The Three Dependencies (Pt-2) Our Role

 

Previously, I wrote about the need for Holy Spirit to be at the center of all missions work. He is the one that leads and guides all aspects of the missionary's work. Today I want to explore the second dependency that every missionary has and needs to embrace if they are going to be successful. Because nobody can serve well as a lone ranger, we all need a support group around us to fulfill the call of God on our lives. It is this second dependency that I am focused on these days. My prayer is that many Churches will gain a new perspective on their role in missions and that they will embrace a more active partnership with the missionaries that they support in the field.

Missionaries often times feel forgotten. They have been commissioned and prayed over, given a check and sent out the door. Now, to be fair, this is what they asked for. They asked a Church or a few Churches to help support them as they go off to another country (or another state or city) to begin working in a new mission. They may be going to work with someone or they may be launching out on their own to pioneer a new ministry. Either way, they are are moving away from the support network that they have known. This can produce 50 different emotions in them and the people they share those things with are no longer with them. Those friends are back home, a few thousand miles away. They are now processing the excitement, fear, anxiety and elation of stepping into something new without the support of those they used to share their lives with.

As time goes by, the calls and the messages from the friends and family tend to dwindle. The people that used to be their network are moving on with life. Just because someone moves away does not mean everyone else's lives have come to a standstill. Life has a way of moving forward. Connections that were strong can easily become tenuous or non-existent in just a few months. The people we swore we would stay in touch with forever become an afterthought in a busy life. 

When people leave to begin a new life as a missionary, they usually have a busy life. They are trying to define the boundaries where their ministry will function within, get settled into a new home and acquainted with a new community, learn a new language and navigate day to day life in a strange environment. All of these things take time. The things that they have always done without a second thought are now a major task. The things that seemed like a major task in the States quickly become an unmanageable mess in the new country. These things are stressful but because the new missionary is there on their own, they learn to become mostly self sufficient.

This newfound self sufficiency can be exhilarating. The first  time you are able to take care of your daily requirements without a helper, guide or translator feels incredible. In the process of learning to navigate the new life, it is easy for the missionary to forget to stay in contact with the people from their old life. It does not take long for the connection to old friends and the Church back home to begin to diminish. Unfortunately, by the time that the missionary realizes they still need the connection and support, it can be nearly nonexistent.

I have lots of things that I thought about writing but I think I want Paul to show us the need from His perspective. 

I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. [Phl 4:10-17 ESV]

[1Co 16:17-18 ESV] 17 I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have made up for your absence, 18 for they refreshed my spirit as well as yours. Give recognition to such people.

[2Ti 4:11, 21 ESV] 11 Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry. ... 21 Do your best to come before winter. Eubulus sends greetings to you, as do Pudens and Linus and Claudia and all the brothers.

As you read these words of Paul, you quickly realize that the greatest apostle needed people, friends to encourage and support him. He could not do the things that he did without the support and encouragement of others. Those that had been his tribe in the past were those that he turned to for comfort and support. If Paul needed to be surrounded by people that knew and loved him, the missionaries we send do too. They need us to stay in touch. to write, message, call and even visit. We all go through seasons when it is difficult to encourage ourselves or clearly discern the voice of God. In those times, we need our friends, family and Church to come along side us and hold us up.

As the Church and as individual congregations, we need to make the decision to intentionally encourage and support those we send off into missions. My prayer is that God would allow me the time and resources to spend the next 20 years of my life helping Churches learn to do this better while also going to visit and encourage my friends in missions. I am praying that many of you see this need and join me. 

When we work to encourage, support and build up those we send, we can see from Paul's writing in Philippians that it not only encourages him but it also helps build the Church that supports. It causes fruit to be produced on their behalf. God's intention has all along been to build us as one body and by supporting those we send, financially, emotionally, spiritually and physically, we strengthen ourselves and the whole body.

The Three Dependencies (Pt-1)

 If you have noticed the title of this blog, it is the Three Legged Stool. Today I want to start explaining the name and giving a little insight into where I am going with everything. I am praying that many will read this and begin to share the vision God has given me. While I am writing specifically to help develop a network of people and Churches to encourage missionaries, I believe that the things I am writing are also necessary for developing healthy Church communities. I will be writing about the first place we need to be dependent today. That is Holy Spirit and the written Word. I will continue with the other two places a missionary needs to be supported and encouraged, Those being their local, home Church family and finally, a missions' organization and/or a Church family in their new country. These three comprise the stool that supports the work of the missionary.

I am starting with Holy Spirit and the Word because they are the foundation that all ministry flows from. They cannot be separated. Holy Spirit was sent to lead us to Jesus. He came as a comforter, guide, counselor, and our source of wisdom. Jesus told us that it was necessary for Him to leave so another, Holy Spirit would come. When we neglect, or overlook Holy Spirit, we also miss Jesus and the Father. How can I say this? Jesus told us that Holy Spirit's job was to speak of and lead us to Him. The Holy Spirit came to witness of Jesus to all that have not seen Him in the Flesh. Jesus is the way to the Father so, without Holy Spirit, we will miss the Father and the Son.

"But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. [Jhn 15:26 ESV]

I connected the written Word to Holy Spirit because this is the primary place He speaks to us and testifies of Jesus. If we are not in the written Word, we will never come to know the Living Word. The truth concealed on its pages are filled with life and Holy Spirit speaks to us through them more than any other way. They are a place to learn to discern the ways God leads and speaks. A person who is not absorbed in the written Word will find it impossible to recognize and discern the leading of Holy Spirit.

As we allow ourselves to be washed and our minds trained by the written Word, we will find Holy Spirit opening us to new ways of seeing things and new ways of thinking. Romans tells us to be conformed to this new way of thinking. It is a way that has been trained and conformed to the mind of God brought to us by His Spirit and informed by His Word. Paul put it this way

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. [Rom 12:1-2 ESV]

As we present ourselves to God, it is so He can fully do His work in us. Part of that work is that we cooperate with Holy Spirit and submit ourselves to the study of His written word while He changes the way we see things. He begins to give us His mind and we start to discern His will. The fruit of this is that we will begin to look more like Jesus to the world and we will have more confidence in following His leading. You will find yourself guessing less and walking more in confidence that God is directing your steps.

For a missionary, this is the starting point. There will be many times that a missionary cannot see a way to accomplish anything. The purposes of God are beyond human reasoning. He gives us glimpses but it is only by His Spirit, working in a renewed mind that there can be confidence in stepping out in faith. If we want to make any real difference in the world, we begin in this place. The cross brought our death with Jesus but Holy Spirit raised Him to life and united us with Him in His resurrected life.

But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. [Rom 8:10-14 ESV]

Being a missionary requires wisdom and courage that only comes by fellowship with Holy Spirit. It requires discernment and knowledge of the written Word to walk in this fellowship. This fellowship is the relationship with the Living Word that Holy Spirit draws us into. It is this relationship that incorporates both our mind, will and emotions and also our spirit, made alive in Christ. It unlocks the wisdom of God for us. While the world is in bondage, we can walk in freedom and joy. 

Paul said it this way to the Corinthians. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord." [1Co 1:27-31 ESV]

On our own. we can do nothing. In the natural, we do not think like God. His ways are so far beyond us that we cannot comprehend them. Even if we recognize them, we won't be able to accomplish them. They are not ours to do. God's work is His. His plan is His to fulfill. Our role is to walk with Him as a witness to tell of all He is doing. A missionary is one that proclaims what they see. We see from being united with Jesus by Holy Spirit and it is this union that empowers us to be where we need to be, when we need to be there to say and do what God gives us.

In my last blog post, I wrote about not being enough. not smart enough, not strong enough, not good enough to accomplish God's purposes and that trying only makes me tired and wanting to give up. That is the point we can begin to move with the Spirit. When we know we are not enough, we are in a place that we can finally acknowledge our utter dependence on Holy Spirit to lead and guide our every word, our every action so we can be in step with all He is doing in the world today. We can't lead the work. We can't cause it to be fulfilled. We can only get close enough to Holy Spirit to follow His lead. Then, as He is drawing people to Jesus, He will allow us to speak for Him and to act for Him in ways that will accomplish His work.

We are totally dependent on Holy Spirit to do anything of value. He is our first and primary need. In humility, we must submit ourselves to the position of dependency. As a practical matter however, He is not our only need. God made us to need other people and in the next two blogs, we will explore these other two needs to be able to walk in God's purposes.

I pray that you are enjoying these posts and being challenged by them. Please subscribe in the link below and they will come to your inbox. Also please share the posts and the blog homepage with your friends and social media contacts. Your help will help me reach a larger audience with the goal of creating a network of people to build and encourage the long term success of missionaries.

Not Strong Enough

 I don't know about you, but some days I just feel like I am barely hanging on. It can feel like this Christian walk is more than I can do. There are times when I know God is calling me to do things but the whole idea is overwhelming. Some days, it feels like there is no point in even continuing to work on it because it is impossible. I suspect that there are many out there that feel this way. You are in over your head and you know it. This feeling can make you feel trapped and leave you prey to an enemy that is looking for an open door to come in and destroy the things God has been building on you.

The truth of the matter is that if you are following the plans of Jesus, you are in over your head. His plans for you are bigger than your abilities on your best day. They are so far out of reach on a regular day that you probably can't even fathom that you haven't been left to drown in a sea of grandiose ideas. You feel like just treading water is success. I say you, but often it is me that feels this way. I look at the things God has put in my heart and the excitement that used to burn for them has turned to dread. I am not strong enough! I feel doomed to failure so why try.

I find that this feeling always brings me to a crossroad. I have a choice to make. If I choose to continue as I have, I risk defeat and despair. I am on easy target for an enemy that is stalking and tempting. I can admit the futility of it all and become depressed. This leaves me vulnerable to fall into every trap I used to fall into. The enemy will recycle things when we are in this weak and hopeless state and see if we are open to falling into the same old snares again. It is easy to fall into the things we used to go to for comfort when we are distressed. As disturbing as it may be to think, we are just a few wrong thoughts away from being victimized by a lurking, opportunistic enemy.

The other choice is to recognize that the success of God's plan has little to do with my ability. It is totally dependent on my willingness to abide in the vine. As long as I know my need and cling to the source of life, He will cling to me even tighter and fill me with all I need to do all He calls me to. Even Jesus, at the weakest point of His life. recognized that it was the connection with His Father and Holy Spirit that strengthened Him to be able to embrace the cross. He wanted to run from it but instead, He chose to press into His Father. In this place of intimacy with Father, while sweating drops of blood, he found the resolve and the resources to embrace the cross. We need to look at this example for our own call.

We cannot do anything of value in our own strength. We are clothed in frailty and weakness. We live in the finite world of our own body. God's plans are infinite and eternal. It only makes sense that they are too big for us. It is only by retreating into Jesus and living in fellowship with Him that we can find the place of rest that empowers us to fulfill all He calls us to. Look at the following passages.

[Mat 11:25-30 ESV] 25 At that time Jesus declared, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

[Heb 4:8-11 ESV] 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. 9 So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, 10 for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. 11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.

Too often, it is easy to look at the need around us and the call of God on us and feel like it is an overwhelming task. We feel the need to immediately get to work. We plan and network. We throw every ourselves fully into the job at hand, trying to utilize every available resources and we won't stop until we are finished. From a human perspective, that sounds incredible but from God's perspective, it is doomed to fail. He sees a bigger picture. He knows our limitations and weakness. He did not choose us because we were so strong we could do it, He chose us because we were weak and would have to live in complete dependence if we wanted to see any success.

The first step of undertaking any new ministry is to rest. We need to seek God until we are able to lay every outcome at His feet and trust Him. We must start from a place of rest and peace and not allow any circumstance to dislodge us from there. It is only by knowing that we are seated with Him in the Heavenlies and that He is in complete control that He can use us for anything. He does not need is to be enough. He needs us to be in His presence. Just like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, it was in communion with Father that He was able to step out in courage and destroy the works of the enemy. If Jesus, God's Son, needed to go off and find the Father's presence for the task before Him, how much more do we.

You and I are not strong enough but we were never meant to be. The call of God will incorporate our gifts, talents and skills but it isn't dependent on them. The only thing needed for God's plans to be fulfilled in and through our lives is for us to surrender to Him and rest in His presence. It is there that we will find the orders for the day, the task He is calling us to join Him on in the moment. You may have a big call but it does not depend on you figuring it out. It only depends on you walking in His presence and obedience to the specific task for the moment. He will empower you to do that. The picture is of the manna in the wilderness. There was always just enough for the moment and never more, except to provide for the Sabbath rest on the seventh day.

If you are feeling overwhelmed and the call is too big, retreat to God's presence. Let Him bring you to a place of rest. Stop pushing forward until you recognize that His plan is His responsibility to accomplish. You are a bit player and not the one carrying the weight of success. That is His job. You are not enough but you were never meant to be. His grace is sufficient to carry you into the fulfillment of His plans for your life.

[2Co 12:9 ESV] 9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Life in Gehenna (the trash dump in Jesus' day)

 There are times, often at unexpected moments, where God grabs us and speaks to us in undeniable ways that rip right through us. In these moments, He reveals Himself in ways that we are not expecting and, even more, in ways that may take a lifetime to fully understand. He did that to me during worship this morning. He has been speaking to me about His love and judgment a lot in the last few weeks but I am not always to quick to apprehend what He is saying. Today, He said it in an unmistakable way and I want to try and share it with you though I am still processing it.

I was sitting during the last couple of songs during worship and focusing on what the words reveal about Jesus. As I sat, I saw a picture of a man and he was yelling down into a garbage dump at a man that was digging through the trash. He was telling him not to take things out of there because they were dangerous and contaminated. Everything in there was potentially harmful. The man was just looking to survive. He had grown accustomed to finding his food, ointments for his wounds and needed comfort items in the trash. Sure, they were not up to the standards of the man standing above him yelling but they met his need for the moment. It was not a good life but at least he was getting by.

As I pondered this picture, I felt like the Lord spoke to me about our taking offense at the sins of others thinking that we are doing Him a favor. We tend to believe that the sins in a person's life are offensive to God and have caused Him to reject them. We can be harsh when people don't listen to our directives and repent on our terms. As I saw this, I felt broken. I knew it was true. I was carrying offense on God's behalf that He is not carrying Himself. This is not to say that He does not have a right to be offended at men's sins, their blatant disregard for His grace and mercy. He has every right and He will judge sin. The issue is that He is not offended. Sin does not push God away from us but it does push us away from Him. Our sin cannot change His holiness but His holiness would destroy us if we hold on to our sin. He is perfect and complete regardless of how we act. His response to sin is for our protection, not His.

As I saw myself in the man yelling, I saw Jesus too. I was keeping my distance. I was shouting from the top of the dump. I wanted them to change without the risk of entering their world. Jesus climbed down in the dump with them and offered the man something better. Jesus offered Him a sample of the feast that He is preparing for all that will come. He offered kindness and compassion. He did it face to face and not from a safe distance. Jesus came directly to the man. He had compassion in His eyes. He knew that the man was not in the trash dump because He wanted to be. He was acting on a need to survive and many years ago, he had bought the lie that living in the garbage of the world was the only way he could do it. He could find a little food, a little alcohol or discarded drugs to ease His pain. he could find a few things to bring him comfort and so he had settled for much less than Father had created Him to be.

While Jesus offers a sample of a feast, we offer condemnation and criticism for his life choices while merely telling them that there is something better. We want them to follow us as we follow Jesus but we are misrepresenting His heart. Unless we are willing to take a sample of the feast into the dump and risk getting dirty, we cannot really represent Him. We are not protected from falling into the trap of the other man by simply not risking getting his filth on us. We are protected by walking into the dump in obedience, knowing that Holy Spirit has us sealed, that Jesus has written His name on us and our walking in obedience.

There is a huge garbage dump in Guatemala City. It cover a valley the size of 24 football field combined. It has a highly polluted  stream flowing through it. Many people "work" there every day. They wait for the trucks to come in and as they are dumping their loads, these workers are scavenging through the trash that is being dumped looking for anything that they can sell for a few cents. They will be there from the time the trucks begin arriving in the morning until the last truck dumps in the late afternoon. They can make $2 or $3 a day. This dump is unsafe and has seen many die in it over the years. Some have been crushed by the trash and others get sick from the unsanitary conditions. Over the years, this dump has caught fire several times and it can burn for many days. Unfortunately, for those that work in this dump. they see no other option to make a living. This place, to me, is a literal picture of hell, a place that it seems God is not, a place that desperate people are left on their own to try and find their way through a seemingly senseless life. This dump is where I saw the yelling man and Jesus. He has not abandoned any there but maybe we have.

The heart of the Father is to run to those that are lost and hurting. It is to lift them from the dump they are burying themselves in. It is to rescue broken and hurting people. He does not just tell them He has a better plan. He sent Jesus to reveal His heart. He came to give them a foretaste of what is in store for them, for us. It was His plan to reveal new life by giving free samples then inviting us to receive the whole package. We, in our desire to be safe and maintain our comfort have lost the power of the Gospel. We want to disseminate it to the Sunday morning crowd where it is safe. The Father is saying to run to the dump. Offer a sample of the feast He has prepared to those that are eating garbage. Help them get to the place they can be cleaned and their wounds dressed so they can be clothed in the proper robes for the feast. It is prepared and we are the ones being sent into the highways and byways to make the invitation. 

The question we must answer today is, 'Will we love like Jesus and go down into the dump to bring Jesus to them?' If we can't answer yes to that question, we cannot claim to represent Him to a lost and hurting world because He has already said yes to that question. He had all authority because He fully obeyed the Father wherever He was sent. His authority goes with those that are willing to be led into the places the broken reside and to sit with them and bring the touch of Heaven to their lives. You and I have a choice to make and our answer will determine the course of the Church over the next century. We will get close to the broken like Jesus and see revival or we will keep  a safe distance and see our congregations become irrelevant. There are no other options for us.

Around the Mountain Again

I don't know about you, but sometimes I am a slow learner. I can go through something and God shows me how he was faithful through it all and then, a similar crisis arises and I am panicing all over again. Circumstances can really cause me to take a step back and even start doubting what I know god clearly told me. Life often throws us curve balls and I, for one, feel ill prepared regularly.

Today I was reading in Matt 14 and 15. I find these chaptesr a great comfort when I feel like I am hopelessly missing God's leading. The disciples were out with Jesus and he was being followed by 4,000 men, plus women and children. They were desperate for a miracle. They stayed close to Him for quite some time watching, listening and trying to get close enough to touch Him. If I were desperately ill or crippled, I would be right there with them as long as I had the help I needed to get there.

This story follows shortly after the disciples had their eyes open to Jesus' ability to provide from abundantly from next to nothing. Before He multiplied the food Himself, Jesus told the disciples to give them something to eat. He was testing them and letting them know that they had the ability to do what He was about to do as long as they walked in fellowship with them. They did not understand what He was doing so they just questioned. Jesus, full of compassion for the hungry people had the people sit down and then He fed them all.

Right after this story, He sent the disciples out in a boat while He wrapped up with the crowd and then went to pray for a while. He came walking to them on the water and they were frightened. When they recognized it was Him, peter asked if he too could walk on the water. He did for a few seconds. In my mind, he got just out of reach ofthe boat and then he turned his eyes from Jesus to the circumstances. Jesus reached out and saved Him but then He chastised them all for their lack of faith. Peter was the most obvious failure but all of them were afraid as Jesus came walking up to them.

I do not think that you can separate these 2 stories. They were both faith building exercises for the disciples. Both of them revealed their weaknesses and lack of faith. At the same time, they were designed to destroy the disciples faith but to strengthen it. Jesus just walked them through 2 amazing faith building exercises.

 Unfortunately, I think we miss the message of these two stories just like the disciples did. Jesus was trying to create an opportunity for them to see Him move through them. Once again, Jesus did what we assume only He could do. Really, He was saying to them that they could have done this themselves. Becasue He was with them, they had the ability to multiply the food and bring glory to the Father. We have been given that same challenge. Jesus calls us to do things for His glory that we assume only He can do. What He wants us to see is that He will use us if we are willing to allow Him to work through us. He is not limited by our limitations. The unlimited power of God resides in us and wants the world to see Him through our obedience as we walk in faith.

I have now been unemployed for 3 weeks. In September, I felt like God was telling me that 2022 was a new season for me and I needed to cut ties to old things, work and leadership positions specifically so I could focus on the new season. In September, it was an easy thing to say I would do it but when the end of December came, I started questioning if I had made a mistake. Actually, there were moments that I was panicking. I thought through my bills and what things I felt led to do and I could not see how it was all going to come together. Life is expensive and I had just walked away from my only source of income.

God has been faithful to me for years. He has provided countless times. He used many people over the years to meet my financial needs and also to encourage me to continue pursuing what He called me to.  Sometimes experience does not teach us trust. If we don't recognize the hand of God in all we walk through, we will still try to do it in our own strength. We have to choose to continually walk in obedience and also acknowledge the past works of God in our lives so we can live from a place of expectancy and not fear. Worship is essential to build confidence that God is moving on our behalf because we have seen He already has.

I want to just introduce you to what I am moving into now. My heart has been to help missionaries succeed and to encourage them for about 4 years now. Much of that time I have been praying and asking God what that would look like. I have had countless ideas rolling around in my head. Some of them are going to eventually happen but for now, I will be working with Churches to help them prepare for sending missionaries and to walk with those missionaries through the transition to their new country. Then I will continue to work with the missionary and the Churches that sent them so that they can be ready for long term success. Missions is not just about the missionary going to serve Jesus but it is also about the Churches back home that are holding their arms up while they proclaim the victory of Jesus to the people they serve.

I am not looking to compete with missions organozations. They are an important part of the big picture for the missionary. They help guide them through things that the home Church has no experience in. They provide resources and encouragement beyond what the Church can offer. That being said, both of these are legs of the stool a missionary rests on. The 3rd leg is the leading of the Holy Spirit. I want to help make sure the home Church, the commissioning and sending Churches are not the week leg of the stool.

If this is your heart, please reach out to me. You can contact me at thegeokr@yahoo.com  I would love to hear from you/ Also please subscribe to this blog and share it with all your friends and your Church.

So Tired

 I don't know about you but I am tired. I am tired of politicians using every political talking point to divide our society. I am tired of hearing various "news" organizations spin stories to create fear. By the way, this happens on both the right and left. I am tired of friends breaking off friendships because they have differing views on how things should be handled; shot vs no shot, electric cars and wind power to save the planet vs continued use of fossil fuels, masks vs no masks, Republican vs Democrat. The list goes on forever and there are people working to make sure the divides only get larger. All of this is making me tired.

Today I was thinking about all that God has promised us. As you read the Scripture, God has revealed His nature, character and plan for us in the things He has promised. In 2 Cor 1 we are told by Paul that his words are not alwasy accurate. He has desires and expresses them but they do not always happen. He counters that with the promises of God. They are always yes in Christ because He is the fulfillment of all God has promised and we find our yes and amen in Him.

We are told that there is a path to overcoming all that is going on in the world and in our lives right now. When we are tired we need to pursue Jesus with all that is in us. When we seek Him with all our hearts, we are told that we will find Him, Jer 29:13. This promise was given along with the promise for Israel that God had plans for them. The context was that they were going to live in captivity but that they would still find God in the trial if they would seek Him with their whole heart. We live in times that kind of feel like that. We feel captive to many things right now but there is a path to overcome.

[Rev 12:10-11 ESV] 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, "Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.

The devil will, one day, be ejected from the earth but, before that day comes, we can still live free of his torment. Verse 11 above gives us a key to overcoming all that is going on and living free of the torment of the day. First we must know that the blood of Jesus has set us free from his stronghold in our lives and learn to rest in that. Second, we must share all that God has in our lives. Sharing our testimony reminds us of His past faithfulness and fortifies us to walk with Him now. And finally, the one we often want to leave out. We can't hold to tightly to our lives in this world. When we live in fear that things could end our lives we are not free to take risks. It is only in knowing that this world our temporary and in living for eternity that we are set free from living for the temporal.

[Jhn 12:25 ESV] 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 

As we learn to release our hold on our lives, we are able to lay hold of real life. Our baptism is a sign of our total identification in the life, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. We have been fully untited with Him and He has overcome all the powers of the enemy. He has fullfiled every promise of God in Himself and opened it up to us. In Jesus we find the ultimate Yes to all God has for us.

One of my alltime favorite pictures and a perfect image of God's rest and joy

If you are tired, stop complaining. Stop letting yourself be influenced by the media, by politicains, be those that live in constant fear and focus on the person and work of Jesus. He is still Lord over all regardless of what you hear. Look for His activity in your life. Listen for His voice and rest in His promises. It is time to stop participating in the world's systems and rise above it. He will guide and direct you from a place of rest and peace. As a follower of Jesus, tired is not to be our natural state.

[Psa 127:1-2 ESV] 1 A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. 2 It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.

[Mat 11:25-30 ESV] 25 At that time Jesus declared, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

The Christian life is to be one filled with the rest, joy and peace of God. Don't let anything rob you of it today.