“And while staying (eating) with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, 'you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with (in) the Holy spirit not many days from now'.” -Acts 1:4-5 (ESV)
What does waiting look like? What do you do, when you wait?
I can “wait” for my dreams to come true – which unfortunately for some means sitting around and doing nothing.
I can “wait” on tables, which is anything but passive – in fact a “waiter” at a restaurant is an active server.
I can “wait” on the Lord as I look for Him, centering myself, focusing, paying attention, resting, putting my spirit on alert for Him.
I can “wait” for God in hope and service and seeking, or I can become discouraged, weary, or distracted.
Waiting can be an awesome, exciting time of anticipation! Do you remember what your heart felt as you waited for you wedding day? And waiting can be mind numbing boredom and staring into oblivion as you wait for that magic number on the clock to strike three so that you can get out of school... finally. I remember both.
What does waiting look like... for you?
“All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus...” -Acts 1:14 (ESV)
“Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore!” -Psalm 105:4
The direct response of that early bunch of 120 followers of Jesus to their Lord's command to wait was to gather together, and to devote themselves to prayer. For them, that is what waiting looked like.
What does waiting look like for you? February 1st to 21st we are turning our hearts to a season of waiting on the Lord for His Presence, His Power, and His Living Grace to be manifested in our lives. We'll be worshiping a half hour before our scheduled services and a half hour afterwards. I'm wondering what else will transpire, and what waiting will look like – for us.
“When you said 'Seek my face', my heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD I will seek'.” -Psalm 27:8 (NKJV)
Seeking His Heart With You,
Pastor Tom
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Looking For God – Getting Ready
“As the deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God, my soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” -Psalm 42:1-2 (ESV)
“The birthplace of Christian fasting is homesickness for God.” -John Piper
There have been times in my life when the above verses captured my heart perfectly. I FELT hungry for God. There is a longing for God in our spirits that when truly felt is more powerful than the desire felt as lovers approach their wedding day. It is more powerful than the desire for food and drink. It is greater than anything that would move and motivate us.
But I have not always FELT that desire...
There are times when my heart is cold and God seems distant. There are times when I could care less. There are times when numbness or pain seem to be the dominating things that I am feeling.
I have come to see that at a very real level I can CHOOSE what motivates me. Often that process begins by realizing what motivates me in the first place and deciding if that is really what I want to be the driving force in my life. I cannot directly control my feelings, but by focus on what is REAL, by focus on TRUTH, by humble dependence on GOD I can direct the life of my heart – including my feelings.
“The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.” -Psalm 10:4 (NKJV)
“Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore!” -Psalm 105:4
I am called to “look for Him”. If and when I do so I have the promise that I will find Him. It is for this reason that I must prepare my heart, and be intentional about the process. It is an individual road in that none can walk it for you. Yet there is a commonality to all our experiences that we can be an encouragement to each other as we walk the road.
So I'm preparing myself. I crying out. I'm trying to listen. In my restlessness and frustrations I am trying to hear His voice, to allow His still small voice to be heard above my sometime inner squaking. It seems as though I can't waltz right into the Temple (though I have the right and the call to come boldly) and expect to hear and to experience. I must prepare my heart or the inner noise and the busyness of life and the desire for other things (none of them 10 commandment sinful) will make my meeting with Him difficult to impossible.
So – we're setting aside Feb 1-21 as a time to “look for Him”, a time to pray and fast. As you're a part of this family I really hope that you will join in – at the place where you are. He will meet us,and we will find Him – if we look for Him.
“When you said 'Seek my face', my heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD I will seek'.” -Psalm 27:8 (NKJV)
Seeking His Heart With You,
Pastor Tom
“The birthplace of Christian fasting is homesickness for God.” -John Piper
There have been times in my life when the above verses captured my heart perfectly. I FELT hungry for God. There is a longing for God in our spirits that when truly felt is more powerful than the desire felt as lovers approach their wedding day. It is more powerful than the desire for food and drink. It is greater than anything that would move and motivate us.
But I have not always FELT that desire...
There are times when my heart is cold and God seems distant. There are times when I could care less. There are times when numbness or pain seem to be the dominating things that I am feeling.
I have come to see that at a very real level I can CHOOSE what motivates me. Often that process begins by realizing what motivates me in the first place and deciding if that is really what I want to be the driving force in my life. I cannot directly control my feelings, but by focus on what is REAL, by focus on TRUTH, by humble dependence on GOD I can direct the life of my heart – including my feelings.
“The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.” -Psalm 10:4 (NKJV)
“Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore!” -Psalm 105:4
I am called to “look for Him”. If and when I do so I have the promise that I will find Him. It is for this reason that I must prepare my heart, and be intentional about the process. It is an individual road in that none can walk it for you. Yet there is a commonality to all our experiences that we can be an encouragement to each other as we walk the road.
So I'm preparing myself. I crying out. I'm trying to listen. In my restlessness and frustrations I am trying to hear His voice, to allow His still small voice to be heard above my sometime inner squaking. It seems as though I can't waltz right into the Temple (though I have the right and the call to come boldly) and expect to hear and to experience. I must prepare my heart or the inner noise and the busyness of life and the desire for other things (none of them 10 commandment sinful) will make my meeting with Him difficult to impossible.
So – we're setting aside Feb 1-21 as a time to “look for Him”, a time to pray and fast. As you're a part of this family I really hope that you will join in – at the place where you are. He will meet us,and we will find Him – if we look for Him.
“When you said 'Seek my face', my heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD I will seek'.” -Psalm 27:8 (NKJV)
Seeking His Heart With You,
Pastor Tom
Sunday, July 20, 2008
A Miracle and A Bunch of Leftovers
“They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers.”
“They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up seven large baskets of leftover food.”
-Matthew 14:20 & 15:37 (NLT)
Twelve baskets full. Seven baskets full. That’s a bunch of bread… even for twelve people! But the stories didn’t start out that way. What ended with satisfied tummies and an abundance of provision started out first with five loaves and two fish, and seven loaves and a few small fish, respectively – barely enough to go around for the gang. Oh yeah, I should also mention a couple of hungry, tired crowds, 5,000 men (plus women and children!) and 4,000 men (plus women and children!) (Matthew 14 & 15)
“Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves. But Jesus said, ‘That isn’t necessary - You feed them’.”
-Matthew 14:15b, 16
Have you ever “heard” Jesus ask something of you that seemed unreasonable? Perhaps stuff like “love one another”, or “forgive from your heart”, or if that didn’t push you over the edge “love your enemies” might have struck you as just a tad unreasonable! Anyone who has actually taken seriously one of His admonitions has come to the place of saying, “Lord, I just can’t do this… what in the world are you asking me to do?” As Jesus-followers it seems as though we are always being put in situations that seem beyond our resources and character to accomplish.
That’s just the way he does things. That is normal modus operandi for the Son of God! Get used to it! What… did you expect it to be “easy”?!?
But here’s the awesome thing – every time we are asked to go beyond ourselves we are being invited to participate in a miracle! What a privilege!
…if we’ll “get it”…
But the disciples pull out their calculators and start figuring. “But we have only…” and “Where would we get enough…” (Matthew 14:16 & 15:33) Isn’t that just like us? We figure and calculate and administrate and come to the conclusion that it can’t be done!
And Jesus invites then (& us!) into a miracle. What starts as a fairly meager personal supply ends up with leftovers that are more than enough for everyone for quite a while! One key - trust, obey, and give what He asks. If the loaves and fishes are held onto in self preservation no miracle happens. When they are freely given, abundance results.
Twelve baskets full. Twelve. Not 10, not 11, but twelve. Do you think the number is an accident? I don’t! Jesus says to his twelve disciples, “I’ve got you covered, you just need to trust me!” Because we’re a little slow to “get it”, He does it again and seven baskets are a result… the number of completion, of
perfection, of fullness. “Remember last time? I’ve got you covered! You can trust me to take care of you completely.”
So, what is Jesus asking of you? Does it “seem unreasonable or impossible”? You are being invited into a miracle!
So… how about that lunch? -Pastor Tom
“They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up seven large baskets of leftover food.”
-Matthew 14:20 & 15:37 (NLT)
Twelve baskets full. Seven baskets full. That’s a bunch of bread… even for twelve people! But the stories didn’t start out that way. What ended with satisfied tummies and an abundance of provision started out first with five loaves and two fish, and seven loaves and a few small fish, respectively – barely enough to go around for the gang. Oh yeah, I should also mention a couple of hungry, tired crowds, 5,000 men (plus women and children!) and 4,000 men (plus women and children!) (Matthew 14 & 15)
“Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves. But Jesus said, ‘That isn’t necessary - You feed them’.”
-Matthew 14:15b, 16
Have you ever “heard” Jesus ask something of you that seemed unreasonable? Perhaps stuff like “love one another”, or “forgive from your heart”, or if that didn’t push you over the edge “love your enemies” might have struck you as just a tad unreasonable! Anyone who has actually taken seriously one of His admonitions has come to the place of saying, “Lord, I just can’t do this… what in the world are you asking me to do?” As Jesus-followers it seems as though we are always being put in situations that seem beyond our resources and character to accomplish.
That’s just the way he does things. That is normal modus operandi for the Son of God! Get used to it! What… did you expect it to be “easy”?!?
But here’s the awesome thing – every time we are asked to go beyond ourselves we are being invited to participate in a miracle! What a privilege!
…if we’ll “get it”…
But the disciples pull out their calculators and start figuring. “But we have only…” and “Where would we get enough…” (Matthew 14:16 & 15:33) Isn’t that just like us? We figure and calculate and administrate and come to the conclusion that it can’t be done!
And Jesus invites then (& us!) into a miracle. What starts as a fairly meager personal supply ends up with leftovers that are more than enough for everyone for quite a while! One key - trust, obey, and give what He asks. If the loaves and fishes are held onto in self preservation no miracle happens. When they are freely given, abundance results.
Twelve baskets full. Twelve. Not 10, not 11, but twelve. Do you think the number is an accident? I don’t! Jesus says to his twelve disciples, “I’ve got you covered, you just need to trust me!” Because we’re a little slow to “get it”, He does it again and seven baskets are a result… the number of completion, of
perfection, of fullness. “Remember last time? I’ve got you covered! You can trust me to take care of you completely.”
So, what is Jesus asking of you? Does it “seem unreasonable or impossible”? You are being invited into a miracle!
So… how about that lunch? -Pastor Tom
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Thinking About Insecurity, Inferiority, and Fear
“Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours. But his Lord answered and said to Him, “You wicked and lazy servant…” Matthew 25:24-26a (NKJV)
“If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body’ is it therefore not of the body?” -I Cor. 12:15 (NJKV)
“What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to His voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.” -I Sam. 15:22 NLT
“…Perfect love casts out fear. …We love Him because He first loved us.” -I John 4:18,19 (NKJV)
I’ve been thinking a lot about insecurity, fear, and inferiority lately. Each of them defines themselves and their response to life and circumstances by what they are not. “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body.” Hear the echo of inferiority and insecurity?
Take a poll of who has struggled with fear, insecurity, and inferiority in their lives and you will get a response real close to 100%. It seems to be “normal” to the human condition!
Look at the interaction between God and seemingly everyone He calls… He usually starts it with “fear not”, and then much of the rest of the dialog is spent with hapless (but privileged!) “callee” giving excuses why they are a nobody from a family of nobodies that really doesn’t have what it takes and why don’t you choose somebody else, etc. etc. Sound familiar?!? God tells Joshua to “Be strong and of good courage!” Why? Because Joshua is feeling weak and scared out of his wits!! It’s “normal”!
And for those who seem to have a case of arrogance and over-confidence (see Moses before the dessert and Peter before the crucifixion) they quickly get the stuffin’ knocked out of them and are back to making excuses as to why God can’t use them.
God is not put off by my weakness and fear! In fact, He delights to work in and through me in spite of them to show Himself strong on behalf of people that He loves. It’s OK to be scared! It’s OK to feel weak and insecure! So did most of the “heroes” of faith in Scripture.
***It’s OK to be afraid. But it’s not OK to disobey. It’s not OK to pull back. It’s not OK to say “No Lord, I won’t because I’m scared.”***
The Lord is stirring my heart strongly in this area right now. I have seen that I tend to “accept” or even “coddle” my own disobedience when I am frightened or insecure, giving myself a “pass” as it were. I rightfully pull back from arrogance and embrace humility, but I must NOT use false humility as a cloak for timidity and justify my disobedience. Disobedience is disobedience, whether it is rooted in arrogance or fear. And humility is NOT timidity.
In the parable of the talents it is the “small” one (who their Lord wants to make large!) who buries their talent, having believed a lie about the character of the King that was based on half-truths. He is called a “wicked and lazy servant”. Today we would want to coddle him and say he had a self-esteem problem and just needed to be built up so he would have more confidence.
And yet, we DO need to be built up and have more confidence… don’t we? Or maybe that’s what we have thought we needed when we actually need something else? Perhaps what we need isn’t more confidence, but more of seeing God for who He really is and then choosing to trust Him AND OBEY. God isn’t bothered by our smallness or our weaknesses or our insecurity. In fact it seems He delights to use us at that point! It IS our choice to not trust and then disobey that “bothers” Him and turns out to be spiritually deadly.
Bottom line for me? Don’t use my fears and insecurities as rationalizations for not stepping out in obedience to God. How about you?
Trusting & Obeying, Pastor Tom
“If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body’ is it therefore not of the body?” -I Cor. 12:15 (NJKV)
“What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to His voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.” -I Sam. 15:22 NLT
“…Perfect love casts out fear. …We love Him because He first loved us.” -I John 4:18,19 (NKJV)
I’ve been thinking a lot about insecurity, fear, and inferiority lately. Each of them defines themselves and their response to life and circumstances by what they are not. “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body.” Hear the echo of inferiority and insecurity?
Take a poll of who has struggled with fear, insecurity, and inferiority in their lives and you will get a response real close to 100%. It seems to be “normal” to the human condition!
Look at the interaction between God and seemingly everyone He calls… He usually starts it with “fear not”, and then much of the rest of the dialog is spent with hapless (but privileged!) “callee” giving excuses why they are a nobody from a family of nobodies that really doesn’t have what it takes and why don’t you choose somebody else, etc. etc. Sound familiar?!? God tells Joshua to “Be strong and of good courage!” Why? Because Joshua is feeling weak and scared out of his wits!! It’s “normal”!
And for those who seem to have a case of arrogance and over-confidence (see Moses before the dessert and Peter before the crucifixion) they quickly get the stuffin’ knocked out of them and are back to making excuses as to why God can’t use them.
God is not put off by my weakness and fear! In fact, He delights to work in and through me in spite of them to show Himself strong on behalf of people that He loves. It’s OK to be scared! It’s OK to feel weak and insecure! So did most of the “heroes” of faith in Scripture.
***It’s OK to be afraid. But it’s not OK to disobey. It’s not OK to pull back. It’s not OK to say “No Lord, I won’t because I’m scared.”***
The Lord is stirring my heart strongly in this area right now. I have seen that I tend to “accept” or even “coddle” my own disobedience when I am frightened or insecure, giving myself a “pass” as it were. I rightfully pull back from arrogance and embrace humility, but I must NOT use false humility as a cloak for timidity and justify my disobedience. Disobedience is disobedience, whether it is rooted in arrogance or fear. And humility is NOT timidity.
In the parable of the talents it is the “small” one (who their Lord wants to make large!) who buries their talent, having believed a lie about the character of the King that was based on half-truths. He is called a “wicked and lazy servant”. Today we would want to coddle him and say he had a self-esteem problem and just needed to be built up so he would have more confidence.
And yet, we DO need to be built up and have more confidence… don’t we? Or maybe that’s what we have thought we needed when we actually need something else? Perhaps what we need isn’t more confidence, but more of seeing God for who He really is and then choosing to trust Him AND OBEY. God isn’t bothered by our smallness or our weaknesses or our insecurity. In fact it seems He delights to use us at that point! It IS our choice to not trust and then disobey that “bothers” Him and turns out to be spiritually deadly.
Bottom line for me? Don’t use my fears and insecurities as rationalizations for not stepping out in obedience to God. How about you?
Trusting & Obeying, Pastor Tom
Thinking About Love
“But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.” -I Corinthians 12:31
“And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” -I Corinthians 13:13
“Let all that you do be done with love.” -I Corinthians 16:14
“Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.” -Romans 13:8
I’ve been thinking a lot about love lately. It seems to me that it is a good place to put my thoughts, focus, and energy. Care to join me? The story below from Pastor Glenn might help!
Pastor Tom
————————————————————————————————————-
Recently, I heard a story about a grocery store bagger named Johnny, who had just returned from a seminar sponsored by his company. Three thousand co-workers--truck drivers, cashiers, stockers and other front-line workers--from the chain had gathered to hear employee motivation expert Barbara Glanz, who had challenged them to find their mission in life and to make a difference to others, regardless of what their job entailed.
Johnny, a young man with Down syndrome, took the challenge to heart. He talked with his father and decided that he wanted to find a positive statement each day and share it with others. His plan was to type each day's saying on his computer, run 300 copies, cut them into single strips, personally sign each one of them and drop them into the last bag of each customer in the grocery line. He then greeted each customer in his line by sharing with them that one of their bags contained something to help them have a great day.
One month later, the store manager noticed that several lines were open, but people had lined up in only one line ... Johnny's line! They lined up all the way back to the frozen food section just to get a note from him. In fact, his acts of kindness changed the way every department within that store viewed their roles. The floral team took broken-stemmed flowers, trimmed them, and pinned them on grandmas and little girls. In similar ways, other departments found new ways to encourage people.
Jesus said, “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16 NIV). The best way to find your mission is to make other people your mission. There is no secret to ministry fulfillment. The need is great. Problems abound. People are hurting. Pain is common. Committing ourselves to becoming an extension of the grace, mercy, love and hope that we have received releases an amazing gift to those most in need.
Have you contributed positively to anyone's life today? Try it! Share a compliment or speak a blessing. You may be the light that helps someone find their way out of darkness or the voice that helps clarify a way out of confusion. Go ahead--Jesus has already commissioned you to act on His behalf!
In His service,
Glenn Burris Jr.
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” -1 Thessalonians 5:11 NIV
“And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” -I Corinthians 13:13
“Let all that you do be done with love.” -I Corinthians 16:14
“Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.” -Romans 13:8
I’ve been thinking a lot about love lately. It seems to me that it is a good place to put my thoughts, focus, and energy. Care to join me? The story below from Pastor Glenn might help!
Pastor Tom
————————————————————————————————————-
Recently, I heard a story about a grocery store bagger named Johnny, who had just returned from a seminar sponsored by his company. Three thousand co-workers--truck drivers, cashiers, stockers and other front-line workers--from the chain had gathered to hear employee motivation expert Barbara Glanz, who had challenged them to find their mission in life and to make a difference to others, regardless of what their job entailed.
Johnny, a young man with Down syndrome, took the challenge to heart. He talked with his father and decided that he wanted to find a positive statement each day and share it with others. His plan was to type each day's saying on his computer, run 300 copies, cut them into single strips, personally sign each one of them and drop them into the last bag of each customer in the grocery line. He then greeted each customer in his line by sharing with them that one of their bags contained something to help them have a great day.
One month later, the store manager noticed that several lines were open, but people had lined up in only one line ... Johnny's line! They lined up all the way back to the frozen food section just to get a note from him. In fact, his acts of kindness changed the way every department within that store viewed their roles. The floral team took broken-stemmed flowers, trimmed them, and pinned them on grandmas and little girls. In similar ways, other departments found new ways to encourage people.
Jesus said, “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16 NIV). The best way to find your mission is to make other people your mission. There is no secret to ministry fulfillment. The need is great. Problems abound. People are hurting. Pain is common. Committing ourselves to becoming an extension of the grace, mercy, love and hope that we have received releases an amazing gift to those most in need.
Have you contributed positively to anyone's life today? Try it! Share a compliment or speak a blessing. You may be the light that helps someone find their way out of darkness or the voice that helps clarify a way out of confusion. Go ahead--Jesus has already commissioned you to act on His behalf!
In His service,
Glenn Burris Jr.
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” -1 Thessalonians 5:11 NIV
Monday, April 7, 2008
Signs of a New Season
Good things are happening. Pastor John and I spent the better part of three days together ten days ago seeking the Lord, listening, and planning direction for this next time. God graced us with a solid three years plus of direction, and we are looking forward to spending time with servant leaders in our Body as we continue to move forward into this new season.Our youth are wrapping up their Spring Retreat, and we want to be supporting them in prayer and love as they step into all that God has for them as well.
We’ll have information on our Living Way Ladies Retreat - See What the Lord Has Done! - by next week. The guys are meeting every Sunday night through the end of May. Our Acts 13:2 nights have become strong times of the Lord’s presence. God is moving and there is more to come!
Please mark Sunday night April 20th for an evening of Potluck and Passover together as we learn about Christ in the Passover! We hope to have information about another upcoming pilgrimage and study tour to Israel at this time as well!
Camp Dates are on the calendar. Kid’s Camp will be July 14-19, Middle School Camp will be July 21-26, and High School Camp will be Aug 11-16. Cost this year is only $99.00 per camper, and we are pretty stoked about that.
So… position yourself! Get into your Bible! Pray in the Spirit! Love one another! Step into service! Embrace a new attitude! Forgive with purpose! Live with Him passionately! Live from the new heart that God gives every born again son and daughter of His. Consider yourself dead to sin and alive to God! Take new territory! Step into God’s promises for you. It’s a New Season, Pastor Tom
Following is a “word” that Pastor Jack sent to us this week. I submit it to you for your prayerful consideration:
“Through the LORD’s mercies we are to consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ‘The LORD is my portion’, says my soul, therefore I hope in Him! The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him.” -Lamentations 3:22-25
Children of the Father’s heart, let your soul see and allow your spirit to receive the fullness of His Word. Notice, beloved child, that His mercies are not only “new every morning,” but He has also said they “endure forever!” Together, these words promise you this day will grant fresh mercies, just as new days’ dew sparkles on the grass. But because the constancy of His “mercies” is that they “endure forever,” be assured of abiding, durable mercies surrounding you—ongoing!
This morning’s ‘new mercies’ will not evaporate! What He is beginning today—in your life, your home, or your ministry is only an entry point. Beyond today He promises a continuance of works He will see through to a completion! So hear your Father saying, “What I am giving today is the placing of a platform upon which I will continue to build and advance—establishing lasting works and durable results.” Receive His word on this day, this “morning” of “new mercies”.
Children of the Father’s heart, let your soul see and allow your spirit to receive the fullness of His Word. Notice, beloved child, that His mercies are not only “new every morning,” but He has also said they “endure forever!” Together, these words promise you this day will grant fresh mercies, just as new days’ dew sparkles on the grass. But because the constancy of His “mercies” is that they “endure forever,” be assured of abiding, durable mercies surrounding you—ongoing!
This morning’s ‘new mercies’ will not evaporate! What He is beginning today—in your life, your home, or your ministry is only an entry point. Beyond today He promises a continuance of works He will see through to a completion! So hear your Father saying, “What I am giving today is the placing of a platform upon which I will continue to build and advance—establishing lasting works and durable results.” Receive His word on this day, this “morning” of “new mercies”.
Shaped By the Wind
Trees grow straight up. I know, I know, this is a deep observation, but please bear with me for a minute. Trees grow up. Trees don’t grow sideways. At least normally they don’t. But here, trees grow sideways.
I’m at Pacific Beach for a few days with Pastor John to spend some alone time thinking and praying and resting and listening and planning. Yesterday I got out on the beach and walked and walked, enjoying the sand and the sound of the surf, and the ocean breezes. Actually, the word breeze doesn’t really do justice to the howling blasts that dance in off the waves of the Pacific Ocean. This is wind that you can lean into!
One of the things that you cannot help but notice as you walk the beach is the trees. They grow sideways. In defiance of gravity and in obedience to the wind the trees on the beach are characterized by the sweep of an ever present wind coming in off the ocean. They are shaped by the wind in ways that are absolutely unmistakable. The Divine hand of a bonsai artist shapes these branches with the blast of His breath, and the trees bend and grow, shaped by the wind.
These aren’t hot house plants. Greenery has to be tough to survive in these parts. No wimpy greenhouse bred plants need apply. From their birth these trees are buffeted by the ocean “breezes”, and they are tough!
And so I think about the wind… and I think about me. Circumstances can toughen me, and bow and bend me. I am certainly shaped by what blows my way. If I allow it to, if I don’t break, I am made stronger. Unlike the trees I have a choice… a choice to “stay”, a choice to cooperate, a choice to “count it all joy” (James 1). Unlike the trees I can walk away, I can rebel, and can isolate myself in self-preservation. But I choose… I choose to not run from the wind.
And so I think about the Wind… the blowing of His Spirit. Lord, how I want to live in that place where I am always in Your Breeze, in Your Wind, yes, even in Your Gusts and Gales. Lord, how I desire to be shaped by Your Wind. In Acts you came “like a mighty wind”. The Church over the millennia has been shaped by Your Spirit, carried by the Mighty Wind as it lifted it’s hands to you, spreading it’s sails as it were, to be carried as You willed.
May His Spirit blow on your life. May dim sparks be fanned into flame as He carefully guards the life that is there, protecting and blowing onto the embers as He fans them into flame. May His Wind blow on your life in might, transforming and empowering you like a mighty wind. And may you stand… living in the “place” where He is moving, slowly but surely, shaped by His Wind. Pastor Tom
I’m at Pacific Beach for a few days with Pastor John to spend some alone time thinking and praying and resting and listening and planning. Yesterday I got out on the beach and walked and walked, enjoying the sand and the sound of the surf, and the ocean breezes. Actually, the word breeze doesn’t really do justice to the howling blasts that dance in off the waves of the Pacific Ocean. This is wind that you can lean into!
One of the things that you cannot help but notice as you walk the beach is the trees. They grow sideways. In defiance of gravity and in obedience to the wind the trees on the beach are characterized by the sweep of an ever present wind coming in off the ocean. They are shaped by the wind in ways that are absolutely unmistakable. The Divine hand of a bonsai artist shapes these branches with the blast of His breath, and the trees bend and grow, shaped by the wind.
These aren’t hot house plants. Greenery has to be tough to survive in these parts. No wimpy greenhouse bred plants need apply. From their birth these trees are buffeted by the ocean “breezes”, and they are tough!
And so I think about the wind… and I think about me. Circumstances can toughen me, and bow and bend me. I am certainly shaped by what blows my way. If I allow it to, if I don’t break, I am made stronger. Unlike the trees I have a choice… a choice to “stay”, a choice to cooperate, a choice to “count it all joy” (James 1). Unlike the trees I can walk away, I can rebel, and can isolate myself in self-preservation. But I choose… I choose to not run from the wind.
And so I think about the Wind… the blowing of His Spirit. Lord, how I want to live in that place where I am always in Your Breeze, in Your Wind, yes, even in Your Gusts and Gales. Lord, how I desire to be shaped by Your Wind. In Acts you came “like a mighty wind”. The Church over the millennia has been shaped by Your Spirit, carried by the Mighty Wind as it lifted it’s hands to you, spreading it’s sails as it were, to be carried as You willed.
May His Spirit blow on your life. May dim sparks be fanned into flame as He carefully guards the life that is there, protecting and blowing onto the embers as He fans them into flame. May His Wind blow on your life in might, transforming and empowering you like a mighty wind. And may you stand… living in the “place” where He is moving, slowly but surely, shaped by His Wind. Pastor Tom
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