Companionship in the New Year

“May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”
II Corinthians 13:14

Was 2011 a banner year for you that has you hoping for a repeat in 2012 or was it a difficult twelve months that you are glad are over and do not soon want to repeat? Regardless of how you answered that question, I hope that in the lowest valley experiences and on the highest mountaintop joys you were able to learn, and take from each, what God desired you to have.
God has made every one of us unique, (yep, billions of people on the planet and no one quite like you!) but the struggles and the joys you may have been a part of this year are not. Most adults have faced a loss in the lives through the death of a loved one. Many marriages have ended in divorce. On the other end of the spectrum, someone else, like you, has landed that ‘perfect job’ or another mom has given birth to the ‘perfect baby’. As difficult or as wonderful as all the events of the past 365 days may have been, they were not spent alone.
Jesus promised us that He would never leave us and He would never forsake us.
He doesn’t disappear when things go wrong.
He is not a ‘fair weather friend’.
Neither does He suddenly appear, like all the long lost friends and relatives, who come out of the woodwork when you get the huge promotion, win a sweepstakes or are elected to an office.
As we leave 2011 and begin 2012 may you be diligent in acknowledging the presence of God in your life.
Ask the Holy Spirit to help you recognize God’s work in the tough times and in the times when everything seems to be going well.
Both seasons are times when it can be easy to walk away from God.
Just remember, He will not walk away from you.

This is Sure Not the Answer I was Expecting!

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

Today I am sharing with you a brief portion of a testimony given on Christmas Day at ‘His Place’. Before you read it, let me ask you a question. Do you ever pray while convincing yourself as you pray that you know just how God will answer your prayer? Maybe, just maybe, God will indeed answer your prayer but in a way you had not considered. I know we have all heard the expression – “Don’t put God in a box”; but I think sometimes we ask and try to ‘hem God in’ by expecting He can only answer in a way that meets our expectations. Our verse for today begins with the word ‘trust’. Trust means God gets to answer how and when He chooses. Our role is to ask and then trust him. Read the testimony below and notice the unexpected way that God answered (yes, He did answer!) the prayer.

“My perception of God is that He has a fantastic sense of humor. During a white-out snow storm early last winter, as I drove up a steep hill (after which I knew followed a sharp bend in the road) suddenly all the windows on my pickup fogged over making it impossible for me to see where I was going. I prayed a fast apology for not asking His protection before starting my trip, then pleaded that He protect me and those around me from harm. After which He quite gently parked me in a ditch!

Let’s determine to ask God as we need to and then to let
go of trying to let our imagination control how He answers!

God is Good and God is Gracious

“Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind. Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people and praise him in the council of the elders.”
Psalm 107:31-32

I hope that the testimonies shared have been encouraging to you. In some small ways and some very big ways we have seen the faithfulness of our loving, heavenly Father through the lives of people facing ‘common’ problems with an ‘uncommonly’ loving God. Here is another one to rejoice in:

“The first thing that came to mind when we were asked to share how God has blessed our family during the past year was something all born-again parents pray for. As a leader of our youth group, the kids in our group know I love them and that my greatest prayer is that they all would accept Christ as their Savior and that they would begin a personal relationship with Jesus. I didn't expect the first to be my own son. I thanked God for His kindness & grace as I led my eldest son in the sinner's prayer. If that wasn't amazing enough by itself, a few months later I got to baptize my own son. God is awesome!The next event that comes to mind is something that frightened my wife and me. While putting our second eldest son to bed one evening, I noticed a lump on the back of his neck about the size of a peanut M&M. It was located between two vertebrae. My wife had noticed it too and was more than a little distressed. Neither of us wanted to worry our son about it, so while he was sleeping, we each took turns laying our hands on him and praying that God would heal him. The next morning the lump was completely gone and has not returned. Praise God!Also this year, my brother and his wife had experienced difficulty in their marriage. Difficulties like gambling problems and infidelity. The marriage was in severe danger and my sister-in-law had already contacted an attorney and sought out a separate living space. We met with them, spoke with them, helped them to understand the roles of a husband and a wife from a biblical perspective as well as God's attitude toward marriage and divorce. Two days ago they visited our house for Christmas and were getting along very well - laughing with each other, joking, and hugging each other. Their marriage is on the mend.God continues to open doors for us to speak into other's lives and present opportunities to come along side Him. We have realized the more we draw closer to Him, and the more we fall in love with Jesus, the closer we grow to each other. We have never been stronger and tighter. God is good. God is gracious. God is an amazing God and we can't help but thank Him for what He has done for us this year.”

And He Walks With Me and He Talks With Me!

“Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare.”
Psalm 40:5

If you are just joining us here at “Choose the River” we are taking a look this week at some of the testimonies shared on Christmas day at ‘His Place’. W rejoiced to have an opportunity to give God the glory as some shared the things God has done in their lives in 2011. Below is another of the testimonies that was shared:

“2011 started with fear. Our youngest son lost his home through addictions and we feared for his life as 2011 began. Adult children remain babies in our heart and we want to protect them from the world. Christ intervened and much like the prodigal son in the book of Luke I had to let him go much like Christ does with me. My grief showed me how much I grieve Christ through my actions because he loves me more deeply than I love my son.
I was sad in the spring when a dear friend passed away but I recalled him telling me how he stood here at the altar in His Place and experienced the arms of Christ embracing him. I was able to see Christ reaching out with his comfort for him and also for me.
An early bible study we had that suggested we “walk across the room” stayed as a burden with me through this year – why can’t I reach out to more of the people of my community? Not to have a bigger fellowship but to open eyes of neighbors to a relationship with Jesus that he longs for and we all dismiss to one degree or another.
In late summer our studies of Prophetic Ministry led me deeper into a relationship with the Spirit of God. While I knew and believed the prophetic was a gift of the Holy Spirit, I believed it was a gift for someone else and not me. Little did I know what was about to happen - only recently. My wife traveled with me during a business trip two weeks ago and we took time to investigate a time share type investment. It looked great and we could pass ownership to our son as a future gift. We agreed to the deal and I fell asleep that night contented.
In the middle of the night I awoke with a prophetic dream imprinted in me. Shirley & I were in the lower section of a building, warm, safe and at peace. A boom over our head made us walk upstairs where we found a tree that had crashed through a roof and was lying on the floor that was above us. Below everything was still warm, safe and peaceful but rain was entering around the tree. The interpretation was given to me – disaster was coming to our safety, peace and warmth unless we acted now. The next day we canceled the investment and last Friday we returned home, meeting my boss after landing. The news was bad. My job was being cut that very day. Medical coverage would be ended on December 31 and my wife’s diabetic supplies would no longer be covered and there would no longer be a pay check.
There is not enough time to explain everything but Christ leads me and comforts me and protects me. It is often said we walk alone in life but with my wife at my side we walk with Christ as our guide, our comforter and our Lord.”

Rise, Shine and Give God the Glory!

“Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.”
Psalm 34:3

As I mentioned in a previous post, this Christmas day at ‘His Place’ we were given an opportunity to give God the glory and to rejoice with others who shared some of the things God has done in their lives in 2011. Below is the testimony shared by one individual. Won’t you rejoice with us in thanking God for what He is doing in their life?

"Baptized in the Holy Spirit, I have a better understanding of Gods direction for my life. I now want more of him in my life. I'm like a sponge now. I just want to know more. Have total faith in God, knowing He is always there no matter what I'm facing. I have faced a lot these past few years.

This will be my second year of tithing and being able to see the blessing from that. Financially God has amazingly been there for me. Bills that I couldn't pay would get paid. I am still in my house with no payments for more than three years (after my husband left me). When my cupboards where empty and I didn't know what was going to happen. God always provided. I don't have to go to the food cupboard anymore. My income hasn't changed and God has shown me so much of the unexplained happenings in my life.

I am badly hurt and I have faced many struggles in my life. Yet, God was there for me through it all. He was there through the anger. When I cried out to Him, he was there for me. God spoke words over my life through people and I saw myself walking through my difficulties. When I need help I call on God and He is always there.

There is a lot that I still await in the coming New Year. I have an excitement for what it is that God has prepared for me. I know God is making me a “new creation”. Every time I look at myself I'm different. I'm new in Him and through Him. What an awesome God we have! He allows us to have this renewal in our life.

I'm thankful that I didn't give up because there were many times I wanted to. I am thankful for the help from the pastors and their families and my church friends who have encouraged and built me up. Sometimes they may have been a little tired of hearing my problems. However none of you ever gave up on me, even when my own family did. You all stood there for me and my family that is a blessing in itself.

God is now first in my life and that will never change. I pray that I continue to stay on that narrow path. That is what I want for my life. I have been through many tests this past year and none of that could hinder the love I have for Christ. I'm proud to be in love with Jesus. He makes me happy when I wake up in the morning. He is three throughout my day and when I lay my head down at night.

I continue to pray and trust God to work out the areas I still have some struggles in. God is still working challenges out in my life and I thank Him for all he has done in 2011. I look forward to all that my God will accomplish with my life in this coming New Year."

Rejoicing in a Word Fulfilled

“Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”
Luke 2:25-32

Simeon is a man who received a revelation from the Holy Spirit. In these few verses where he is mentioned, we learn an awful lot about him. He was righteous and devout and was waiting for the ‘consolation of Israel’. But he wasn’t passively waiting. We are told that the Holy Spirit was on him and had revealed to him that he would not die without first seeing the Messiah. Simeon was a man who waited in hope and responded to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Interestingly, the fulfillment of the word could have caused great fear in him if he chose to focus on his own mortality spoken about in the revelation. Observe, though, how Simeon responded. The word tells us that he took Jesus into his arms and praised God! He was thrilled to see the fulfillment of the word to him and what that meant for the nation of Israel. He probably did not live to see Jesus step into ministry or to go to the cross and three days later rise from the grave. But he did die in peace – “being fully persuaded that God had power to do what He had promised.” Romans 4:21.
Are you fully persuaded that God has the power to do what He has promised to do in your life? Allow the truth of the Christmas story to rekindle in you the hope of His promises yet to be fulfilled.
Just as Simeon did, wait in hope, and be filled with His Holy Spirit.

Heavenly Father:
I thank you for each of those who are reading these words.
May their hope in you grow in the coming year.
May they learn to look more and more to you and to rely less and less on their own strength and their own abilities.
May your grace and your peace be multiplied to them this Christmas season.
I ask this in the matchless name of your Son, Jesus Christ.
Amen

Appreciating God’s Goodness in Your Life

“Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”
So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.
Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.”
Genesis 35:1-3


God spoke to Jacob and gave him some very specific instructions.
He was to go to Bethel, settle there and build an altar to God.
Jacob was not quiet about the instructions.
As a matter of fact he spoke to his entire household and those with him, not only where they were going but, what he would do when they got there and why he was doing it. He spoke to the fact that God was with him in the day of his distress and was with him wherever he went. Jacob was boasting about God to his entire house. Sometimes we can take a lot of heat when we give God the Glory – just look at all of the uproar over Tim Tebow expressing his faith and love for God – but the grief we might receive should never cause us to be silent when God is worthy of praise.

This coming Sunday we celebrate Christmas.
At ‘His Place’, here is what is planned:

“I would like to extend an opportunity to anyone that wishes to take about 2-4 minutes and share with the family of His Place the great things or thing that God has done in your life this year.
Our God is so worthy of praise and glory and this coming Sunday I just want to declare to the earth and the heavens what He has done. I want our kids to hear of a God that still moves in the lives of people and in so doing building faith in them.”
Pastor Tim

No matter where you may find yourself this Sunday; take a few moments to give God the Glory for the things He has done in your life this past year. Share with others His goodness and love. Let them know that He not only came in a manger over 2,000 years ago but He is here today and can help them, just as He helped Jacob, in the day of their distress.

Watching Over His Word

“The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly,
for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.”
Jeremiah 1:12


From Genesis to Malachi the Old Testament is filled with prophetic references to Jesus. Among other things it spoke of his physical appearance, his ministry, where he would be born and how he would die.
There are glimpses, symbols and types of him from the time of creation forward.
Jesus could look to the Law and the Prophets to know the Father’s plans for Him.
He often did.
On occasion He quoted those verses to those who were listening to Him.
Because the prophetic record was so clear to Him, He knew how and when He would surrender His life. Through the three years of ministry there were times when others sought to take Him by force or to kill Him. But because He knew His time had not yet come or the manner in which they sought to kill Him was not what was spoken through the prophets; there was an assurance to Him and protection for Him.
He lived His life to do the will of the Father.

Do you face difficulties and perhaps even threats of death
while holding on to that same assurance?
I am not talking about situations you may have created that cause others to seek your life. Instead, I am talking about that protection we find when we are hidden in the will of God and have yet to fulfill all the words He has spoken to us.
My life has a purpose.
Your life has a purpose.
Find it and fulfill it with the assurance that God is watching over His word in your life to see that it is fulfilled.
Jesus said on the cross: “It is finished”.
Sometimes when we struggle or face a setback we think to ourselves: “I am finished.” Jesus’ focus was not on Himself but on the work that His Father gave Him to do.
It was ‘It’ and not ‘I’ that was finished.
Let God’s words and purposes for your life focus and protect you in the same way.
How can we say that Jesus was protected and yet He died on the cross?
Because we know it was God’s will for Him to die for you and I.
God protected Jesus in order to bring Him to the cross.
He will protect you so that you may finish your work too.

Humble Pie - To Pride You Die!

"For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."
Matthew 23:12

Do you agree with this statement:
"You are not ready to step into your destiny until you are in a place of true humility"? I hope that you do because it is true.
Scripture speaks over and over again about humility and it's ugly opposite - pride.
Pride brought Lucifer down from his role in heaven and humility accompanied Jesus all the way to the cross. Now, that might disturb you because you certainly understand the importance of being humble but if its reward is the cross then you ask - why bother? But Jesus's victory was won on the cross and through the resurrection from the grave. Listen to what Hebrews 12:2 has to say:
"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."
Jesus endured the cross and humbly walked in obedience to the will of the Father and the task that was set before Him. Was Jesus tempted to step away from the cross and walk in pride? Absolutely he was. The temptation came in the wilderness from the one well acquainted with pride. Listen to this exchange between Satan and Jesus:
"Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you", he said "if you will bow down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away from me Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.""
Satan was dishing up pride. Jesus refused and found strength in the Word of God. Next time you are tempted to step away from God's will to grasp what seems to be a great promotion or anything that exalts you and diminishes God's direction for your life follow the admonition of the writer of Hebrews and
"...fix your eyes on Jesus..."
and
"...walk humbly with your God."

A Day Like Any Other?

"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much..."

Luke 16:10a

Interesting thing about David.

Nowhere prior to I Samuel 17 do his fellow countrymen know of him as a giant killer or hero of Israel. Verse 20 of that chapter tells us how his day began: "Early in the morning David left the flock with a shepherd, loaded up and set out, as Jesse had directed."

It was a pretty mundane task set before him.

His father Jesse had asked David to bring some food to his older brothers and their commander who were fighting the Philistines with King Saul. He also wanted to know how things were going for his sons. David was serving his father by acting as a messenger; we might say - a gopher - nothing too glamorous or heroic about that job! David, like so many others in scripture we have looked at, was in a process of maturing for the destiny God had for him. Killing Goliath was not his destiny though it certainly propelled him along the way.

Some may have had David's biography stop there.

Songs were sung to honor him on that day but God knew he still had much more for this future king to grow through before he was, as God Himself had declared him to be, "...a man after my own heart..." Maybe today you are serving others in what you consider pretty 'mundane' ways. Take a lesson from King David and serve your brothers and sisters by faithfully carrying out the directions of your Father. Maybe David thought his day was simply nothing more than following his father's directions (and it was) but his heavenly Father had much more to unfold for him that day.

Remain faithful in the little things.

God sees you.

He is watching.

Faithfulness in the little things will help to propel you into the destiny God has for your life.

Jacob Becomes Israel

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone and the new has come!"

II Corinthians 5:17

Have you had a life-altering wrestling match with God?

I am not talking about verbal sparring but the type of an encounter that we find Jacob having with God in Genesis chapter 32?

How can we know it altered his life?

Jacob - which means "he will take by the heel" and is recognized as a deceiver - had his name changed to Israel - which means "he shall be prince of God".

We are told in verse 28: "Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome."" You see Jacob deceived his very own brother Esau out of his birthright and his blessing. He himself was later deceived (what you sow, you reap) by his uncle Laban and had to work 14 years for the love of his life Rebecah instead of the agreed upon 7 years. God took Jacob through a process in his life from a deceiver to one who prevails with God. It was not easy at times and we can thank God that that same grace and patience God had toward Jacob he has with us. There comes a time in each of our lives when we have to decide if we are going to continue as a Jacob or allow God's process in maturing us to change us to Israel. Abram became Abraham and Sarai became Sarah. Jesus did a similar thing with Simon by changing his name to Peter. You, at times, like Jacob will struggle with your old nature and you will struggle with God, to do what you know you should do. Who will prevail? The old man and his nature or the new man that has put on Christ?

Is there a new name in your future?

Savior AND Lord

"But grow in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever! Amen."

How do you grow in the grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ?

You add that four letter word from our scripture verse I omitted in my question to you.

You learn to make Him L-O-R-D!

He is indeed to be our Lord and Savior.

Too frequently we just stop after accepting Him as Savior.

He saves us from our sins by washing us in His precious blood which was shed on the cross for you and I. That is the work of grace we are willing to receive. But then I am asked to let go of my own desires, my own will and to walk in His plans for my life. That is a little bit tougher. Jesus never sugar coated what it meant to make Him Lord. Neither should we. His grace is sufficient for the task but we usually don't realize it because long before that grace is made evident in our lives we say: "So long - I didn't sign up for this!" Actually you did. You stepped out of the kingdom of darkness and into the Kingdom of Light. You left one kingdom behind and surrendered, not to any other human king but, to the "King of Kings and Lord of Lords".

I grow in this Kingdom by surrender.

I mature through sacrifice and service.

I advance through humbly honoring my brothers and sisters in Christ before myself.

I bow my knee to Jesus Christ as both savior and LORD!

Listen AND Act!

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says."

James 1:22

How could someone dare to say that receiving a word from the Lord is "no big deal"?

Wouldn't that be disrespect to God of the highest order?

Before you answer that listen to these words from Jesus -

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house upon a rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

Sometimes, I think we hear a word from the Lord and we suppose that just hearing it is a great accomplishment. Maybe if you are not accustomed to hearing God's voice there may be some truth in that but His sheep know His voice and so the expectation is not simply hearing His voice but obeying what it is He has spoken to us. I think by now most everyone knows the marketing slogan made famous by Nike footwear some years back. It was: "Just Do It!". Do not misunderstand me - it is wonderful to know that our Father speaks to us but we must not be so enamored with that knowledge that we fail to walk in obedience to what it is He has spoken. We are to hear His word and we are to be doers of it. Just do it.

Jesus called the doers wise, but the ones who only hear and fail to act He called foolish.

So, to a believer, it is no big deal to hear a word, the real deal is doing it!

Grow Up!

"And Jesus matured, growing up in both body and spirit, blessed by both God and people."

Luke 2:52

For the past several Sundays we have been looking at: "Stepping Into Your Destiny".

A point that was made this week was that if you want to step into your destiny what you need to know is that God has a plan for your life but He matures you through a process.

So often we cry out to God: 'Lord, reveal your plan for my life so that I can fulfill it!'

God answers that prayer by setting us on the path to maturity. We fail to make the connection between maturity and His plans for our life, so we consider our prayer unanswered. In extreme cases we can even lose our faith in God and fall away.

Simply stated; Gods plans for my life include my maturing.

Listen to how the Apostle Paul said it in Ephesians 4:13 "until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." While this verse is most often applied to the church as a whole it is not unreasonable, in light of scriptural principles, to apply it to individual lives as well. As a matter of fact, Paul goes on, in the next verse, to say: "Then we will no longer be infants..."

It is not Gods' intention for you to fulfill His plans for your life and find at the completion of that plan you are still a spiritual infant.

Failure to yield to the maturing process of God cuts short our fulfilling His plans.

We step out of Gods plans when we refuse to grow up.

Abraham, Moses, David and so many other biblical patriarchs, we could note, fulfilled the plans God had for them. They grew and matured in the process as well.

Our example from this past Sunday was Joseph.

He had changed significantly and matured through the process of being betrayed by his brothers, being sold into slavery and spending time in prison. Each of those trials were part of the process God brought and Joseph yielded too. He then stepped into his destiny as Pharaoh's trusted leader and God's provision to maintain the covenant promises to Abraham.

Are you anxious to step into your destiny?

Then you must surrender to the process of God's maturing work!

Speaking For a Purpose

“A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, but a mocker does not respond to rebukes.”
Proverbs 13:1

Did your parents ever utter the phrase: “I’m not talking just to hear myself speak!”?
It was usually said because there was an expectation on their part that their words would be acted on by you.
The same is true with our heavenly Father.
He doesn’t talk to you just to hear Himself speak.
When he speaks a word to you, no matter how those words may be delivered, it is expected that we would seek to understand and obey. When those words were spoken by our parents, usually it was for our good and to our benefit to listen.
How much more so when your Creator talks with you?
He has formed you for His purposes and with a good plan for your life.
He speaks, at times, to direct, encourage and correct us concerning those plans.
The greatest way to honor and esteem the words God speaks is obedience to them. Imagine the welfare of a child who never obeyed the instructions, given out of love, from their father. Instead of staying away from the stove they are burned. Instead of looking both ways before crossing the street they are struck by a car. Rather than return home at the directed hour they break curfew and end up influenced by the wrong crowd. Our earthy parents speak out of past experiences and lessons learned the hard way; but our heavenly Father speaks out of His infinite wisdom.
Make a new, fresh commitment to God this week that however He may speak to you, whether through His Word, through a prophetic utterance, by the Holy Spirit of God bearing witness in your spirit; you will be quick to seek His understanding and obey Him!

The Evidence of Unity

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
John 17:20-23


Not far from my home is a village which has a church on each of four corners of the main intersection passing through that town. It is supposed to be one of the only locations in the United States where you can find this. I remember pointing this out to someone some time ago and was, at first, taken aback by their reaction. Essentially they commented on how sad it was that there existed so many ‘divisions’ within the church that such a small town would need four different churches.
Did I mention that this person was not a believer?
They were actually more perceptive than I was at that moment.
We have been talking about ‘unity’ this week.
Please understand that the bible speaks of a ‘…unity of the Spirit…’ and not a ‘unity of doctrine’. As long as we are in the flesh, when you put two different people together in the same room there will always be differences. However, Jesus clearly prayed in the text above that our being “…brought to complete unity…” would be evidence, to the world, of two things – First, that the Father sent the Son; and second that the Father loves us as He loves His Son.
You see; those four churches spoke to my friend of division; but Jesus prayed that when we were brought to complete unity it also would speak volumes to the world.
Unity provides evidence.
Unity provides the evidence of the relationship between the Father and the Son and each one of us. Ask God to help you grow in unity with your brothers and sisters in Christ. Give the world all the evidence they need!

Unity Through Vision

“Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?”
Amos 3:3

A synonym for the word ‘unity’ is the word ‘agreement’. Today’s scripture poses a question concerning the ability of two to walk together only after agreeing to do so. In this short verse we find much concerning unity and vision married together. The man or woman who walks in unity with the leadership of their local church is the one who has said: “Yes, I understand the vision and agree with it.” If we disagree with the vision, it is often only a question of time before we create ‘division’ or ‘divided vision’. In Mark 3:25 Jesus said: “If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.” Unity comes when there is agreement with the vision God has given to a church amongst those who are committed to that church. Too often people attend a church, not based on the vision of that house, but because it is a convenient distance from their home, has a dynamic children’s or youth ministry, is the place their parents and grandparents attended or a host of other reasons. While none of these reasons, in and of themselves, may be wrong they can quickly bring division if they are allowed to be a primary motivation for our attendance. Are you committed to the vision of the house? Do you walk in unity and agreement with the leadership God has provided?
Walking together means walking side-by-side, in the same direction and with the same destination in mind.
Walking together requires agreement and that agreement is found through vision. Compare that statement with the definition of unity found in Webster’s dictionary:
the quality of being one in spirit, sentiment, purpose; harmony and agreement. You can see, then, how unity requires me to be a part and to do my part in agreement with the vision of the house.
Are you walking in agreement with the vision of the house? A synonym for the word ‘unity’ is the word ‘agreement’. Today’s scripture poses a question concerning the ability of two to walk together only after agreeing to do so. In this short verse we find much concerning unity and vision married together. The man or woman who walks in unity with the leadership of their local church is the one who has said: “Yes, I understand the vision and agree with it.” If we disagree with the vision, it is often only a question of time before we create ‘division’ or ‘divided vision’. In Mark 3:25 Jesus said: “If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.” Unity comes when there is agreement with the vision God has given to a church amongst those who are committed to that church. Too often people attend a church, not based on the vision of that house, but because it is a convenient distance from their home, has a dynamic children’s or youth ministry, is the place their parents and grandparents attended or a host of other reasons. While none of these reasons, in and of themselves, may be wrong they can quickly bring division if they are allowed to be a primary motivation for our attendance. Are you committed to the vision of the house? Do you walk in unity and agreement with the leadership God has provided?
Walking together means walking side-by-side, in the same direction and with the same destination in mind.
Walking together requires agreement and that agreement is found through vision. Compare that statement with the definition of unity found in Webster’s dictionary:
the quality of being one in spirit, sentiment, purpose; harmony and agreement. You can see, then, how unity requires me to be a part and to do my part in agreement with the vision of the house.
Are you walking in agreement with the vision of the house?

No Greater Support System Possible

“Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death……For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest.”
Hebrews 2:14a, 16-17

Suppose you needed some encouragement and support in an area of your life that you had been struggling in or to accomplish the mission and purposes for which you were created? Now suppose you could find words of encouragement from someone who had faced a similar issue but had pressed through it with success and victory or another person who, though they may be willing to help, had never faced anything remotely close to what you were going through.
Given the opportunity most would choose the one who made it through in victory because there is a perspective and wisdom there we desperately need to hear. How much infinitely more so would our advocate and intercessor in heaven, Jesus Christ, be able to offer assistance and encouragement?
Maybe as you read the posts on this blog, they have challenged you and you so much want to accomplish God’s plans and purposes for your life.
Be assured of this, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are on your side to see you through.
If you can top that trio let me know!
So often we approach life as if God is, at worst, an enemy or, at best, indifferent to us. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Those who, by faith, have become Abraham’s descendant’s and made Jesus Christ savior and Lord can be assured that not only the Son, but the Father and the Holy Spirit are cheering us on to victory in accomplishing our mission.

The Unity of The Spirit

“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
Ephesians 4:3

Yesterday we discussed the importance of unity and how Jesus prayed for his believers to be one in unity.
Jesus understood what unity was.
He was one with the Father and the Holy Spirit throughout eternity; with one momentary brake in that union when your sins and my sins were laid upon Him on the cross. You see sin breaks the union we have with God and it is only through the blood of Jesus Christ that sin is dealt with and that allows us to be one as He and His Father are one.
My sin impacts the rest of the body of Christ too.
We don’t care for that statement because we like to think “our” sin is private and personal. We tell ourselves that sooner or later we will deal with it. The truth is it is never really personal and private because God knows about it.
It is important to repent and to confess our sins to God without delay as we talked about some time ago.
If I really and truly want to see the Kingdom of God advanced in the earth and to see the local church I am a part of carry out the vision God has entrusted to her then I will learn to deal with my sin and not let it master me and hinder God’s work.

Unity

“I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
John 17:23

What do you suppose would be a key ingredient for a successful business, sports team or even a family?
How about unity?
Stop for just a moment and consider a football team where every player has their own agenda and only plays to bring glory to themselves; how many games do you suppose they would win? Certainly fewer than if each member of the team had a specific role and, for the sake of that teams success, executed their tasks as a member of that team.
How about a business full of ambitious individuals with no thought for the goals of that corporation? While it may produce a superstar or two it certainly could not expect the type of bottom line profits needed for long term success.
Finally what of the family where there is no combined efforts to complete chores but it all falls on the shoulders of just one person? Imagine the resentment that would create instead of fostering cooperation.
Every endeavor in life that is undertaken by more than one individual will have better success when those individuals learn to work in unity. Jesus emphasized its importance for the church as He prayed in John 17.
He prayed, that as His followers, we would be brought to complete unity. Imagine the impact that will have in the world? When we set aside our own purposes and step into His purposes individually and corporately. If you think it is a work of the Holy Spirit you are right; but that does not imply we are free to selfishly move forward in our own plans and wait for the ‘magic wand’ of the Holy Spirit to suddenly bring us into unity.
Lay down your own interests, surrender your will to His and pray for the body of Christ to come together in the unity of the Holy Spirit!

Yogurt Cap Memories

“…remember well what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt.”
Deuteronomy 7:18

Is it ever o.k. to look back on your past?
If so, when is it o.k. and why?
We probably have all heard that old adage that says:
“Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it.”
Certainly there must be some value in our past?
There is. Listen to this admonition from God to the Israelites:
“Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. Remember the day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, when he said to me, “Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children.”
Deuteronomy 4:9-10
I should recall and remember all of those times when God has delivered me. I should recall and remember all of those times when God has provided for me, when He has forgiven me, when He has healed me, when He has comforted, strengthened and guided me. We are so quick to remember the past when it has been difficult or horrific and too quick to forget when God has been there for us. Certainly the methods God may use in the future may be different from His intervention in our past but God Himself does not change. He is constant in character and nature through our past, in our present and for our future. We can recall those times and teach them to our children and grandchildren to boast of God’s work in our lives.
In our house there is a rather unusual object professionally matted, framed and hanging on our wall. It is a cap from a container of yogurt. It is a long story that I won’t detail here except to say that it is a visual reminder to my wife and I as well as our children of God meeting a very specific need at a crisis moment in our lives. Through it He taught us a valuable lesson which we need to be faithful in remembering at those times of difficulty.
Don’t be afraid to recall the past when it gives glory to God.
He is worth it!

“…Don’t Look Back…”

“As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives!
Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain!
Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”
Genesis 19:17

The command from the angels to Lot as they brought him, his wife and their two daughters out of the city of Sodom was clear: “…Don’t look back…”
We are told that the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were so wicked that God destroyed them for their wickedness. Lot, Abraham’s nephew, lived in Sodom. There is some speculation among theologians that Lot was a leader, or at least, held a position of influence in that city. However, as they were being rescued Lot received the clear command for him and his family – don’t look back! Lot’s “recent past” was about to be destroyed (so to speak). The temptation and perhaps the pull from that past proved too great for Lot’s wife and when she looked back, we are told, “…she became a pillar of salt…”
Our past can sometimes be very appealing to us. The traditions, the familiarity, the routines of life become our stability. It can become easier to place a greater trust in the knowledge of our past than in the faith required, in God, for our future.
In our minds, the sure thing – our past – beats out the unsure thing – our future.
But any mind, dwelling on the past, pre-occupied with it, looking back to it, is not a mind surrendered to God. Listen to the admonition to each of us given in Isaiah 26:3:
“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”
Concerning your past and your future – I pray you have that perfect peace that comes from a steadfast mind which has learned to trust God.
Trust Him with your past and let go of it.
Trust Him with your future and walk into it with Him!