BETTER TO LOVE GOD AND DIE UNKNOWN THAN TO LOVE THE WORLD AND BE A HERO; BETTER TO BE CONTENT WITH POVERTY THAN TO DIE A SLAVE TO WEALTH; BETTER TO HAVE TAKEN SOME RISKS AND LOST THAN TO HAVE DONE NOTHING AND SUCCEEDED AT IT.
- E. Lutzer
I have been on a journey with the Lord the last few weeks - maybe months - in discovery, processing, learning, and stretching myself. It has led to a lot of lively marital discussions, often to discover that Mike, too, had been led - might we say - convicted, about the same areas that I was feeling the Holy Spirit lead me in as well. And, in our marital experience, we have always been able to discern His direction and leading very clearly and simply by realizing that God had brought us to the "same place at the same time." It is never coincidence that we have been studying the same things in our private time with the Lord, or that we felt the "umption" (is that a word??) of the Spirit in the same direction. I believe it is the fruit of two lives walking together in the oneness of a marriage with Christ at the center...what an incredible experience to sit across the table from your spouse, share your heart, expressing what you feel the Lord is doing in your life and have it all confirmed by what God is doing in his life as well. It just doesn't get any better than that!
It has happened so many times before. In the areas of career decisions, job changes, family building, life choices, missions experiences, choosing to adopt, accepting the call to ministry, and many, many other things, He has brought us to a decision-making point, we obeyed, and He was faithful.
Now, we are at another crossroads. But, not necessarily one the world will understand - and they shouldn't necessarily, at all. It is not a decision in which we will 1) decide to purchase something; 2) choose to move locations; 3) accept a call to complete a missions experience. All of these things are good. And, we may or may not do one or more of these things. But, this time it is different-much different. You see, we are dealing with a heart issue...God is continually changing our hearts. And, boy, I am sure glad that He doesn't leave us where we were.
We have been broken. We have been brought down by a single encounter - where we needed to be all along. God has shown us some things that we were missing in our Christian experience. We have decided that although we have accepted Christ and attempt to live our lives as such, that we are failing miserably. Is Jesus pleased when He sees us live when there are those who are dying - right in our own neighborhoods? Is He pleased when we act like it is all we can do to get to Sunday School by 9:30 a.m. to "fellowship" and eat breakfast with other believers in the comfort of our own church building when children under our direct church influence don't have anything to eat for breakfast? Is He satisified with my worship on Sunday mornings when we haven't spent time on Saturday night preparing our hearts and minds - we've been busy or preoccupied? When we haven't spent Saturday reaching out to those who are lost, to those who are dirty, sick, tired and worn? Are we closing our eyes to it? Are we so focused on our pleasures, our own "fellowship," our own appearances, our own schedules and desires that we forget those living in the local trailer courts, the children with no homes/mothers/fathers, the ones with no breakfast to eat? Do we seek them out when they come in our buildings? Do we look for them in the community? Or do we turn the other way - literally? I admit that my eyes have often been closed alot more than they should have been...I have forgotten to look around me. Now, they have been opened for me.
It is time for us to turn off the television, turn off the Blackberry, save our 'eating out money' to buy groceries for a hungry family, turn off the news and get our eyes of the $$$$ that the world is telling us is the most important thing! Get real with people, reach out to the hurting, encourage the discouraged, get over ourselves, feed the hungry , share our testimony with someone who needs Jesus, take time to think as individuals and families about a specific way to reach out...then do it. Get uncomfortable. Get tired. Stretch yourself. Then, I believe, we will transform our lives in Christ - maybe even transform the church!
BETTER TO LOVE GOD AND DIE UNKNOWN THAN TO LOVE THE WORLD AND BE A HERO; BETTER TO BE CONTENT WITH POVERTY THAN TO DIE A SLAVE TO WEALTH; BETTER TO HAVE TAKEN SOME RISKS AND LOST THAN TO HAVE DONE NOTHING AND SUCCEEDED AT IT.
It has happened so many times before. In the areas of career decisions, job changes, family building, life choices, missions experiences, choosing to adopt, accepting the call to ministry, and many, many other things, He has brought us to a decision-making point, we obeyed, and He was faithful.
Now, we are at another crossroads. But, not necessarily one the world will understand - and they shouldn't necessarily, at all. It is not a decision in which we will 1) decide to purchase something; 2) choose to move locations; 3) accept a call to complete a missions experience. All of these things are good. And, we may or may not do one or more of these things. But, this time it is different-much different. You see, we are dealing with a heart issue...God is continually changing our hearts. And, boy, I am sure glad that He doesn't leave us where we were.
We have been broken. We have been brought down by a single encounter - where we needed to be all along. God has shown us some things that we were missing in our Christian experience. We have decided that although we have accepted Christ and attempt to live our lives as such, that we are failing miserably. Is Jesus pleased when He sees us live when there are those who are dying - right in our own neighborhoods? Is He pleased when we act like it is all we can do to get to Sunday School by 9:30 a.m. to "fellowship" and eat breakfast with other believers in the comfort of our own church building when children under our direct church influence don't have anything to eat for breakfast? Is He satisified with my worship on Sunday mornings when we haven't spent time on Saturday night preparing our hearts and minds - we've been busy or preoccupied? When we haven't spent Saturday reaching out to those who are lost, to those who are dirty, sick, tired and worn? Are we closing our eyes to it? Are we so focused on our pleasures, our own "fellowship," our own appearances, our own schedules and desires that we forget those living in the local trailer courts, the children with no homes/mothers/fathers, the ones with no breakfast to eat? Do we seek them out when they come in our buildings? Do we look for them in the community? Or do we turn the other way - literally? I admit that my eyes have often been closed alot more than they should have been...I have forgotten to look around me. Now, they have been opened for me.
It is time for us to turn off the television, turn off the Blackberry, save our 'eating out money' to buy groceries for a hungry family, turn off the news and get our eyes of the $$$$ that the world is telling us is the most important thing! Get real with people, reach out to the hurting, encourage the discouraged, get over ourselves, feed the hungry , share our testimony with someone who needs Jesus, take time to think as individuals and families about a specific way to reach out...then do it. Get uncomfortable. Get tired. Stretch yourself. Then, I believe, we will transform our lives in Christ - maybe even transform the church!
BETTER TO LOVE GOD AND DIE UNKNOWN THAN TO LOVE THE WORLD AND BE A HERO; BETTER TO BE CONTENT WITH POVERTY THAN TO DIE A SLAVE TO WEALTH; BETTER TO HAVE TAKEN SOME RISKS AND LOST THAN TO HAVE DONE NOTHING AND SUCCEEDED AT IT.
– E. Lutzer
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