Proverbs 3:5 – A Wasted ‘Best’?

Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Proverbs‬ ‭3‬:‭5‬ NLT

I’ve been fortunate lately to spend small amounts of time with several leaders of my church. We’ve got many great things going on, but I’ve found myself feeling drained from travel and other things, creating a nagging feeling that I wasted their time and my input has fallen well short of giving my best in those conversations.

And this worries me. The work of the church is the hope of the world. Literally, lives and eternity hang in the balance as church leaders gather input and use it to inform their decisions. So as this weighed on me this morning, I got a strong indication why: I’ve been trying to do this myself. I’ve been trying to give these leaders my best, not giving them the best God can offer through me.

In whatever you’re doing, you need to give your best. And that’s hard enough. But you have to be intentional, creating a schedule that allows you to be at your personal best when it’s time for God to tap in and use you.

I’ve got to make some changes, starting with more consistent prayer, scripture, and rest. I hope you will pray for those changes for me. I would be delighted if you shared your list so I can pray for you also.

Ecclesiastes 10:2 – Fools and Roads

A wise person chooses the right road; a fool takes the wrong one. Ecclesiastes‬ ‭10‬:‭2‬ NLT

Men have a hard time with directions in general. We don’t like to follow putting things together. We don’t like to use them getting places we think we should know how to get. We definitely hate asking for them if we don’t have them. So what?

Say you made an iffy decision. That’s not really the problem, right? But then you made another one. Maybe another after that. Maybe you don’t even realize that third decision is iffy.

Once you make that first iffy decision, you’re already on the wrong road. You’re likely to keep following that road, stuck on that road, long after you realize you need to be somewhere else.

Sin is like that. Once you make the first step down that path, you can either correct and go back; or you can continue a path that will ultimately lead you somewhere wrong.

Don’t be a fool. Take the right road. Don’t hesitate to back-track. Always ask for direction from God when you need it.

Psalm Sunday: 5:3 – Expect to Wait

Listen to my voice in the morning, lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly. Psalms 5:3 NLT

Good morning! Happy Sunday! I’ve been expecting you.

Traditionally, this is the day we celebrate Jesus entering Jerusalem seemingly victorious. I remember vividly the great fanfare of palm leaves entering the sanctuary every year on this day. But we already know the next act of the story. We know this euphoria didn’t last. If you’re familiar with the gospels, you’ll recall the disciples tried to keep Jesus from returning to Jerusalem despite this welcome.

Jesus knew what had to be done. And so He came to Jerusalem, and He waited expecting His prophecies about Himself to be fulfilled. During this week, the gospels also tell us Jesus prayed fervently asking for another route to accomplish the same means. I think we have to acknowledge, then, that Jesus had a choice. Jesus had to accept in His human form that this was the only course which would forever restore our relationship with God.

I think it’s plain that Jesus was afraid. As we learn anything else from Jesus, we should learn how to fear. Knowing His death would allow Him to accept God’s full wrath for every misstep of humanity, fear seems, um, appropriate?

But Jesus didn’t abort. Knowing the coming pain from the ravaging of His human body, that He wouldn’t suffocate but would bleed to death, He waited expectantly. Fearing not the death of His body but the wrath He would take from God, knowing though He never sinned He would feel the pain of sin, Jesus waited expectantly.

Bring your requests to God. Wait expecting God’s reply.

1 Corinthians 1:12 – I Follow…

What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas ”; still another, “I follow Christ.” 1 Corinthians 1:12 NIV

Are you familiar with the term “mega church?” I wasn’t as intimately familiar with it a year ago as I am now. Turns out, I’ve pretty much always gone to a mega church. Weekly attendance at the church I grew up in was around 3,000 twenty years ago. Pastors at these churches enjoy a bit of celebrity. Paul didn’t found any mega churches but with the number of lives he reached for Christ, it’s understandable that he grappled with the same issue. As Paul showed, it’s important that you as a follower understand who your following.

Whether your gathering has 10 or 10,000, you have to examine closely who you’re following. You. You have this responsibility. Not the pastor, or the elders, or the trustees or the deacons, or your momma. You. (Don’t get me wrong, they have responsibility, but that doesn’t alleviate you of yours.) So, how you gonna pull that off? How can you vet that your teachers’ teaching is leading you to Christ? I hope you know I hate to give answers that would pass in 2nd grade Sunday school, but this note is that basic: read your bible and pray to God.

To know whether someone is teaching the truth, you have to know God’s truth. To be led closer to God, you have to be seeking a closer relationship with him. If you’re spending time here daily, I appreciate it, but it may be time to spend more time reading God’s promises. Start with this book, 1 Corinthians — it has the love chapter! Start with John’s gospel — where better than Jesus’ closest earthly connection? What I can tell you this commenter doesn’t know (from later posts in this twitter convo, explicitly) is anything about Andy’s teaching style. But I hope she learned something important from Andy about who he wants you to follow:

Now that you’ve picked where to start learning more about God’s promises, take time to meet the author. As you pray today, ask God to guide you to a passage with meaning for your life. Ask God what you need to learn, what will help you grow closer to Him. Thank God for recording His promises so that we can know Him well.

P.S. – The bible does work like a magic 8-ball. If you ask God a question and then randomly open the bible and put your finger on a page, you will most likely get a completely meaningless answer. Try it sometime! Last time, I ended up on the intro/derivation page of Titus.