corinthians, he follows with what we know as the love Chapter (1 Corinthians 13).

We can rejoice with each other and mourn with each other.  We can even use our gifts admirably, but if we don’t have love, we gain nothing.

I confess that I was not anxious to spend time with this passage to write this today.  As I sought God for what to write about, I landed on 1 Corinthians 13 and thought, “ok, I’ll put that down as a possibility.”  I wanted to move on, but God stopped me there. 

I remember, as a child, they had us substitute our name for the word love in verses 4-7. Michelle is patient. Michelle is kind…you get the picture.  I can’t say these things are true all the time.  I am mostly patient (except when I’m behind the wheel of the car).  I am not always kind.  To be devoted to one another in brotherly love though, is to be these things to each other…to be patient and kind, not keeping a record of wrongs, holding each other accountable so that we do not delight in evil, but rejoice in the truth.  It is difficult to be devoted to one another and be self-seeking at the same time.

Loving each other is the bottom line of being part of the Body of Christ. “They will know we are Christians by our love.”

Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
-I Corinthians 12:14

Last week, we talked a little about what it means to be the Body of Christ.  I’d like to spend some more time with this idea.  In his letters, Paul spends a good deal of time talking about this concept.  I think there are times when we have heard it so much that we don’t stop to think about what it means.

Paul writes about the body being made of up many parts.  Each individual part is part of the whole.  Each part is important even though the function may be different.  The eye can’t say to the ear, “I don’t need you.”  My mom would say those with the gift of evangelism can’t say to those with the gift of teaching that “We don’t need you.”

Have you ever wished you were a great communicator like Dr. Brooks? Or wished you were a great musician like several of our single adults?  Maybe you have wanted to be a details person that can easily put together events.  What if, instead of wishing we had someone else’s skills, we looked at the gifts God has given us and determined to use them for His glory?  You are an important part of the Body of Christ.  You are an important part of this community of Single Adults.  No one person or group of people is going to result in a successful ministry.  It is God working in each of us as we use the gifts he has given us together.  What part are you? 

Here’s my challenge to you this week as you consider this.  Pray.  Ask God to give you wisdom and guidance as to where He can best use your gifts and abilities.  As you pray, I would also ask that you consider one of the more immediate needs within our single adult community: people to serve on the Single Adult Council.  This group of people helps guide the direction and ministry of the single adult ministry at Tallowood.  We have three people rotating off in June and need to fill those spots with new people with a fresh perspective.  We need you.  Pray for these elections, but pray knowing you may be the one needed to serve at this time.

Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.
–Romans 12:15

Tuesday, the staff spent the afternoon praying through the prayer requests that were submitted this past weekend in each of the services.  I always look forward to this time.  I get to set aside everything else and spend the afternoon in prayer.  It can be overwhelming at times.  The needs within the body of Christ are great.  That said, I am always reminded that we serve a great God.  He is not unaware of the needs. 

Each time the staff prays; each time I pray, I find myself coming away with a different perspective.  God gives me a glimpse of His heart for His people.  My life experiences make me more sensitive to certain needs and maybe even desensitized to others.  God’s heart breaks when any of his children are in need and rejoices over every success no matter how big or small.

Being a part of the Body, a community, means that we are to “rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn.”  I may have the title of minister, but each and every one of us has opportunity to minister each and every day.  Who will you rejoice with this week?  Who will you mourn with?  Who will you minister to in Christ’s name?

This week, we have two of our own who are mourning.  Christina Osborne’s mother died this morning.  Please remember Christina and Bob and Christina’s family in prayer in these days ahead.

A thief comes to steal and kill and destroy, but I came to give life—life in all its fullness.  -John 10:10 (NCV)

This has long been a favorite verse of mine. Most translations use abundant life which is great. I discovered this one today and love it. It speaks of the life we have to look forward to, but I think it also speaks of the life we live now in Christ. It doesn’t say anything about life beginning when you get married, when you’ve been a church member for five years or when you have read the Bible through for the first time. In Christ we can have life in all its fullness.

I’ve known women who live their lives waiting to be married. I don’t discount the desire to be married, or even preparation. However, when you live life waiting to be married, you miss out on the life that God has for you NOW. You also end up putting that desire before God which is exactly what the thief would like to see happen.

One of the best pieces of advice I was given as a young single was from Margaret Becker. Maggie B, as she is known to fans, is a Christian singer/song writer and speaker. I had the privilege of hearing her speak to a group of young single women one time. She told us not to wait till we were married to do things we wanted to do in life like buy a house etc. Maggie B wanted to have children but she was not married. As she wrestled with God over it, she found that he provided children through her work with World Vision.

Living life rather than waiting is good advice wherever you may be in life. Do you have a desire to share the Gospel? You don’t have to be a missionary or go overseas to do so. Do you have a heart for ministry? You don’t have to wait until a certain age or even be a Seminary graduate to minister to people. God created each of us with unique passions and abilities and even life histories that work to accomplish His purpose for our lives. If God puts a desire in your heart to do something, pay attention. He will either provide opportunities or means to do that, or He may already have put things into place. There is certainly a time for waiting. However, even in times of waiting, when we live our lives in Christ, we can live it to the full. So what are you waiting for? Live life in all its fullness. Live it in Christ.

 Two things I ask of you, O LORD; do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonour the name of my God.  – Proverbs 30:7-9 (NIV)

 Dr. Brooks shared these verses with us during staff meeting this week.  He was reflecting on them after having seen a clip that Francis Chan posted to You Tube where he was reflecting on these verses.  They hit home so I wanted to share them with you.

Francis Chan’s reflection can be found here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2oi6y292kE).  If you don’t have access to You Tube, here’s the gist:

 The author asks just two things.  First, keep falsehood and lies far from him.  In this day and age where falsehood and lying have been redefined to allow for the latest loophole, this is a bold request. 

Second, he asks that God give him neither poverty nor riches, but only his daily bread.  This is an even bolder request.  In this society, we are taught to do everything possible to make more than we need so we can take care of ourselves in the future.  Certainly, this is not an unwise thing to do.  It does, however, make it very easy to fall into a trap of self reliance.  On the flip side, not having enough sends us into another set of temptations.

I have a friend who has been ministering and fulfilling her calling on a faith basis for years.  Every dollar that comes in to pay bills, and to travel the world doing what God has called her to do comes in from people who give.  She doesn’t go around fundraising for her ministry.  She prays and trusts God for his provision.  I have learned a great deal about faith through her friendship.

I don’t believe God calls everyone to this type of ministry.  I do wonder with Francis Chan how many of us would be willing to boldly pray that prayer.  Would you?

On another note, isn’t it great that Francis shared this and Dr. Brooks passed it along, and now I am sharing with you?  This is what being part of a body is about.  It is encouraging each other in the faith and walking the journey together.  I am so glad to be on this journey with you.

 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.  -Ephesians 3:20-21

It is easy to get bogged down in the day to day events of life and become discouraged.  There are too many things on the calendar, things aren’t moving as fast as we’d like them to or they’re moving too fast.  We put our heads down and trudge onward trying to make do.  Our faces grow determined and our hearts grow tired.  Our vision grows dim.

Several years ago, I listened to a friend talk about the fact that we serve a God who can make waterfalls go up.  I was inspired by the truth in that statement.  I’ve never seen God make a waterfall go up, but I know He could.  I recognized the implications for that in my life at the time-that God is able.  That little statement renewed my passion to pursue Him for all that was happening.  A couple of weekends ago, God reminded me of that truth.  He asked me to follow Him believing He can change the direction of the waterfalls in my life, trusting that when He doesn’t He is right there with me when I fall over the edge.

This week is spring break for a lot of people.  Whether or not you get to take a whole week, take some time this week to break out of the bog.  Spend some time pondering who God is and what He is able to do.  He is able.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

–Hebrews 12:1-2

 A couple of weeks ago, I was driving along Highway 6 noting the plethora of signs along the way.  There are all kinds of signs from billboards to neon signs to signs nailed to telephone poles.  Some are very slick, some are old and faded.  Some are in your face and some are more subtle. Whatever kind of sign, the goal is to get your attention and ultimately divert you from the highway or get you to do something you might not have otherwise done.

 This is very much like the road of life, especially the Christian life.  There are an inexhaustible number of things competing for our attention.  Satan tries to use these things to divert us from our journey with Christ.  Sometimes these are billboard size distractions and therefore easily recognizable.  We might glance once, but we move forward and it doesn’t’ phase us again.  Sometimes the distractions are slick and we stumble willingly into them finding ourselves off road before we know what hit us.  Sometimes the distractions are subtle appealing to an area of your life that you may not recognize as vulnerable.  There are even distractions that, in and of themselves, are not all that bad, but the end result is that we detour from life with Christ.

 Christ desires a relationship with each of us in which we are continuing to grow more like Him.  It’s pretty obvious that sin keeps us from growing.  However, the author of Hebrews writes that we are to throw off everything that hinders us AND the sin that entangles us.  When we begin to look at things in our life from this point of view, I think it puts a lot of things in perspective.  Good things can become distractions as well. 

 The good news is that because of God’s grace, whether you have made a short side trip, a long detour or have been cruising along with half your wheels on the road and half off, you can stop and get back on the road.  Wherever you are this week, let’s throw off the things that are hindering us and fix our eyes on Jesus.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.  -Ephesians 3:20-21

This summer I have the privilege of leading the Women’s Ministry group Meet Me at the Well in a study on Bill Hybels’ book Too Busy Not to Pray.  Monday evening, we were discussing chapter 3, God is Able.  In it, Hybels theorizes that one reason we do not pray as we need to is that “Somewhere far beneath our surface layer of faith and trust, we don’t actually believe God has the ability to do anything about [our requests]” I think he’s right.  I think there is often a disconnect between what we intellectually, by faith believe, and what our actions reveal we really believe.

As we were discussing this idea, God brought to mind, the above verse and I saw it in a fresh light.  God is able to do more than we ask.  That is pretty awesome in and of itself.  He is also able to do more than we can imagine.  What can you imagine?  I know some of you out there have incredible imaginations.  God is able to do more than that.  Think about that for a minute and ponder God’s awesomeness.  Have you given up praying for something?  Maybe you need to reconsider in light of what God is able to do.

You know, I just realized that I used this verse earlier this spring.  Maybe some of us need the reminder.  Maybe we need to do what Hybels did.  He spent time studying every passage in the Bible that “emphasizes God’s ability to accomplish anything he desires.”  After that, Hybels writes that “I have branded those words into a block of wood that I keep where I can see it as I kneel to pray each day.  I value the reminder because making requests of God is an exercise in futility if I don’t think he’s actually able to answer.”

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. – 1 Corinthians 9:24

Friday, August 8th, marks the opening of the Olympics in Beijing, China. I have always loved watching the Olympics. I love to see the flags of all the countries being represented and hear the stories of perseverance that surface during these days.

This year, my conviction is that the Olympics represent a unique opportunity for focused prayer, not only for China, but for the world. If you are a fan of the Olympics, I challenge you to join me in prayer. Pray that God will pour out His Spirit on the countries represented. As you watch, pray for the athletes and their countries. In years past, there was a series of documentaries on the Olympics called 16 Days of Glory. My prayer is that this year we would make it 16 days of prayer for God’s Glory