Carrying the Cross

I'm having to learn very quickly that committing one's life to Christ requires rapid, radical, (and in some cases constant) change. It is a continuous realignment of my priorities. It is a continuous adaptation to new circumstances. Most importantly, it is a continuous emptying of self; that is, I must daily lay down my personal desires and take up God's will for me. It would be impossible for me to constantly reprioritize and readjust without a steadfast relationship with Jesus. I would go insane if I tried to do any of this on my own.

Do I still worry? Of course. Everybody worries about something sometime. The big difference is that I don't have to dwell on whatever subject I'm worried about. Because of this special relationship I have with Him, I can give all my concerns to Him. This is not to say that every problem I have will be taken away as though a magic wand was waved, so that I can just sit back and do nothing every day. God still demands 100% of my effort in serving Him. Note that I said "effort", and not "success". I don't succeed for the Lord. I simply give Him my best effort, and He ensures what success He wants. All of my effort alone can never succeed in whatever He wants me to do. When I acknowledge that before Him, the Glory is all His when success is finally attained.

God has already given me peace about the amount of work taking classes will involve. As I study, I am even finding that He is giving me new joy in learning the material. It seems a bit strange to me now that I initially thought that in-depth study of His Word would be burdensome. As I learn, I'm reminded that, as one of His elect, I'm able to find a great deal of comfort and contentment within those pages.

One seemingly burdensome task remains for me right now, and that is the project I'm faced with at work. May God give me the same joy in filling this role as well. May He continue to remind me daily that I serve Him in everything I do. Most importantly, may He receive the glory in the end.

"And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me." - Luke 9:23

"Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you." - 1 Peter 5:7

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." - Romans 12:1-2

Honesty

Within the last year or so, I've been set straight on what it means to truly love and to trust. Simply put, neither of these things, in their truest sense, is rooted in emotion. Love is a choice, and trust is a choice. Love is demonstrated by choosing to be a servant, and trust is demonstrated by obedience. God demonstrated these with absolute perfection in the life of His Son Jesus. He took on human flesh and dwelt among us, not as one with authority, but as a servant to others. He demonstrated absolute obedience in His life, His ministry, and ultimately in His death.

We, as saved sinners, are at odds with our own self-serving human nature. There is always something we want, purely for ourselves, that may not be aligned with God's will for us. God gives us the power to overcome our own infirmities through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, but to tap into that power, we must submit to Him. We must listen to the Spirit's prompting and ignore our own selfish desires. It is a choice to be a servant, and it is obedience to One greater than ourselves. That develops within us our love for God, and it enhances our trust in Him.

Today, I learned another way to show love and trust in my God - honesty in prayer. I was reminded that He is not interested in the same old platitudes that many of us quote back to Him when we pray. You can't impress God with anything you say to Him in prayer, and trying to impress others as you pray is hypocrisy, which Jesus strongly rebuked. He already knows who He is, and He already knows our needs and our motivations. In prayer, He simply desires honesty and humility from us. He desires great intimacy with us in prayer.

As I consider the challenges that the next few months will bring, I am drawn ever closer to Him in prayer. I am reminded of who He is when I admit that I can't do things on my own. It feels so liberating to confess doubt, unwillingness, and selfishness. It is extremely humbling to simply ask, "please", as I plead for His courage, His strength, and His wisdom. As I empty myself of what I want for my life, and as I ask Him to guide me into what He wants for my life, I find a peace that comes only through such intimacy with the Lord.

Have you been honest with the Lord lately? Do you ask for His will to be done, then say "no, thank you" when you find out what His will is? When was the last time you said to Him,"I'm not willing, but I'm willing to be made willing?" When was the last time you simply said "please" to God? Remember, He knows your heart better than you do. He knows what you want, but better than that, He knows what you need. The next time you pray, show respect to your Creator, your Provider, and your Redeemer. Be honest with Him.

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" - Jeremiah 17:9

"Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." - James 4:10

Crossroads?

Have you ever been in a situation where you were trying to balance two different aspects of your life, and both suddenly got much more demanding at the same time? We all try to maintain balance in our lives. When one task requires more attention, we temporarily neglect other tasks in order to compensate. That plan works fairly well, as long as we always are able to return to that null point where everything is balanced. But...what do you do when multiple tasks demand your full attention? Something eventually has to give.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I've been pushed to get started taking classes in Biblical education, so I did it. I signed up for some online courses, which are scheduled to begin this weekend. I figured I had the time, since work has been fairly undemanding lately. THEN... Yesterday, the other shoe dropped. I was selected to lead a new development project at work. That would be fine, except for the fact that I have very little knowledge about the tools I'm required to use for this project.

Saying "no" to this project was not an option. The whole thing was dumped in my lap, and I was told that I have three months to have a working product ready to go. There are a total of two people on this team, including myself, and neither of us has any experience doing what we're now being required to do. It's a classic make-or-break scenario; at the end of three months, I'm either going to somehow have grand success, or I'm most likely going to be jobless. Let's not forget that I'm also going to be taking classes while all this is going on!

While I recognize that God is stretching me to enhance my ability to serve, I also cannot help but wonder if I'm being led to a crossroads in life. After all, I can continue down two paths for only so long before I'm forced to choose between one or the other. (I never was much good at doing the splits, so my legs don't stretch that far apart!) I'll try to straddle both avenues for as long as I can, but when or if the Lord decides it's time for me to choose only one road, I pray that I will be able to follow His lead and trust Him completely.

Father, thank You for this day's trials. May You use them to mold and shape me into the servant You would have me to be. Please give me the wisdom to know how best to please you with my choices, and the courage to follow through with each new decision that is made. I ask this in Jesus' name, that You may be glorified in the doing. Amen.

Sometimes, I even wonder if it would be better if God took the choice out of my hands completely, but prayers like that can be dangerous.

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." - Proverbs 3:5-6

"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." - Philippians 4:13

The Urgency of the Gospel

If there's one thing that God has been drilling into my hard head lately, it's the constant need to trust and obey. It can be truly said that, just as the hymn goes, there is no other way to be happy in Jesus. After all, it makes sense from a logical perspective. How could you, with a clear conscience, keep obeying someone you don't trust? More importantly, how could you ever be truly happy or content with someone you don't trust?

Over the past couple of weeks, God has shown me some amazing and exciting things, like how to just "roll with it". This past Sunday evening, Todd Vossen was back at our church to give us an update on his new church plant in Port Clinton, Ohio. He shared his needs with us, and afterward many members came forward offering their help. One of the things he did NOT share with us was the need to get a website up and running for this new church, yet I found myself offering my services for just that. I didn't know why I did it; I only knew that I needed to. I had no idea he was even looking for help on a website until I read it on his blog the following morning. The Spirit of God moves within us in wonderful ways!

God has also shown me just how urgent the need for laborers in the field of ministry is becoming. During the last message our associate pastor preached on the book of Revelation, it was as if I could hear God asking me,"Do you not realize how close the end of the church age is? Time is short!" As if that were not enough, I was hit with another incident a little closer to home this week. I won't divulge the details here; let's just say that the Lord has made plain to me that, every day, more people die and are lost forever not knowing Jesus as their Savior.

Friend, if you are one of the saved out there, let me make plain to you that sharing the Gospel of Christ is a privilege and an obligation for all who believe. God commands us to share the love of Jesus with others who do not know Him. It is written at the end of the book of Matthew and again at the end of the book of Mark. If you have been saved by grace, you are one of the elect, which means you are called to serve. Serve Him with your whole life, with every fiber of your being! Hold nothing back, for tomorrow it may be too late for the lost!

As I write this, God continues to burden my heart with the need for formal education in His Word. Please pray for me, that I might follow His path and make decisions that are pleasing to Him as I pursue this endeavor. Remember, the things of this world are only temporary, but God lasts forever! Which one are you serving with your life - the world, or God?

"Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest." - Matthew 9:37-38

"He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen." - Revelation 22:20-21