What is The Will of God for Me?

What is The Will of God for Me?

Many of us find it difficult to know the Will of God for our life. Please read this article to find an answer to this issue.

It is not always easy to know exactly what is the Will of God for our life. Like the middle-aged farmer, who always wondered in the back of his mind whether God really wanted him to be a great evangelist. One day working in the fields, he took a break and laid down under a tree. Looking up in the sky he saw the clouds form what seemed to be the letters P and C. So, he hopped up, sold his farm, and went out to P-reach C-hrist; knowing now that this was God’s will for his life. The only trouble was, this guy was a terrible preacher. One night at one of his crusades after a horrible sermon, a compassionate friend of his who knew the story of how the farmer got his “calling” went forward and whispered in his ear, “Could it be that God was just asking you to P-lant C-orn?”

You can divide God’s will into His general Will and into His specific will. His general will is always very clear. We find His general will clearly revealed in Scripture in the area of what you and I are to believe; ethics, morals, life-style, how we are to behave.

But most of our questions about the Will of God don’t come in that general area, do they? They come in a specific area. Who should I marry? Should I take this job or that? Am I to move? Should I continue chemotherapy or not? A lot of times, we get worked up in tizzy over what God’s specific Will for our lives is, without grounding ourselves and being sure we understand what God’s general Will is for our lives.

Like the Christian guy who was fretting over ‘Should I move in and live with Mary, or Sue?’ Well, if he knew the general Will of God, that would not have been a question at all. That is why I exhort to read through the Bible; so that over the years as you and I rub up against the clearly revealed general Will of God, it becomes our anchor. It becomes our guidepost. It becomes the lens through which we can better discern the specific Will of God. What is God’s supreme Will for your life: its that we have an intimate personal relationship with Him through Jesus Christ.

If someone ask you what is your wife’s will, or her preferences in a lot of different areas, we can pretty much tell them. Why? Because you know her. You know her at more than second hand. You know how she thinks. You communicate. You know her heart.

God has not very much communicated with people through burning bushes. He chooses chiefly to communicate through burning hearts. Hearts passionately in love with Jesus Christ. If you are really serious about finding God’s Will for your life, but you don’t know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then that is the place to begin. But if you do know Christ as Lord and Savior, and you are still struggling to find out what God’s will is in the light of His Lordship and under the authority of His Word, then the Apostle Paul has some clues for you and me, as he writes to some early Christians in the city of Ephesus.

We look at Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, the 5th chapter, verses 15-20. This is the Word of God. Paul writes: “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s Will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Join me as we pray: And now Father, as my words are true to your Word, may they be taken to heart. But as my words should stray from your Word, may they be quickly forgotten. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

Paul lays out some points that are actually part of God’s general Will for our lives. But if we can look through them as a lens, we will be better able to discern what also is God’s specific will for us as followers of Jesus Christ. Let’s take a look at these verses in some detail.

What is God’s Will for my life? In verses 15-17 of our text, Paul reminds the Ephesians and us, that is a very important, crucial question to ask. You are a wise person if you ask it; you are foolish if you don’t. Look at how he begins the text. He says, ‘Be very careful how you live.’ That is another way of saying, make sure that your life is in accordance with the Will of God. He says, ‘Make the most of the time.” In other words he is saying, invest yourself into asking this question. Ask it over and over and over again.

Is this God’s will for my life? He says you need to be asking that all the time, “because the days are evil.” If we are not asking that question, then we are going to be seduced. We are going to be seduced by the days. The world will capture us with its will. So he says, ‘Don’t be a fool. Be wise, ask the question.’ Then he goes on in verse 17 of our text to say that you need to understand what the Will of God is. We need to go through life continually asking. “Am I in God’s Will in this area? Am I in God’s will in this area? That area?” Asking the question and asking it again, and again, and again.

But how can I be sure? How can I be positive that I am in the will of God? Even when I am asking that question? Well, in verse 18-20, Paul lays out four points. Four points that are a part of the general Will of God for our life; and four points that direct us. In verse 18, Paul begins by saying, ‘Don’t get drunk. Don’t get drunk on wine.’ That is the problem of escapism. Bottom line, when you are a Christian, you are supposed to deal with reality. Even in all the pain and suffering that comes our way in this life. We are not to run away from our problems. We are not to seek escapism. We are not to try to anesthetize the pain, be it with drugs, or alcohol, or illicit sex, or psychological denial, or running off into a fantasy world somewhere.

We need to deal with reality. Because when you don’t, you are not dealing with God. When we are out of it, that is just it, we are out of God’s will. Nowhere in scripture does it say that God’s will for us is to be happy or pain free. It does say that God’s will is that we deal with reality. When we are dealing with reality, we are more apt to understand exactly what God’s specific Will is for our lives.

Secondly in verse 18, he goes on to say, ‘Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” That is the Holy Spirit. That is the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Now what does that mean to be filled with the Spirit? It means to allow God to pour into us everything that He wants to give us in the context of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. To be filled with the Holy Spirit means to make it a point of our life to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit in our life, not all of the myriad spirits of darkness that come to us disguised as angels of light, and want to lead us astray. It means knowing Jesus Christ at more than secondhand. Knowing not just about God, but knowing God.

To be filled with the Holy Spirit means to open our life to the Spirit. Not just up to our waist, where it just appears like we are walking with Christ. Not just up to the neck, where our heart is usually in the right place; but up to the very top of our head, where our heart and mind and our entire being is being shaped toward the mind of Christ. As we grow toward the mind of Christ, we begin to think like God. We begin to think God’s thoughts after Him. And we start thinking like Christ, we are more apt to discern what the specific Will of God is for our lives.

Thirdly, in verse 19, Paul says that we are more apt to be in touch with God’s Will for our lives when we immerse ourselves in the worship of Him. He says, ‘Speak to each other with psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music unto the Lord.’ He is talking about worship.

Bottom line, the Christian faith is a singing faith. But life with all of its difficulties and tragedies tries to steal the song from us, doesn’t it? We have a lot to learn from our brothers and sisters, chained in slavery, oppressed on every side. Wondering, ‘Where is God’s will in all of this for us?’ What did they do? They sang! Gospel music and spirituals and the blues, that all comes out of that experience. The Christian people are a people of song.

Oh, but life is always trying to snatch that song from us. Like Chippie the parakeet. One minute singing peacefully in his cage; the next minute, sucked in, washed up, blown away. It all started when Chippie’s owner decided she would clean his cage with a vacuum cleaner. She was vacuuming the cage, and the phone range, and she reached over to answer it; and swoosh, there went Chippie into the machine. Well, she quickly flipped it off, opened the canister, ripped open the bag, and there was Chippie still alive, but stunned. Covered with dirt and soot. She ran into the bathroom, put him under the tub faucet. Now he was sputtering, soaked, and shivering. So she ran into the bedroom and this time hit him with a blow dryer. Well, a few days later a friend asked her how Chippie was doing. She said, “Well, he doesn’t sing much any more. He just kind of sits on his perch and stares.”

Life has a way of knocking the song out of us. And that is why worship is so important. That is why music is such a vital part of worship. Every week we come and we gather here, and we learn to sing again, and then to take that song out into the world. The Christian faith is a singing faith. When you and I make our way through life singing, singing chiefly praise to God – it is then that we are more likely to hear God singing back.

Fourthly and lastly, verse 20. Paul says that we will be more likely to get in touch with the Will of God, when we cultivate thankful hearts. He says, ‘ . . . giving thanks to God the Father for everything.” For everything?

Matthew Henry, the great Biblical scholar, one night was walking home and he was mugged, beat to a pulp, his wallet stolen. That night in his journal, Matthew Henry wrote these words: “Lord, I thank you. I thank you that I have never been robbed before. Lord, secondly I thank you that they took my wallet, but not by life. Thirdly Lord, I thank you that I was the one who was robbed, not the one doing the robbing.”

The word “thankful.” In the Anglo-Saxon it means “thinkful.” When we examine our lives, when we think out our lives, when we think about our lives in the light of God’s grace and our personal relationship with Christ, it is then we ought to be thankful for a whole lot of things. We have such a God of grace and mercy. Isn’t it wonderful that He blesses our lives, not just in those areas where we are thankful.

He continues to bless us, even in areas when we are not thankful. But you know what? When you and I are thankful, our heart beats more closely in sync with God’s heart. When that happens, we are much more likely to discern God’s specific Will for our lives.

Part of me says, ‘who in the heck, who are we to presume that we can know God’s will? We have a tough enough time trying to figure out what we even want in our lives.’ But we are on the right track when we deal the reality that God has a Will for our lives. It is not always painless. It is not always easy. It doesn’t always make us happy. But I’ll tell you this, it is always fulfilling.

You and I are on the right track when we come to grips with the fact that God’s will is often times not very efficient. It is not safe. It doesn’t always seem logical. But at the bottom of God’s heart, at the bottom of God’s Will for our life is always, always our best.


* you can read this article and more at:
http://www.turnbacktogod.com/what-is-the-will-of-god-for-me/

The Need To Forgive

The Need To Forgive

Unless we forgive, we will not be forgiven. God’s blessings await those who are ready to forgive.

Jesus taught us how to pray. He said, ”Pray then in this way. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.” (Mt. 6:9-13)

Immediately after teaching this prayer, Jesus gives a stern warning in the next two verses. “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” – Mt. 6: 14-15. He emphasizes the same thing in Mark 11 verse 25. “Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.”

As Christians, we pray innumerable times. But let us examine ourselves if we are following the advice of the Lord. According to him each time before we pray, no matter it is the morning prayer, the family prayer in the evening, the bedtime prayer, the prayers in the church, we are supposed to do this self-examination and forgive if we have any grudge against anyone. This is a pre-condition for starting our prayer.

When do we feel grudge against anyone? When we think that someone has done something against us. And we are supposed to forgive them. But that is not enough. “So when you are offering gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.” (Mt. 5:23-24)

Now the situation in Mk 11, verse 25 and Mt. 5 verse 23 is different. In the former, the situation is that we have some grudge against someone because we feel that he/she has done something against us. Well, we have forgiven him/her. But the latter situation is just opposite. Here we do not have any grudge against anyone; rather someone has some grudge against us. That means he or she feels that we have done something against him/her. In such a situation neither should a priest say mass, nor should a layman participate in the mass.

“Leave your gift then before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.” But how many of us are following this instruction of Jesus? Feelings of revenge and hatred make us blind to our own mistakes. Our thoughts and words will be obsessed with the mistakes of those against whom we keep grudge.

When we try to find others’ mistakes we tend to belittle our own mistakes. We try to put a veil over our mistakes. Thus we become prejudiced. Besides, if we go on endlessly observing others’ mistakes, we too will be tempted to commit the same mistakes.

Mother Theresa says that we must forgive and forget. She emphasizes on forgetting others’ mistakes. According to her, that is the solution for all the wars, violence and tensions in this world. If we do not forgive and forget others’ mistakes, they will have a negative impact upon us. So we have to pray for them. That will give us peace. Further, we will be able to love them. Jesus showed us the way: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Lk. 23: 24)

We often believe that our life is controlled by our enemy. But we must know that our life is controlled by none other than God. He is the driver of our vehicle. He is the captain of our ship. He is steering the boat of our life. He is our shepherd. He alone is our ruler, our king. If anyone does anything against us, the result is but temporary. We should not be upset by the storm created by it. We must have firm faith in Jesus who is sleeping in the boat. “And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.” (Eph. 4: 32)

Many a time we are ready to forgive others if they apologize to us. We want our enemies to come to us and say, “I am sorry.” We may be waiting to hear these words from our enemies and we are ready to forgive. But our ego does not let us go and ask forgiveness from others. Here Jesus shows the example. As St. Paul says, when we were enemies, Jesus came to us to reconcile with us.

We do not lose anything by forgiving except our ego, our false pride. Whatever we lose by forgiving, God will give us a hundredfold. Whatever Christ lost by dying on the cross, God gave him back many folds by giving him the glory of the resurrection because he forgave. There is a promise of God behind every forgiving.

Forgiveness is not a loss; it is a gain. It is not a defeat; it is a victory. It is not an end: it is a beginning.

“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you. (LK 6:27-31) “But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great.” (LK 6:35)

Now we need not feel sad or depressed when we do not get back what we have given. God who is faithful in His promises will reward us.

Forgiving and reconciling with those who have inflicted serious physical, mental, financial or emotional injuries upon us is one of the most difficult things to do. How can we love our enemies, how can we do ‘good’ to those who hate us, how can we bless those who curse us and how can we pray for those who abuse us? Is it not against human nature? Is it not swimming against the current? Yes, but that is what Christ wants us to do, we being his followers.

Have you ever thought why Jesus cursed the fig tree? Obviously He cursed it because there were no fruits on it. But the gospel writer clearly states that it was not the season of figs. Still Jesus cursed the fig tree and it withered. Yes, Jesus wants us to go against our human nature and he wants us to swim against the current. Exactly that is what He wants us to do when he asks us to forgive our enemies and do good to those who hate us.

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even the sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from you whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again.” (Lk 6: 32-34)

Can you see your life partner as innocent? Lying on the cross Jesus saw all of us as innocent. “For they do not know what they do.” The lesson is: Do not pass judgment. Let us deal with others not on the basis of rule and law, but on the basis of kindness and understanding.

A person who dies in hatred and with grudge against others is sure to perish. That will be the worst kind of death.

Forgiveness is not a new idea introduced by Jesus. “The vengeful will face the Lord’s vengeance, for he keeps a strict account of their sins. Forgive your neighbor the wrong he has done, and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray. Does anyone harbor anger against another, and expect healing from the Lord? If one has no mercy towards another like himself, can he then seek pardon for his sins? 

- – - written by Georgekutty K.V.

10 ways to love

10 ways to love

1. Listen without interrupting.
Proverbs 18:13 – To answer before listening, that is folly and shame.

2. Speak without accusing.
James 1:19 – My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry

3. Give without sparing.
Proverbs 21:26 – All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing.

4. Pray without ceasing.
Colossians 1:9 – For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives.

5. Answer without arguing.
Proverbs 17:1 – Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife.

6. Share without pretending.
Ephesians 4:15 – Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.

7. Enjoy without complaint.
Philippians 2:14 – Do everything without grumbling or arguing

8. Trust without wavering.
Corinthians 13:7 – Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

9. Forgive without punishing.
Colossians 3:13 – Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

10. Promise without forgetting.
Proverbs 13:12 – Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.

Weakness Can Be Strength

Weakness Can Be Strength

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” - 2 Corinthians 12:9

When it comes to life, for some folks their biggest strength becomes their biggest weakness. For example, as Jesus said about the wealthy man, “Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” – Matthew 19:24. The eye of the needle was referring to a door in the wall of the city (as it was commonly called) which was too small for a camel to go through, meaning that it was impossible for a person who trusts in his riches—or his fame, personality, power or position—to get into God’s heaven.

On the other hand, when we acknowledge our weaknesses and know that we need to depend on God for guidance, wisdom, discernment, and deliverance from temptation – this can become our greatest strength.

Dear God, please deliver me from the sin of pride and help me always remember to be dependent on you for guidance, wisdom, direction, power to overcome temptation, and for my eternal salvation. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Things people say

Another blog entry from lamplighter
That convicted me...


This morning while reading Ecclesiastes 7 I came upon this verse: "Do not take heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. Your heart knows that many times you have yourself cursed others."

Something to consider for sure. I don’t know about you but I hate when people don’t like me for whatever reason but at the same time I know that in a position of leadership you can’t lead based on what people think or say or you will never get anywhere. I have come to learn that when people say things that are hurtful, that God has brought that arrow for my good. God is sovereign even over the arrows that can hurt us so deeply. He knows exactly what we need and when we need it. I would like to share my part of a discussion I had with a sister who was hurt deeply by someone close to her. She didn’t know what she had done to cause this turning of a heart against her by one she loved, but she was deeply hurt. Hopefully this will meet the need of someone today who finds themselves in a similar situation of hurt:



Dear Sister in Christ, here is my initial thought, but what I have pasted below is

the real counsel that you will want to consider…you will want to read it

again and again. But first, here is my feeble thought….if you don’t

know what someone is mad about, then this shouldn’t involve you…the reason

you are so stirred is because you are feeling the pains of your own

personal rejection…if you have done nothing wrong, then there isn’t

anything for you to do, other than allow this time to humble you and

repress your self-love. God is behind the scenes placing pressure on

areas of your life that are still alive and too sensitive…oh, what

counsel that I should heed myself! So therefore, I would not approach

this other person until your sensitivity to the situation is more fully

repressed/dead…but in the meantime, you can still do good to them when

God opens the door in His good timing. What you are about to read, says

it all…



You might already have this book…it is my favorite devotional

http://www.lamplighterpublishing.com/prodinfo.asp?number=RCDOFV1&variati

on=&aitem=8&mitem=13



WHEN God purposes to make

us die to ourselves, He always

touches that which is the very essence

and center of our life. Thus doth He

apportion crosses. Let yourself be

humbled; silence and peace under

humiliation are a true benefit to the

soul. One is sometimes tempted to talk

humbly, and it is easy to find a thousand

fine pretexts for so doing, but it is yet

better to be humbly silent. Talkative

humility is to be suspected; in talking,

self-love relieves itself a little.

Do not be angry about what people

say; let them talk, while you try to do

God’s will. As to the will of men, you

could never come to an end of satisfying

it, nor is it worth the trouble. A little

silence, peace, and union with God

ought to comfort you for all that men

may say unjustly.

You need all your resolution in your

present position, but at the same time

your quickness of temper requires

checks and impediments. Possess your

soul in patience. Renew yourself often

in the presence of God, so as to calm

yourself, to humble and adapt yourself

to the little ones. Nothing is really great

save lowliness, charity, distrust of self,

detachment from one’s own opinion

and will. All stiff , harsh goodness is

contrary to Jesus Christ.



Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides

you.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is

the strength of my heart and my portion

forever.

For behold, those who are far from you shall

perish; you put an end to everyone who is

unfaithful to you.

But for me it is good to be near God;

I have made the Lord God my refuge,

that I may tell of all your works.

Psalm 73:25-28

Doing the hard things

Below comes from the blog
Lamplighter


Doing Hard Things
I was conversing with a friend of mine last night and he said something that
caught my attention. He said that he has been noticing how the younger
generations walk more slowly than our generation. The current teenage
generation seems to walk at snail pace and even slower. I have noticed this
phenomenon myself. I see young people even dragging their feet as they walk.
We no longer see groups of kids playing basketball at the neighbors. When I
grew up there was a pick up game of basketball every night. During the
summers we had enough neighborhood friends to play baseball; at night we
played kick-the-can, and on a slow day you could find a bunch of us kids
hiking up the streams catching crayfish or climbing the cliffs. We were
always on the go. Today, kids are found sitting behind a computer or in
front of a tv. What has happened? I would like to share a teen's perspective
in the article below. I found this article in Magnum Opus III written by
Alex and Brett Harris. Nicely written...worth reading...worth having your
teens read especially.

Doing the Hard Things
by Alex and Brett Harris
We've all heard people say that God wants us "on fire" for Him. Maybe your
pastor has talked about being "sold out" for Jesus, or a conference speaker
has challenged you to serve God with "total abandon." We're used to that
kind of talk. It's almost cliché.
But has anyone ever told you that God commands you to do hard things?
For some reason that sounds more extreme, doesn't it? Being "on fire" or
"sold out" for God sound like positive emotional states where nothing can
really get to you. Even serving God with "total abandon" doesn't make us
feel uncomfortable as long as we leave it general and vague. But "do hard
things" sounds so—well, hard.
We don't like hard things in our society, especially as young people. We
avoid hard things as much as possible. Unfortunately (or should we say,
fortunately), there's no avoiding them in the Bible.
Of course, our tendency is to say that God's commands aren't "easy" or that
it's only by His grace that we can obey any of them—and both of those
statements are 100 percent true—but why can't we ever come out and say that
God's commands are hard? When Christ commands us to love our enemies, why
can't we just call it what it is?
Everything God commands is hard. Repenting is hard. Forgiving is hard.
Turning the other cheek is hard. Overcoming sin in our lives is hard.
Honoring our parents is hard. Sharing the gospel is hard. Reading our Bibles
is hard. We could go on.
Part of our hesitation to call things hard can be that we're afraid to come
across as unspiritual. After all, if we're truly "on fire" for Jesus,
shouldn't it be easy for us to read our Bibles every day, say no to sin, and
share the gospel with others?
But when we think that way, we're missing something huge that God wants to
teach us about personal growth and His plan for our lives.


The Way We Grow

In James 1:2, we're told to consider it "pure joy" when we're faced with
challenges, trials, and obstacles, because they test our faith and makes us
stronger. Think about that: The God who created you and loves you cares
about your growth. And the way He has designed you to grow is through
challenges.
When you work out your muscles grow stronger. When you challenge yourself
mentally your brain grows new neurons. When you do hard things, you grow,
both in character and in practical areas of competence.
If we want to grow we need to get over the idea that God's love means He
wants us to go through life with as little effort or discomfort as possible.
This is similar to the mistaken notion that we don't need to change because
God loves us just the way we are. God does love us just the way we are, but
He also loves us too much to leave us that way. He wants us to grow.
Of course, none of this is to say that God wants us to live joyless and
pain-filled lives, but our joy must be rooted in more than temporary
circumstances, and at times pain is necessary in order to gain something of
greater value.


A Radical Argument

We're making what sounds like a radical argument. We're not just saying
that hard things happen and that you can benefit from them. We're not just
saying that you have the ability to do hard things. We're telling you that
you should do hard things because it's the best and only way to experience
true growth in your life.
Take a moment and think. Can you remember any period of growth in your life
(as a Christian, student, athlete, musician) that didn't involve effort and
even some level of discomfort? The truth is that all growth involves
discomfort.
This isn't a new idea. We don't want to reinvent truth. But we do want our
generation to rediscover what has always been true—and one thing that has
always been true is that in order to grow we must do hard things. We must
challenge and stretch ourselves, step outside our comfort zones and do
something difficult. It's how we've grown before, and it's the only way
we'll grow for the rest of our lives.
while it may sound more appealing to sign up for a less extreme version of
the Christian life, such as the platinum "do hard things" membership,
perhaps we could take more of a "less benefits for less effort" approach by
instituting something more along the lines of a bronze
"go-to-church-every-week" membership
Unfortunately (or again, fortunately), God doesn't leave that option open to
us.
Writes C.S. Lewis: "It is hard; but the sort of compromise we're hankering
after is harder—in fact, it is impossible…. We are like eggs at present. And
we cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be
hatched or go bad."
In other words, we can't just go on being ordinary, decent Christians,
giving God part of our lives while holding back the rest. Either we are
hatched and learn to fly or we are a dud that will soon start to stink. The
ironic thing here is that although the hardest thing—the almost impossible
thing—is to hand over our whole selves to Christ, it is far easier than what
we are trying to do instead.

Hard Things or Harder Things?

What happens when we avoid hard things? The answer is that hard things come
to us. It's like the guy who won't go in to the gas station to put some air
in a slightly deflated tire, only to have it blow out on him on the freeway
when he's late for an important meeting. Maybe it's even happened before,
and he's already used his spare. Tough luck.
We can't really avoid doing hard things. We can only decide when to do them
and how prepared we will be to handle the hard things life brings our way.
You either do the hard thing of getting prepared, or you deal with the
harder thing of being unprepared. We either "do it" now, or we end up having
to "deal with it" later.
This is about a lot more than flat tires or missed meetings. Resisting
temptation is hard, but not as hard as dealing with an addiction. Finding
and keeping a job is hard, but not as hard as dealing with unemployment and
struggling to make ends meet.
This world would have you think that your best life would be a life in which
you were able to completely avoid responsibility and effort. But a life like
that could be compared to the strange fish that live in the complete
darkness of the deepest parts of the ocean, who never come in contact with a
hard object their entire lives, and whose flesh has become completely
translucent. That is a picture of what we're asking for when we desire a
life of ease.
John Piper, in his book Don't Waste Your Life, shares this story:
I will tell you what a tragedy is. I will show you how to waste your life.
Consider a story from the February 1998 edition of Reader's Digest, which
tells about a couple who "took early retirement from their jobs in the
Northeast five years ago when he was 59 and she was 51.
Now they live in Punta Gorda, Florida, where they cruise on their 30 foot
trawler, play softball and collect shells." At first, when I read it I
thought it might be a joke. A spoof on the American Dream. But it wasn't.
Tragically, this was the dream: Come to the end of your life—your one and
only precious, God-given life—and let the last great work of your life,
before you give an account to your Creator, be this: playing softball and
collecting shells. Picture them before Christ at the great Day of Judgment:
"Look, Lord. See my shells." That is a tragedy. And people today are
spending billions of dollars to persuade you to embrace that tragic dream.
Over and against that, I put my protest: Don't buy it. Don't waste your
life.

We don't want to waste our lives. That's why we choose do hard things, and
why we challenge you to do hard things as well.
Theodore Roosevelt said it well when he said, "A mere life of ease is not in
the end a satisfactory life, and, above all, it is a life which ultimately
unfits those who follow it for serious work in the world." Such a life is a
tragedy—a wasted life.
When we fail to do hard things, we not only disobey God, we set ourselves up
to fall short of our true, God-given potential. Even worse, we act as if God
is not worthy of our effort—or as if He is unable to accomplish through us
what He has called us to do.


Living Your Best Life

God isn't glorified when His children limit themselves to what comes easily
for them. He isn't glorified when His children aren't willing to do hard
things. The Christian calling is hard, but it is also the only calling
worthy of such extraordinary effort.
History tells us that our best life is not our easiest life. Those men and
women who were of the greatest service to God and to mankind were those who
gave the most of themselves; those who endeavored, not to avoid
difficulties, but to overcome them; not to seek comfort, but to do what was
necessary, no matter how hard.
If you can take only one thing from this article, take this: Our greatest
joy and satisfaction comes not from avoiding hard things but from joyfully
embracing them. This is how the same Jesus who said, "If anyone would come
after Me let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow Me," could
also say, "for My yoke is easy and My burden is light." Following in
Christ's footsteps is hard, but it's good—and He is the ultimate example to
us of a life spent doing hard things for the glory of God.
Our big, crazy idea is that this is the life God has called us to live
now—not ten or twenty years from now, but right now, as young people. This
is your best life, not your easiest life; the only way to avoid wasting your
single years and ultimately your life.


Something to Give Your Life To

If you want something that you can give your life to, this is it. This will
ask for all of you and give you back more than you could ever imagine.
This is what Jim Elliot was speaking of when he said, "He is no fool who
gives up what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose."
This is what Christ promised when He said, ""He who would save his life will
lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save
it."
This is what G.K. Chesterton was talking about when he wrote, "The Christian
ideal has not been tried and found wanting, it has been found difficult and
left untried."
Our dream is that our generation would be made up of those who find the
Christian ideal difficult and yet still try—knowing that the loving God who
would never leave us as we are and who desires our growth, will also delight
with the first feeble, stumbling effort we make tomorrow to do the simplest
hard thing for His glory.
George MacDonald, a great Christian writer, pointed out that every father is
pleased at the baby's first attempt to walk, but no father would be
satisfied with anything less than a firm, free, manly walk in a grown-up
son. In the same way, he said, "God is easy to please, but hard to satisfy."
And why would we ever want God to be satisfied with anything less than the
very best for us?
published in Magnum Opus III

The media and Children

The Media and Children
The average child in the US only receives 21 minutes a day of primary attention with their parents, but, according to the Motion Picture Association, spend up to 10.25 hours per day with the Internet and TV. (these statistics were researched 2 years ago, so the stats will be higher now with the iphone) Therefore, by the time the average American child is 17 years old, he or she has watched 63,000 hours of mass media, spent 11,000 hours in school and gone to church for only 800 hours (assuming he or she has gone to church every Sunday for one hour since birth).

Peace, Love and Joy~

If you want the peace of God to reign in your life, you have to quit several things:

• You must quit trying to figure out how God will work everything out.
• You must quit worrying and fretting: “Be anxious for nothing...” (Philippians 4:6).
• You must quit telling God what you think is right for you.
• And most of all, you must quit thinking you are a failure; stop thinking you do not please God!

One of Satan’s most effective traps for robbing Christians of peace is to convince them they must strive in the flesh to please God. He springs this on me all the time!

Sometimes when I need a quiet place to pray, I get in my car and drive to a secluded spot. I can praise the Lord and enjoy His presence while looking out over green fields and forests. But sometimes the thought hits me that I am not doing anything for the Lord!

I pray, “Lord, I’m just not accomplishing much for Your kingdom. All I do is pray, get messages for sermons, and go to church and preach. The whole world is going to hell, and I’m not doing anything for You!”

Have such thoughts ever hit you? You do everything you can in order to please the Lord, yet you do not feel holy. I hardly ever feel holy. That is true even in my best times—even when I am preaching under the Spirit’s anointing!

You say, “You, Brother Dave? You feel at times as if you’re not doing much for God?” Yes! The devil comes in and makes us all feel unworthy, unfulfilled. And we lose our peace by giving in to these awful feelings!

Listen to Paul’s prayer for us: “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).

Trust in His goodness. Believe in His love and mercy. Do not accuse Him of being angry or upset with you or of not speaking to you. Let His peace rule in your heart and over your whole life!