Prayer for Others Transforms Us, Too

"A Christian community either lives by the intercessory prayers of its members for one another, or the community will be destroyed.  I can no longer condemn or hate other Christians for whom I pray, no matter how much trouble they cause me.  In intercessory prayer the face that may have been strange and intolerable to me is transformed into the face of one for whom Christ died, the face of a pardoned sinner.  That is a blessed discovery for the Christian who is beginning to offer intercessory prayer for others.  As far as we are concerned, there is no dislike, no personal tension, no disunity or strife that cannot be overcome by intercessory prayer.  Intercessory prayer is the purifying bath into which the individual and the community must enter every day." -- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

God's Will and You

The call of God is general and it is specific. God’s will on earth is to grow His Church—that every person on earth come to know Him as He is; i.e. to know Him as their creator, their master, their lover, their God. He wants everyone to experience Him and have relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. He wants His will on earth done as it is in Heaven. He does not want to see people sick, depressed, lonely, hurt, suffering from disease, broken, broke, unloved, defenseless, ridiculed, enslaved, abused, hated, ignored, burned, left for dead, disregarded, or lied to.

You are part of the bride of Christ. To be a bride means only to love Him, and to let him love you. Fully.

When you are asking to find your specific purpose, your specific role, it only makes sense to me that you seek to love Him first, that you seek to find His heart more. When that love relationship gets all kinds of messy then things will be birthed in your spirit. Then, those things won’t just be cool things that give you something to get excited about for a while; they will be things that already are drenched in the purposes and heart of God. THOSE are the things that turn out to do mighty Kingdom things.

Don’t necessarily look for things that everybody else is doing, things that are big, and looking at the way to do them the biggest and best. People don’t necessarily have to notice you…especially at first. If the goal is to be noticed, especially at first, then your heart probably isn’t in the right place. Don’t be the guy in the worship band that misses the worship b/c of the band. Don’t be the prayer warrior that only goes to major events but neglects the prayer closet. You’ve gotta lay the ground work in your heart correctly if you want to be part of something that is God-big, and sustainable.

Your specific purpose will tie to the big overall purpose: to grow His Church on earth. If you keep that in the forefront of your mind and heart, then the Lord will sooner or later show you your more specific role in the Body. The Body is His Bride. Let us love Him.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Are You Tired?

Are you tired? If the answer is yes, then it’s from one of two things: 1. pushing real hard, or; 2. inactivity.

If you are feeling wore out (I’m talking spiritually here, of course) and it’s from inactivity, then the answer for you is simple: go do something. Get off the couch, get off of Facebook, and quit drowning yourself with distractions. Remove yourself, even if for only an hour, from your circumstances and situations. Get somewhere that you can free your mind, heart, soul, body, and spirit, and seek after the Lord; I promise you that you will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13). If your thing is service, then make time to do something for God and other people. A little time in His presence and/or serving Him will start to transform your life.

If you have been pursuing after the Lord in whatever manner it is He has called you to and you are just feeling fatigued, then I’m talking to you today.

* * * * *

I was sitting on the couch last night after taking a run in the heat. I was all sprawled out sweating on everything, breathing hard, feeling tired. I didn’t really want to even get up to eat supper b/c just chilling on the couch sounded better at the time.

As I was sitting there, I got to thinking about how tired I felt. I can remember sitting on the couch months ago and feeling just as tired. I can remember how much running just one mile used to suck…but I had just run farther and harder than I had in a long time.

Then, the spiritual application of what I had been doing hit me: every single time I feel tired from running myself to death, I am making myself ready for an even harder run next time.

Yes, during the middle of the run I almost always think, “Ugh, how much longer?” or “It would be so much easier to just walk the rest of the way.” But the fatigue I feel is only temporary. Over the next few days, my body always feels better because I am conditioning it. I feel more invigorated, I have more energy, and I sleep better at night.

The parallels hold true in my spiritual conditioning—every single time I run after God, I get myself ready for a deeper run. Feeling tired, at times, is part of it. But the exhaustion doesn’t last if I am conditioning the right way; I recover with even more energy, drive, revelation, and conviction than before.

* * * * *

This is just an encouragement to those of you who are feeling a little tired from running hard after the Lord. I implore you to keep pushing and pushing and pushing… He might be preparing you for something bigger than you can wrap your head around right now. Be assured that your journey will never be more than you can handle through Jesus Christ, and that He will definitely make provision for you along the way.

Spectating

I was born and raised in Kentucky. So it goes without saying that Wildcat basketball is in my blood. Rupp Arena, Midnight Madness, 7 National Titles: the best program on earth. I buy UK merchandise, tailor my plans for 6 months out of the year around tip-off times, and yell until my throat becomes a tattered mess of reddened tendons. I’m a true fan.

March is my favorite time of the year. I, along with millions of other fans across the country (albeit supporting lesser teams), sit on pins and needles as one-by-one every heavyweight and Cinderella is knocked out of the tournament until only one team is left standing. Year in and year out, it is the one sporting spectacle that never fails to deliver.

But for all the zeal I pour into cheering on the Big Blue, how much more energy would I exude if I could play for them? Even in defeat, wouldn’t it be infinitely more satisfying to be in the game than to just scream at my TV from the living room?

Here’s the deal: God never made you to be a spectator in your life. Those skills you have, those things that make you tick—they were put there by your Maker. The way you can paint, the way you can organize, the way your energy is infectious, the way you can listen to people empty their hearts out, the way you see things differently—all put there by the Lord.

These giftings you have are meant to be used. Sometimes it can be easy to watch the star players and just be content to say, “Man, they are awesome!” Yes, they are awesome. But one of the cool things God did was make us all part of one body. You see, a body needs all of its parts to perform at its peak. No, we may not have the flashy, show-stopping abilities of John Wall, but we all have something to add to the team.

Is it good for you to support others? Yes. Is it OK for you to not take the lead in every single situation? Yes. Should you rabidly cheer on those around you who are following hard after their own dreams? Absolutely. But God has something for you, too. Something that He designed specifically with you in mind. Something that is all your own. Go get it.