Living with a Consumed Heart

The Name

Oft times when my thoughts are scattered, I find that meditating on the model prayer that Jesus gave His disciples Matthew 6:9-13 gives structure to my prayer time. That was where I was that day, my mind on laundry and dusting, on getting things ready for work the next day, on the million voices of daily life that vied for my attention.

“Our Father, which art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name,” the words rolled off my tongue with practiced ease. All of the sudden I was gripped by the question, What Name, Father? What Name is it that I am declaring is sanctified, to be reverenced, held as Holy?

A name is more specific than just a word. I may say the word boy, and any young human of the male gender that I encounter would fit that description. But when I say the NAME of my son Braden, there is a flood of memories and emotions that accompany it. I have time invested into that name, twenty four years of smiles, tears, laughter, and joy. I have energy invested into that name, caring for him as a child, making sure he had food and clothing, driving him to Sunday school and cheering at ballgames. My heart is invested in that name through a history of Christmas mornings and birthdays, family meals and vacations, days that seemed filled with love and long nights of prayer. The name Braden is precious to this mother’s heart.

So I sat that day with my eyes on the sky, awestruck by the thought of the God I was addressing so casually. The Jews say that God’s Name is too Holy to be spoken and refer to Him as HaShem (The Name) or Adonai. What Name can I use to address my God that is hallowed, sanctified in my experience, when I speak to Him? He is not some idol on a shelf to be referred to as a “god”. He is so much more than that. I have time and energy invested into this relationship with Him. My emotions and memories are tied up in Him. I have a history with Him that is deep and rich. It is filled with Sunday morning church services and children’s bible classes. It is laced with years of studying the Word and nights lying on my face in the secret place with His glory beaming over me. It is woven into the very fabric of who I have become, every heart beat keeping time to eternity’s drum, every borrowed breath a whisper of worship. What Name is deep enough to hold the flood of Who I have known Him to be?

To Hagar, the despised and disposable slave girl running from an unfair situation, He was El Roi, the God Who Sees her. To Abraham, his heart breaking as he held a knife to Isaac’s throat, He was Jehovah Jireh, the God Who provides a substitutionary sacrifice. To the Israelite children, leaving the familiar sands of Egypt and facing an unknown journey, He was Jehovah Rapha, the Healer Who kept them year after year in the wilderness. To Moses, standing over the battlefield with arms that felt like lead, He was Jehovah Nissi, the banner that waved as a victory ensign over the soldiers waging war in the valley. To Gideon, filled with fear after standing before God, He was Jehovah Shalom, peace. To David, heart pounding as he raced toward Goliath’s threats of death, He was Jehovah Rohi, the Shepherd Who protected and guided his steps.

But Who is He to me? I can surely agree with these ancient men and women. He is the God Who sees me (and knows me but loves me anyway). He is the God Who has provided for my needs in miraculous ways. He is the God Who heals me, Who brings me victory, Who is my peace. He is the Shepherd Whom I have learned to trust with my life. I have a history that can testify that He is all these things and more. Perhaps the truth is that no single name is sufficient to hold the wealth of Who He is and has been in my life. He transcends my bankrupt vocabulary. He is Who He said He was, I AM.

In Pursuit of Bread

I was reading the account in the book of John where Jesus takes a two piece fish dinner and feeds a multitude of over 5000 people. The astonished men and women eating that day decided that since He could do such wonders, He could certainly make their lives better. They hated the indignity of being ruled by their Roman conquerors. The Romans were violent and brutal pagans who did not respect the Jewish nation. The contempt with which they treated the people was an insult only worsened by the taxes they required them to pay.

So as the people sat on the hillside with crumbs in their laps and tartar sauce on their breath, someone suggested that Jesus should be made their king. It moved quickly through the crowd, rumbling louder and louder up the hillside. Even as Jesus sent His disciples to cross the lake in the small wooden boat and headed up the incline alone to pray, the people still lingered and talked about how such a Miracle Worker could make short work of the soldiers who patrolled their streets.

The people talked long into the night before making camp on the grassy slope and falling asleep. They didn’t even notice the solitary figure walking past them in the moonlight and strolling gracefully onto the waters of the Sea of Galilee. Even though the disciples had been rowing against the wind, the waves did not pose any obstacle to Jesus as He made His way toward them. The people who were on the shore missed all that while dreaming of a new day for the nation with Jesus sitting on a throne.

As the sun rose the next morning, not only was their Candidate unready for a political campaign, but He wasn’t even there with them any more. Hurrying across the lake in any boat available, they found Jesus with His disciples and were a little indignant that He had left them and their imagined offensive against Rome. Surely, they just needed to fill Him in on their plans.

The conversation that followed did not go as the fish and loaves crowd imagined. When they thought to tell Jesus they expected Him to stay with them , He looked through their words and pinpointed their motives. As they questioned Jesus, His words were like ice water poured on their hopes.

“You’ve come looking for me not because you saw God in my actions but because I fed you, filled your stomachs,” Jesus chided them. (John 6:26, The Message). The text almost reads like two different conversations happening at once. Jesus admonished them to seek eternal things and quit laboring for what was temporary. They asked for bread. Jesus told them they could do the works of God by believing in Him. They still wanted bread. He told them that He was the Bread of Life sent from heaven by God. They became offended because they knew His family back in Nazareth.

Eight times in that conversation, Jesus plainly declared the purpose of God was that He would give all who believed eternal life and raise them from death on the appointed day. The people listening seemed oblivious to the revelation that Jesus was offering them. They had come to Jesus with an agenda, and when it was apparent that He was not going to agree with them, they grew offended and walked away.

Doesn’t that make you shake your head a little and wonder about how short sighted they were that day? These people were willing to forgo eternal life because they really just wanted more bread, or to see more sensational miracles, or for Jesus to blast the Romans off the planet and make their lives easier. They didn’t want Him to be King. They just wanted Him to do what they wanted.

My problem is that the mentality that drove them to scurry across the lake seems suspiciously familiar. I mean, how many times have I hurried to the place of prayer only to air my list of all I want the Lord to do for me and my loved ones? I have felt at times that the words I brought to that moment were stale and repetitive as I echoed the same requests once more. Sometimes, I have even brought Him my suggestions on how He could accomplish the results that I desired.

Can you imagine that? God sits on a throne in heaven with thunder and lightning ripping out of His presence. Burning seraphim hide their eyes from His glory and heavenly elders fall on their faces in front of Him. His voice is the engine of all creation and His words cause reality to bend and twist to His will. And I come close to Him in prayer and make suggestions on how to take care of my little problems! Do you think that makes the angels shake their heads a little about how short sighted I can be?

I have found myself wondering lately if I am missing part of the conversation in prayer–His part. What if, in all my striving to convince the Lord to do things my way, I am missing the greater revelation of what He wants to convey? I do not want to be offended if His purposes differ from mine. I do not want to forgo eternal things because His ways are not like my own. I want to follow Jesus, not just when He gives me the bread I desire, but even when His plans include a narrow path and a cross to carry.

Can you identify with my struggle today? Let me assure you that the Lord wants you to bring your needs to Him in faith. And believe me, He is not offended that you do it over and over. Only be willing to come and sit before the Lord with an open Bible and an open ear. You may get much more than an easy fix for your problems; He may just drop some truth on you.

Noah’s Hammer

May I invite you into Genesis chapter 6 with me?

The morning was cool and the trees swayed gently in the wind. Besides the birds singing in the early sun, the only sound to be heard was the thud of Noah’s hammer. He was sitting high on the scaffolding working on the massive wooden ark. He enjoyed spending this time of day alone with the Lord before his sons joined him. They had not heard the conversation he had had with God about a coming flood, but they knew their father well enough to believe what he said.

He stopped hammering for a moment and remembered that day years ago. It was a day that changed everything about Noah’s life. He would never again fit in with the other people in the village. He would become the town joke after he began talking to his neighbors about turning from their evil ways in repentance. In fact, Noah himself would never take his relationship with the Lord for granted again.

“Noah, I have something to tell you,” the words whispered on the wind. He had been walking toward the village quietly talking to God about the day ahead of him like he often did, when he felt a strange stillness in the air. He felt more than heard the ache in the conversation that followed. God talked to Him about the sorrow He felt watching sin twisting His prize creation, man, until He could not bear to look anymore. He spoke of His plan to reset all He had created. He would send a great flood to wipe man from the ground.

Gently, the Lord reassured Noah that he was not to blame. In fact, Noah was the only person God had found who lovingly thought of Him and desired to walk in sweet fellowship. Though God would clear the earth of the wickedness, He was not willing to let Noah be swept away with the rest. His love and mercy would keep him safe. God gave Noah instructions on how to build the ark to keep his family safe and preserve animals to replenish the earth.

The days since that conversation had been filled with preparations, planning, and many questions, some from his family, some from scoffing villagers as he solemnly warned them of the judgment that loomed ahead. Mostly though, Noah’s days had been spent hammering on the massive structure.

Shem’s voice broke through his thoughts, “Dad, are you asleep up there?” Noah looked down the side of the boat at his son and smiled. Today was another day and the boat was nearly complete. God would hold the rains while He waited for Noah to finish.

“Good morning, son. You are just in time to bring me some more nails.” Noah turned his attention back to his work. He knew what was coming

Genesis 6:6 records that the emotion in God’s heart when He brought the flood on the earth in judgment was not harsh anger or callous spite; it was holy GRIEF. It was the pain of a Father reaching out to sons who refused to come to Him. It was deep anguish that wounded His holy and compassionate heart as generation after generation slipped farther from His presence into darkness.

Then there was Noah, a bright spot on the dark landscape. He was “perfect in his generation” according to the King James Version. Really, the better translation would be, he was not to blame. God looked at Noah trying to do what was right when no one else expected it. He watched Noah choosing to walk with Him though it meant a misunderstood and somewhat solitary life. He listened as Noah prayed for his family and his neighbors. He leaned close while Noah thanked Him and offered worship. God assigned no blame to this man who walked with Him.

Because of Noah, God delayed judgment. Because Noah believed what God had said, he hammered and God waited for him to finish the ark. God was willing to live with the pain of a grieving heart as long as it took for Noah to finish the work. Hebrews 11:7 says, By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. The raucous noise of sinful mankind could not drown out the sound of a simple wooden hammer. To others it was pointless noise, but to God Noah’s hammer was the sound of faith.

Noah preached and pleaded, warned and wept before the people who came to see what he was doing, and God waited. For the entire time he was building, Noah was beckoning his fellow man to repent and turn to his merciful God (2 Peter 2:5) Every person who heard could have accepted the offered opportunity to come back into relationship with Him and found a place on the ark. Though no one except his family heeded the warning, Noah kept reaching out to them. To others it was the sound of obnoxious noise, but to God Noah’s hammer was the sound of grace.

Noah and his family slept, woke, ate, lived, and built, and God waited. The ark was massive in size. With a length over 500 feet and towering 50 feet tall, the structure was built without modern technology. It is estimated that Noah would have taken between 50-100 years to finish the project with the help of his sons. To his family it became the rhythm of life, but to God Noah’s hammer was the sound of hope and the future unfolding.

My friend, God hasn’t changed His mind about mankind. His heart is still wounded as He hears the discord and clamor of men and women who choose wickedness and stubborn rebellion instead of humble repentance. But He will not ask you to build a boat. The blood of Jesus is enough to keep everyone who comes safe from impending judgment.

However, He is still looking for His Noah. God seeks those men and women who will walk with Him in faith. He searches out those who value intimacy with Him over popularity. He beckons close those who will pray for the lost and dying world around them and continue to offer grace. To those who do not understand, such a lifestyle will look like nonsense. But to God, your life will sound like Noah’s hammer offering faith, grace, and hope to a dark world.

Pray with me? Lord, we want to walk with you in unveiled fellowship and unqualified obedience. We want to declare Your grace and glory to everyone we meet. Let our lives be like the sound of Noah’s hammer in your hearing.

Work out of Worship

Solomon’s temple was extravagant and elaborate, a wonder to behold, and even more wondrous when the cloud of God’s glory filled its chambers. Yet with all the years of labor and attention to detail involved in the construction of the temple, and the overwhelming Presence of God at its dedication, Solomon’s passion for the Lord just didn’t last. It didn’t take too long until his eye followed every glittering thing and every woman who walked in front of him. Whenever I read the accounts of Solomon’s life, I think “Really, Solomon? How can your gaze be captured by anything less than God ever again?”

I think the crux of the matter came from Solomon’s own lips in 1 Kings 8:17: And it was in the heart of David my father to build an house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. The temple was the dream of David, born from a passion for God’s Presence. Solomon was following his dad while David was following God.

David made the plans and preparations for the project. David lavished love on God as he walked on the site where the temple would one day stand. The great value he placed on his relationship with his God reverberated in heaven as he walked on the empty ground and imagined meticulous artwork and beautiful facades. With every ounce of gold and silver David stored for the work of the temple his son would build, the Lord heard the shout of David’s heart crying, “I love You. No expense is too much. I can’t pour out enough for You.”

The temple, though built by Solomon and dedicated to the Lord, was a testament that stood in front of God as a reminder of David’s devotion and passion. Solomon carried out his father’s plans and completed the temple, and he did so with excellence and zeal. But it was still David’s dream. Because he was entering into another man’s objective rather than his own, Solomon’s zeal wasn’t strong enough to weather life’s temptations and trials.

You may ask, what is the take away for us today?

#1 As much as you admire someone else’s ministry and walk with the Lord, you have to have your own thing going on with God.

#2 You can get on board with another person’s ministry, but you better make sure the plow you grab fits your hand.

#3 No matter how passionate someone else is, their passion won’t keep you when you face the temptation of your flesh or the trying of your commitment.

#4 Even if God blesses what you are doing, that doesn’t mean your heart is fully engaged. Guard your heart. Guard your heart. Guard your heart!

#5 A memorial of past successes in/with the Lord won’t keep you when temptation comes your way. Put on your spiritual armor every day.

#6 If you’re going to do something for the Lord, do it with excellence. But don’t forget, God is more impressed with your heart than your hands.

#7 Don’t get too comfortable when others seem impressed with your work for the Lord. Divine relationship must be cultivated day after day as you encounter His face. Don’t forget that you need Him desperately every moment.

#8 Lovers of God last when workers of God don’t.

I am not advocating a Christian walk where you are not serving. The Lord Himself “came not to be waited on but to serve.”(Mt 20:28) Put your hand to evangelism and meeting needs in the local church body. You cannot go wrong following the commands of Jesus to make disciples and love your brothers and sisters in Christ. Just make sure you have your priorities straight. Don’t set your heart on a position, a person, or a ministry assignment. Set your heart on the Lord as your most vital need and your greatest desire and everything else will work right. Make a choice to be a lover of God instead of merely a worker for Him. Let your work flow out of worship.

Persist in Praying

It was a such a busy day at work that I hardly had time to look up. Head down, I stepped out on the pavement to cross the parking lot to my car thinking of all that needed to be done at home. It stopped me in my tracks in shock when I heard the Holy Spirit whisper to me. He said, “ How long will it be until you trust Me?”

The busy thoughts that were crowding my brain abruptly stopped. I was stunned by the question. The sorrow and frustration that seemed to lace the whisper were sobering and my heart winced. I quietly listened as the Lord spoke to me about the way I had prayed but lived like I didn’t expect Him to answer . He talked to me about how I often walk through life with my eyes bound by the gravity of my situation while exhorting others to look up. He reminded me that I prayed for my loved ones yet tried to do the work that only Holy Spirit can do in their hearts. He pointed out that I sometimes place a higher premium on my comfort than His purposes in my family.

Tears stung the back of my eyes and my throat was tight as I heard each indictment. I could neither deny what He said nor ignore the pain that I had caused my Savior. I love Him and my mistrust was like a wound on His holy heart. Our conversation continued long into the evening and ended with me on my face in a prayer room. I felt like the disciples when Jesus rose up in the bow of the boat, commanded the storm to cease, then turned His gaze to the drenched men in front of Him and asked, “Where is your faith?” (Luke 8:25)

As I wept out my repentance in godly sorrow, the Lord gently reminded me that He always corrects and instructs the ones that He loves (Rev 3:19) He loves me too much to let me wreck myself. I am profoundly grateful that He takes me through the process where He turns me to the mirror and removes the veil from my eyes so that I may see my own faults and frailties. He can’t strengthen weakness if I won’t own it. He won’t heal wounds if I deny that they exist. Crucifying our flesh is painful, but it is the only way we can truly live in resurrection power.

I share this intimate moment with you in such a public way because I suspect I am not alone in this struggle. Maybe this isn’t you. Maybe you pray and never question as you wait for the answer to come. Maybe you never feel panic when plans crumble and life shifts unexpectedly. For that person, I say, “You’re amazing! Please pray for me!” But if you have found yourself in that struggle of faith where you begin to wonder, this may be for you.

So if Heaven seems silent today, if you asked for rain but you haven’t seen the cloud forming, if the person you’ve been praying for still seems resistant to the gospel, if you are facing an obstacle that is just too big for you, hold on! You can trust your God! He will never let you down! Persist in faith!

Can I offer you a word from the throne this morning? God is absolutely FAITHFUL! He hasn’t looked away from you, even when you have looked away from Him.

You haven’t slipped underneath His radar. He has listened to every word you’ve prayed, and He has no intention on letting the storm sink your boat. Lift up your eyes, child of God! Don’t let the waiting destroy your faith! Keep gazing at Jesus and understand that He loves you way too much to let you slip through His holy fingers.

Finally Willing

I opened my Bible that morning and heard the Lord whisper, “Let’s go back to John 5 again. You haven’t seen what I want to show you yet.” I was reluctant, but obedient as I flipped through the pages. I had read about Jesus healing that paralytic man many times in the past weeks. I felt like I had mined great treasures out of the passage. In fact, I was pretty sure I could quote it when I heard Him speak that morning.

I read again about Jesus going to Jerusalem on feast day and walking by the sick people who lay beside a pool hoping for healing. The pool was named Bethesda which means house of mercy, and when an angel stirred the water one person would receive a healing. It was the place where a miracle could happen at any time for that one person. And even though it was so limited and the chances of being the first to get in the water were slim, that pool was a still a place of hope.

So the people came. Blind people, lame people, paralyzed people all flocked to the pool. They kept their eyes on the water and hoped. They hoped the angel would show up today to stir that water with miracle power. They hoped that they could get an edge on the race to get into the waters. They hoped they would leave different than they came. They hoped for a different life. But mostly, they just came and sat beside a still pool.

This day seemed like every other day to the paralytic man. He was laid at the pool side with the rest of the crowd, waiting for an angel and a miracle moment. Jesus showing up changed everything for this man. The Lord brushed aside the man’s explanation that he had no man to help him and simply said, “Get up!” So the man did! He heard Jesus, took Him at His word, and walked away from that pool fully persuaded that he would never sit back down there again.

There is no record that any angels showed up that day, but God certainly did. There is no narrative of any other sick people getting healed even though Jesus could have easily have taken care of everyone present. While men waited for an angel, they missed God. While they waited on a little bit of power, one miracle’s worth, the One Who shaped Adam out of clay and raised the dead with His voice was standing near. While they waited for someone to put them into a pool, the One Who could put them back on their feet walked on by unseen except by the paralyzed man.

As I read the verses again, the Lord whispered, “You are the man.” I was shocked. I shook my head and put my Bible down, certain that my spiritual ear was out of tune. Again the small voice calmly told me, “You are this man.”

I sat as the Lord reminded me of the much younger woman who had felt the call to minister the Word of God, but lay the dream aside because of the demands of life. I had the excuses ready. First, I was a wife and mother trying to pour herself out for her family. The call would have to wait. After that I was a divorced woman raising two sons alone. The call seemed improbable. Next I waited for others to recognize that call and invite me to the table of ministry. The call was dependent on someone else. I was paralyzed, kept silent waiting for another source, someone to confirm that I was able to do what the Lord was saying, and not discerning the presence of my God.

My heart was pierced with conviction and tears stung my eyes. I decided that my pool time had passed. I could no longer wait for a convenient moment, or for some person to give me their stamp of approval. My Savior had walked by and spoken, and that was really all I ever needed. It was time to get up and walk. My Savior had bidden me speak, and I could not be silent. I found my voice that day.

What about you? Have you been waiting for a more convenient time to follow the dream that the Lord has placed in your heart? Do you feel the call to a mission field? Does the struggle of the addict wound your heart? Do you have a testimony of how God delivered you from oppression or depression? Do you long to reach out to young women who are pregnant and alone? What moves you? Your purpose is tied to what makes your heart tremble. God didn’t make you to sit by a pool and wait forever. He made you to carry His glory.

Pray with me? Lord, we want to follow you fully, hearts blazing, wherever You lead. We ask You to reveal the purpose You have written in our hearts. We are ready to rise and walk.

Made for the Climb

When Jesus entered into Jericho, curious spectators lined the street in such numbers that Zacchaeus could not press through. He was too small to look over the crowd and a polite excuse me wasn’t getting him closer. However, he just couldn’t stand to be so close to Jesus, yet just out of sight, just out of reach.So he laid down his dignity, girded up his robe, shook off his sandals, grabbed a branch and started pulling himself up into a sycamore tree. I imagine that he climbed to the sound of mocking and laughter. People probably stood there shaking their heads and saying, “Zacchaeus, aren’t you taking this a little too far?”

Today we have an insight that the folks in the crowd that day didn’t have. We know the rest of Zacchaeus’ story. In light of WHO Jesus is, WHAT Jesus was going to do when He stopped under the tree, and WHERE Jesus was going to eat dinner that evening, it is totally reasonable that Zacchaeus would to to any lengths to get to Jesus. Zacchaeus’ extravagant seeking brought Jesus into his house.

You know, the crowd still hasn’t changed much in the last 2000 years. Society doesn’t mind if you claim the name of Jesus as long as you don’t do it too loudly. But they still stand with their mouths open and watch when someone with a burning heart for the Lord pursues Him with passion. They still mock. They still say, “Aren’t you taking this Jesus thing a little too far? Surely, you don’t need to go to church on a Wednesday night. You don’t need to go to prayer meeting when you are tired. You don’t need to give your time and your money so generously. You don’t need to be so loud with your praise.”

Child of God, you were not born again and filled with the mighty Holy Spirit to stand on the sidelines and quietly live out a moderate Christianity. You were made to pursue the Lord with burning passion. You were made to lavish your time, resources, and energy on Him in devotion. You were made to be bold witnesses to the life changing love and grace of Jesus. You have a message written in fire on your hearts that the world around you is DYING to hear.

One day soon, the Lord will split the eastern sky and every eye will see Him, every knee will bow and every tongue confess He is Lord. In that coming day it will be obvious that in light of WHO He is, in light of WHAT He did on Calvary, in light of WHERE He is taking us to be, all your extravagance and devotion was TOTALLY REASONABLE. So go ahead, lay down your dignity, gird up your robes, kick off your shoes and start climbing, Christian. You were made for the climb!

Pray with me?

Father, stir up the fires of passion for Jesus in our hearts again.Baptize us again in love and make us bold witnesses of your salvation. You are worth the climb!

In the Cleft

This morning as I sat down with my Bible, the Lord put His finger on Exodus 34. Moses, in his anger had broken the tablets on which God had written the ten commandments. He dealt with the idolatry of the people and then set his face back toward the mountain.

He picked up the tablets to replace the ones he had broken, looked up Sinai’s sloping side, and started climbing to the summit. When he reached the top, he slid into a cleft in the rocks and waited till God Himself came down in a heavy cloud and stood by him. As he stood there, the Lord covered the opening with His hand and walked by proclaiming His Name for Moses to hear. Moses’ flesh could not stand to see the raw,unfiltered glory of God, but he could put his ear to the rocky crevice and listen to God preaching about God. The Almighty strolled past on quaking ground and a voice like thunder said:

The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth…(Ex 34:5)

The word Lord in this passage is not Adonai (master), it is JEHOVAH, the One Who has always been and will always be, the I AM, the only living God Who is mighty, full of awesome strength, and absolute power. He is the Origin and Creator of all we see and know, outside the boundaries of the constructs of time. His character is (rachuwm) mercy of a higher caliber than man can give. All that He does is tinged with a God level quality of mercy and compassion that loves us deeply with tender affections. He is gracious (channuwn), showing favor and pity with great consideration. He knows that in comparison to His eternity, we are like dust, only here for a moment, so He does not pour out wrath and judgment even when we deserve it so. His goodness is overflowing and lavish, faithful and full of zeal for us. He is kind beyond all we know.

I sat in my kitchen this morning feeling like I was in that crevice with Moses, getting the faintest glimpse of that overwhelming glory. God preached God this morning. Then He whispered:

My Beloved, if you understood Who I was and the love I have for you, you would never waver or fear or be reluctant to spend yourself for Me.

Will you pray with me?
Lord, we are just amazed at the thought of You. Who is like You? There is no other God. You alone reign. We just want to settle ourselves in front of You and gaze in wonder. Reveal Yourself to us in greater measure. You are worth pouring our time and energy out lavishly. Make us vessels that are willing to be spent for You. It is our heart’s cry.

confidence.

I feel the Lord breathing on the word CONFIDENCE tonight.

Confidence is Moses holding his staff out over the Red Sea while Pharaoh’s chariot is kicking up dust on the back of his neck. It sounds like David slapping a rock in his sling as he runs across the field toward the giant. Confidence looks like Jehoshaphat having his army marching out to the battlefield to the tempo of praise songs that the musicians were playing in front of them. It is Peter throwing his leg over the side of the boat and feeling the water solidify like rock under his sandals as he walks toward Jesus.

These men faced overwhelming odds, roaring threats, impossible situations, and came out on the other side of each one vindicated in their confidence. God came through for them, miraculously, amazingly, spectacularly!

Do you know what else confidence looks like? It looks like you witnessing to your coworker about God’s goodness in your life. It sounds like you inviting somebody to come worship with you on Sunday morning. It looks like you declaring the love of Jesus to the lost. It feels like you stepping outside the walls of the church and finding out that your faith holds in front of the world.

Do you wonder where you can get this kind of confidence? It comes from the same place that Moses, David, Jehoshaphat, and Peter got it. Confidence comes from experiencing God. Time spent in front of God, gazing in wonder at Him in the place of prayer and in the Word, will soak faith deep into your soul. You cannot see Him in the greatness of Who He really is and remain in doubt. As you set yourself to encounter God in those private, intimate moments, you will find that He will set Himself to encounter you in your everyday life. He will open your Red Seas and knock down your giants. You will be the one walking on water, hand in hand with Jesus.

Pray with me? Lord, breathe CONFIDENCE into us again. We settle ourselves in front of You and ask that You reveal Yourself to us. We trust You and we want to tell the world how wonderful You really are.

Small but Powerful

I hear the Lord saying tonight, There is great power in the smallest acts of obedience and faith.

When Jesus was sitting on the hillside teaching, a young lad offered Him the sack lunch that his mother had packed. To the crowds nearby, it seemed such an insignificant offer. But in the generous hands of a boy lay the seeds of a miracle. With that small offering, Jesus fed 5000 hungry men as well as the women and children waiting.

When the Lord sat at a wineless wedding in Cana, it seemed foolish to bystanders to pull water from the well and pour it into jars. But every bucket of water that was raised was filled with drops of amazing possibility. Jesus transformed it into wine that day.

When the Savior made mud and smeared it on the eyes of the blind man, it didn’t make any sense for him to go wash in the pool of Siloam. But every footfall on the path, was a step closer to the wonder of sight restored. Jesus healed the blind.

When the Lord saw a man with a withered hand in the synagogue, it sounded ludicrous to the onlookers that He would say, Reach out your hand. But as he stretched out his handicap, the man was reaching for marvelous restoration. Jesus healed the withered hand.

How about you? What is in your hand that you can offer to the Lord? What small act of obedience or faith can you lift to Him? It may seem too insignificant and small to bother with, but the Lord doesn’t see things that way we do. He is the One Who uses the foolish things to confound the wise. He has miracles in His hands and His eyes are on you.

So go ahead and walk around and offer a kind smile to someone you don’t know. Reach out your hand and pray with the person facing a trial. Bless a child that may not have much at home. Feed a hungry man. Hug that single mother struggling to support her children. Go be the church. Your small acts, so seemingly insignificant, carry the seeds of miracles in them.