Freaks

 You're a control freak. Whoa! Don't get upset. All of us, to some degree, are control freaks. We're born that way. Anyone who's ever brought a newborn baby home knows that the battle to exert control starts immediately. We also know that it doesn't get better with age.

Martha, in Luke 10, is the poster girl for control freaks. In this passage, Jesus comes to her home, and while she is busy preparing the meal, her sister Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus. Martha was beside herself and confronted Jesus; Lord, don't You care that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Beth Moore once spoke on this passage and said that extremely busy people become detached from the reality of God's care. She said the Greek used in this passage of Scripture gives a translation that reads like this; Martha was so crowded with busy things that she had a crowd in her head. I know the feeling and experience of "the crowd." So do you. We care about a lot of things. And they build up....and up and up and up. They do become a "crowd" in our head, constantly bumping into each other. We are in desperate need of "crowd control," but we are unable to provide it. We need Jesus. 

When Martha went to Jesus, she asked Him if He cared. The care she speaks of is a tender care. She wants to know if any of this matters to Him? When have we asked the same? In reply Jesus says, Martha, you're so careful about so many things.....He recognizes her care, but that it is all anxiety driven care. This is the mark of all control freaks. To some degree, we're all anxiety driven, making us, to some degree, control freaks as well. We bring our bundle of problems to the Lord, but we insert ourselves into the problems as well. We want His help, but we want to control how and when He helps, and that it will make sense to us when He does. Hey, this is what control freaks do.

I Peter 5:7 calls us to cast all our anxiety driven cares upon Him, because He does have tender care for us. We can only do so in obedience, trust, and surrender. None of this is natural to the control freak. To do so means we have to acknowledge, as Moore says, that "He's on the throne and we're on the floor." Philippians 4 tells us to pray about everything, which means everything is affected by prayer. We pray, and may even pray about everything, but we fail to pray in humble surrender. A surrender that says, "You are God over this and I yield control of all of it to you." This moves us from the realm of the control freak into the realm of experiencing His peace and rest. A peace that is real and beyond our ability to really understand. 

What might you be accusing the Lord of not caring about recently? How active is the "crowd" in your head? Could it be that you've forgotten who is on the throne and who is to be on the floor.....at His feet? Let Him break the cycle of destruction that's the lot of the control freak. Be careful for nothing, because He cares for everything.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Witness

 "He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, 'Prepare a pathway for the Lord's coming. Make a straight road for Him! Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills! Straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places! And then the people will see the salvation sent from God."  Luke 3:4-6

Luke, the writer of the gospel that bears his name, used the above passage from Isaiah, which foretold of the coming of the one who would announce the coming of the Messiah. The prophecy was fulfilled through the life, witness, and ministry of John the Baptist. I've read it many times, but when I read it just a few days ago, it impacted my heart in a way it never had before. It was not just reading about the life and ministry of John the Baptist. I was also reading what my life and ministry must be. And if you are truly a follower of Christ, what yours must be as well.

There is so much packed into that passage and John did indeed live it out. By His grace, power, and Holy Spirit, we can as well. If we do, we can not do so passively. Our witness is to be active and alive, but sadly too much of our witness is that of a slumbering church and people. We "hire" our prophets to preach to us and do the work of ministry. To be His full time witnesses while we.....play. But what would happen if we did see the call of John to also be our call as well. A call to each who in Christ, is a member of His royal priesthood.

What would happen if we had lives and testimonies that were crying out, in the midst of this wilderness world that He has come? What if we lived in such a way that we were a pathway to Jesus Christ instead of an obstacle? What if our lives were of such a level of integrity that all the crooked aspects of our fallen characters are made straight by the power of His character working in and through us? What if we lived and ministered in such a way as to give people the living hope that the mountains in their lives really can be leveled or removed completely by His miraculous power and presence? What if we gave and lived out the good news that we can rise above the valleys that seek to hold us? Rise above them in Him. What if we, the church, lived and ministered in such a way that the rough ways of this fallen world are smoothed out by His life? A life that has overcome all the power of that fallen world. The answer to it all is that if we, the church, would truly live out such a witness, a lost and dying world then "see" the salvation sent from God. They would see Jesus....in and through us. If. If we would live out our calling. If we would rise up from our slumber. If.

I want to be one of the ones crying out, speaking out, living out this call. Do you? If so, may our desire become our reality. May we have such a witness and testimony. We just need to have voices that are heard above the noise of the wilderness. May it be so that we do.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Hold On!

 "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted with me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance." Psalm 42:5

Katy Nichole is a young singer/songwriter with a powerful testimony that has led to a powerful song. Born with a twisted spine that grew progressively worse, she underwent corrective surgery at age 13 to try and straighten her spine. Rods and screws were inserted. The Doctors pronounced the surgery a success, but Nichole said that so intense was her pain that she felt like she was living under an "immense black cloud."

The Doctors didn't really listen and directed her to a "pain management" program. The use of opioids was central to the treatment. She was given a bottle of them, yet wouldn't take them due to her awareness of their danger. The pain continued and grew worse. One night, she felt she could take no more of it, picked up the bottle, and said that if these pills were the only way out, she'd take it, so desperate was she to escape it all. She walked into the bathroom, intending to consume the entire bottle. She tripped as she entered, though there was nothing on the floor. The open bottle flew out of her hand and the pills scattered across the floor. She was totally broken....and it was then she heard the whisper of His voice; "Hold on! I'm not finished yet."

Nichole, now 18 years old, told her Doctors to remove the rods and screws. They tried to discourage her, saying that the dangers were too great. She insisted, and she underwent a very dangerous surgery. When she came out of it, the pain was already disappearing. Eventually, her spine was fully healed, and she lives a normal physical life. Filled with gratitude for His grace and glory, she wrote a song titled, In Jesus Name, which became an internet and You Tube sensation. The song is a prayer and begins with the powerful words, I speak the Name of Jesus over you. Oh, if only we could come to believe, fully believe, in the power of that name. Of His name. If only we could, in the midst of our own "immense black cloud," hold on. Hold on and know that wherever we are right now, He's not finished. This is not the end. This is not where He will leave us.

The name of the album containing Nichole's song is, The God Of Possible. May that be part of our day by day heartsong. He is the God of all things are possible. Hold on! Hold on and trust! Hold on to the One who holds you. He's not finished and neither are you. Neither are we......Hold On!

Blessings,
Pastor O

Night Ministry

 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs.  Matthew 11:27..."Thank you Father, for the ministry of the night."

I love the sunshine. I dislike cloudy, overcast skies, and rainstorms even more. Yet these are needed because without them, the beauty revealed in the sunlight would wither and die. It's the same in our spiritual lives.

I am thankful for His blessings in the sun, the deep warmth within that they have brought me. Yet, as wonderful as those times have been, I can't think of anything of deep import that He spoke to me there. I don't mean I was out of fellowship with Him, but I know that in my enjoyment of His blessing, I could become dulled to the voice of the One who gives the blessing. That's our human nature. We'd love to live on the sun-drenched mountaintop, but He knows that we will not experience Him there as He wants us to. So, He leads us into the dark valleys. The dark valleys where the blessings seem to dry up, even disappear. The dark valley where we, hopefully, are re-awakened to our desperate need of Him. The dark valley where we hear Him in ways we never could in the sun. The dark valley where mysteries are revealed.

This morning I heard a woman named Andrea Herzer talk about her journey through the night over the past 20 years. Her life has been one of going from one physical affliction to another. A plethora of nerve and muscle issues that bring pain that never leaves her. In addition, she has been battling cancer for the last decade. Very often, she cannot even get out of her bed, and she lies there, experiencing a maddening pain that He has allowed, and to date, has not taken away. Yes, she experiences all the frustration and times of anger that we all would. But she says that she has found in the pain and in the questions, a reality of Him that she never before knew. She said that in her pain, she would cry out words of praise to Him. As she did so, her spirit was so lifted up into His Presence that she was above the pain. Yes, the pain was still there, it was real. He was more real. And He spoke to her there. He gave her what the Word calls, "songs in the night." Out of those songs came a book titled, "Incurable Faith." and through it, she powerfully ministers to all those walking the valley of darkness. We may have what we see as "incurable" afflictions. For them we need an incurable faith.

If you're walking through the valley of darkness, in the depths of the night, may you receive His ministry there. Don't run from it. Run to Him. He has rich words to speak and mysteries to reveal. By His grace, may you walk in your own incurable faith. In the valley, He will lift you up.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Expectations

 Pastor and writer Erwin McManus has said, "God calls us to believe things we cannot see, become someone we're not, and accomplish feats clearly beyond our ability, and then holds us accountable for all of it." In other words, He not only calls us to believe that which is impossible, but to live impossible lives as well. In truth, He doesn't just call us to that life, He commands that we live it. It's His expectation that we will. Are the lives you and I are living today meeting His expectations?

Ephesians 3:20 is, I believe, heavily quoted but little realized in His people's lives. It reads, "Now glory be to God, by His mighty power at work within us, He is able to accomplish infinitely more than we could ever dare to ask or hope." We say we believe those words, but are the realties of them happening in our lives? If not, why not?

If not, maybe the answer is found in that we place great reliance on the words, "He is able to accomplish." We focus on His role while feeling ours is to passively allow Him to "take care of business," whether it's the business of the Kingdom or the business of our day to day lives. We look to Him to do great and mighty things while we snuggle down on our lounge chairs and sofas to cheer Him on. We pray fervently for the Lord to move while we are unmoving. We don't want to leave our various comfort zones. We want Him to do the impossible but to not disturb our carefully built, and peaceful lifestyles. We want a God, a faith, that produces great and wonderful things, but at little or no risk to ourselves. We want to enter into promised land without ever having to cross the Jordan or deal with the opposition we'll find if we do. 

The deep truth of Ephesians 3:20 is that He WILL do wonders in and around our lives, but it will be in accordance with "the power that is at work within us." This power will never be realized from our comfort zone. It comes as it did upon the 120, gathered in the upper room. Upon hearts and lives seeking Him, desperate for His life, grace, and overwhelming power. This power knows nothing of a passive, risk free lifestyle. It will come from and with our walking in the footsteps of Jesus, through our own personal wilderness, through ever growing challenges and opposition, and through danger filled places. It begins at the foot of the cross in our surrender. In our dying to our will and being made alive in and to His. It's a life that will believe what can't be seen, that will become what it never believed it could, and accomplish what we knew was far beyond our natural abilities. It's a life that will behold Him doing "exceedingly abundantly beyond all we could ask or think. A life of power and purpose. The life we're called to. Are we living this life? Or are we found on the sideline, in our comfort zone, waiting for Him to do the wonders we've heard about but never really seen or experienced? We know what His expectations are, but will they ever be realized in our lives?

Blessings,
Pastor O

The Last Word

 Words have power. Power to hurt or heal, tear down or build up. Sadly, too many of the words spoken into our lives have hurt and torn down more than they healed or built up. Too many of us still carry the wounds as a result of these words. If one could see our souls, they might well see a soul bearing a multitude of slash wounds, and all of them still bleeding.

Though the words may have come through a human voice, there is no mistaking their true source, that being the enemy of our souls, Satan. Scripture says that He comes to "steal, kill, and destroy" and his success in this is seen everywhere as he has succeeded in stealing hope, killing our dreams, and destroying our lives. He seeks to do this through the words, aiming that we would believe that the words that cut so deeply are true, that we really are useless, stupid, ugly, hopeless, and wanted and desired by no one. He, the father of lies, wants us to believe every lie he speaks through these words. He wants us to believe that what he has spoken is the last word. He does not. As Eugene Peterson writes, "You (Jesus), have the last word, and the last word is life, not death." In all things, and especially in all things concerning our lives, past, present, and future, Jesus Christ has the last word, and that word is always, LIFE!

One of the Bible's names for Satan is The Destroyer. Where has he and is he living up to that name in your life? Where has he, through cutting, hateful words, been destroying your relationships, your homes, your families? He wants to destroy our future, our destiny in Jesus Christ, the very reason for which we were created. If we believe the lies of what he speaks, that those words of hate and accusation are true, that his words are the last words, he will. He will not and cannot if we will believe what the Lord said about Himself in John 10; "I am the Door of the sheep....I came that they might have life, and have it abundantly."

In most Bibles,  the words of Jesus are printed in red, meaning His words are written in His blood. That's not merely symbolic. His words to us are written in His blood. Their power is sealed in and by His blood. All the lies of hell, about us, others, and Him are powerless in His Presence and Words. They must fall before Him. The truth of His Word is guaranteed by the blood He shed for us, for you and me, on the cross. 

Every day, Satan will come to us speaking his words of death, and he will come through a host of different messengers. Jesus promises that those who are His are able to live in the power of His resurrected life. Every word of the enemy is rooted in death, and he seeks to kill us by inches. One cutting wound after another. He wants his word and words to you to be the last ones. Reject the lie. Embrace the truth. The last word for you and about you will always belong to Christ. His last word is Life. It is also His first. Every word He speaks is rooted in His Life. May we receive them all.

Who has been having the last word in your life? Who will have it today? Speaking to Joshua and the people after the death of Moses, God said He placed before them the choice between life and death. They chose life....in Him. That choice is before us each day. May we, may you, choose life!

Blessings,

Pastor O

The Tribe

 Deep desires that are never realized. We all have them. They're painful, frustrating, and cause us to often question the goodness of a God who promised to give us "the desires of our heart." We all have them, but the question is, how do we live with them? In the midst of them, what becomes our focus? The pain? The frustration? The anger? Do we just dream about a life we wished we had while hating the life we do have? John Eldredge in his book, Walking With God, writes, "You can't go through your day continually pining for the life you do not have. You have to live the life you do have." How many of us will do that? How many of us sleepwalk through our lives wishing we were living another?

In response to what Eldredge wrote, I put down in my prayer journal, "There's a great difference between desiring the life we wish we had, and seeking the life we were created for." Hebrews 11 speaks of the heroes of faith, and said of them, "....they were no more than foreigners and nomads here on earth. And obviously people like that are looking for a country they can call their own." They were looking for the country they were created to seek and they knew that country would never be found here. Verse 16 says, "They were looking for a better place. We all have that yearning for a better place. Our problem is that we think we can find that place here. We think "home" is here. The better country, the home we were made for, is only found in one place. In the heart of the Father.

Few of us are willing to be "nomads," following wherever He leads. Those who do enjoy His blessing and bounty in the journey, but the blessing and bounty don't hold us. They don't hold our hearts. He does. I've a wise friend who says He desires to live out his life as Christ did, in the bosom of the Father. For Jesus, that was home, and no earthly place could compare to it or bring the satisfaction that it did. Jesus was a nomad, calling to Himself a tribe of nomads. Have you and I ever really become a part of that tribe? 

Does this mean that we're to deny our longings and desires? Are we to resign ourselves to His never meeting them at all? No. He's calling us to live in Him, fully in Him in the midst of even our deepest and purest desires. Only as we remain in Him can we guard against a desire becoming a "need," a "must have" in order for us to be content. When that happens, the result will always be the destruction of our peace, joy, and satisfaction in Him. We'll always feel we're missing something, being deprived of something. Something we feel we have a right to, that we're entitled to. That's where resentment creeps in. We suspect He is holding back, holding out on us. We question His goodness and His love. The object of unrealized desire becomes our own "better country," our idol, and we no longer live in and for Him, but in pursuit of the desire that has become our heart's treasure.

I have spent too many years looking for the better country here, thinking it can be found in relationships, ministry success, and a host of other "good things." Along the way He met so many of my desires, but it was in the unmet ones that I lost my peace, joy, and fulfillment in Him. I allowed them to go from being desires to being things I had to have.....or else. Aware of it or not, I slipped into believing that if I didn't have them, I didn't really have life. I was wasting the life I had in my yearning for a life I didn't have. Where might you be doing the same?

Victory for me came when I surrendered the desires and longings, the life I wanted to have, to Him. In this I found peace.....and joy, fulfillment, and purpose in the life I did have in Him. My eyes and heart were opened to treasures and wonder I'd been blind to. I not only "saw" the beauty in my life as it was, I began to see the life He had created me for and was always before me, calling me onward, calling me home. Home to the better country of His heart and Kingdom.....That same call is before you right now. Can you hear it? Can you begin to see the borderlands of that country? Press on, and.....welcome to the tribe!

Blessings,
Pastor O