Majestic

Lord, our Lord,how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. . . . . When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? (Psalm 8:1-4 NIV)

Prayer - Matthew 6:9-14

Our Father in heaven

My heavenly Father. You pulled me from the dregs of my wretchedness and have adopted me into your royal family. You are not far away, but you are with me moment by moment. You sent your son to die in my place, taking my justly deserved punishment and clothing me in righteousness. Your Spirit guides me and counsels me. Thank you.

Hallowed be Your name.

Your name is holy, set apart and perfect. No other name on earth compares. You are the I AM; without beginning and without end. Your name is mighty and majestic. You have exalted your son to the highest place and have given him the name that is above every other name, so that at Christ's name every knee shall bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue shall confess that Christ is Lord to your glory.

Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.

I pray that your kingdom will come fully on this earth. I pray for the soon return of your son. I pray for your will to be accomplished first in my life, then in the life of my family. I pray that our leaders great and small will be subservient to your will daily.

Give us this day our daily bread.

Thank you for your daily provision in my life. Please continue to protect and provide for me. Help me to be generous in the midst of your many blessings. I pray that you will grant success to the work of my hands and my mind. Make me a good steward of the worldly posessions you have entrusted to me. Please protect my wife and children, giving them opportunities to grow and prosper in your word and in your truth.

And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.

Please forgive me of the grudges I hold, the dishonesty in my heart and the fear in my life, which is really a lack of fatih. Forgive me for my pride and self assuredness. Forgive me for needlesly hurting others. I forgive those who have wronged me. Please reveal to me any unforgiveness in my heart so that I may give it to you.

And do not lead us into temptation, but delliver us from the evil one.

Please keep me free from the temptations seeking to ensnare me. Give me the strength and the courage to not put myself into situations that would compromise my relationship with you. Please make your desires my desires, so that my every thought will be in line with your will.

For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.

Amen!

Amen.

Storm Chasers

One of my favorite shows is Storm Chasers. Wouldn't it be great to spend your time hunting down tornadoes? Some of the chasers use only a laptop and a cheap video recorder. They track down these killer storms, getting as close as possible to get that one amazing shot. I particularly enjoy the scenes where the wind is howling, the hail is slamming down around them and the lightning suddenly crashes in next to them. That's when they realize they've got to get out of there.

Do you ever feel like a storm chaser in life? Truly we are blessed to live in such a prosperous nation. Even in the midst of a poor economy, most of us have more than we need. We certainly have more than the majority of people in the world. The baffling thing is that it often seems like an uphill battle. Have you ever been to a point like the storm chaser who realizes he is too close and has to get out of there?

This really is a normal part of the world we live in. Our work, though a blessing, can be a struggle. The ever increasing expense of life takes more and more of the little we earn, yet the commercialzed world we live in continues to demand more. We spend our time chasing dreams but never catching them, and seeking acheivements, but rarely reaching them. At some point we realize we are trapped, slaves to the world we live in. It's time to get out.

So, how do we get out of the way of the storm? Here are three really good ideas:

1. Redefine Your Treasure
If you feel exhausted, stuck on a treadmill, or like you're about to swept away by the storm, maybe you have treasured the wrong things. Cast everything else away and put all of your trust in the giver of the blessings as opposed to the blessings themselves.

“Do not accumulate for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But accumulate for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
“The eye is the lamp of the body. If then your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light. (Matthew 6:19-22 NET)

2. Stop Worrying
Worry is toxic. It takes the energy you need to actually live life and keeps you spinning your wheels in a slough of faithless fear. Mark Twain once said, "I have spent most of my life worrying about things that never happened," This is so true and so unfortunate. We actually, waste precious moments and opportunities in fear of something that probably won't happen.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t there more to life than food and more to the body than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky: They do not sow, or reap, or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you more valuable than they are? And which of you by worrying can add even one hour to his life? (Matthew 6:25-27 NET)

3. Step Out in Faith
Don't sit on the sidelines any longer. We are not called to be bench warmers for Jesus. Our faith is not shown by going to church on Sundays. It is shown when we live it out daily. Tell someone what Christ has done for you. Show loving kindness to someone in need. When you step out in faith, forgetting your goals and dreams, God will lift you up. As you grow closer to him, I believe your goals and dreams will change as they align with His for your life.

It's time to stop chasing storms and start chasing Christ!

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, what good is it? So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works. (James 2:14-18 NET)

Perspective

Four Steps to Reuniting the Family

 

 

Jihad:  1.       A holy war undertaken as a sacred duty by Muslims.  2.       Any vigorous, emotional crusade for an idea or a principle.

On September 11, 2001 men filled with hatred and “righteous indignation” at the actions of the “Great Satan” committed murderous acts in the name of their god, fulfilling the “righteous” requirements of the Koran.  Watching the remembrances on the ten year anniversary; the planes penetrating the towers, the sounds of bodies hitting the ground as people jumped, the charred wreckage and the stories of those who survived, I was struck by the evil that results when people give themselves over to idolatry and vengeance.

Fortunately, we are different.  We are sinners saved by God’s grace and mercy.  Our lives reflect that mercy in the way we treat our brothers.  Don’t they?  Or, do we face the same danger?  How do we deal with conflict within our own ranks?  Do we seek to restore relationships, or do we engage in a personal Jihad, seeking justice in the name of our God?  I believe the way we treat each other during times of trouble says a great deal about our faith and maturity.

In the midst of turmoil there may been times when a church body's corporate behavior reflects personal agendas instead of God’s agenda.  We may take positions, or make assumptions and draw battle lines against members of our own family.  We may even engage in jihad, attributing our behavior to God’s desires while demonizing our “enemies”.   We can move beyond this.

7:14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.  (2 Chronicles 7:14)

In the verse above God had blessed Israel, David and Solomon with the completion of the long sought after temple.  The verses just before this refer to the rejoicing of the people at the dedication of this work.  That night God spoke to Solomon.  In the midst of the greatest blessings, the Lord knows that men will fail.  He reminded Solomon of that.  He also instructed that when that happens Israel must turn from their sin and back to the Lord.  Their sin would lead them to ruin, but their repentance would lead them to renewal.

We are in a similar place.  Doors have been opened for expanded and renewed ministry opportunities, but we have to remember that the real expansion and renewal required are in the hearts and minds of each of us.  It is time to turn back to God and to turn away from our sin; away from the personal Jihads we covet.  The following four areas outline God’s view of and our responsibility in reconciliation.

We are called to live in humility and genuine concern for each other.

Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit, any affection or mercy, complete my joy and be of the same mind, by having the same love, being united in spirit, and having one purpose. Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, (Philippians 2:1-5)

Our first attitude should be to have the same mind and love, being united in spirit, with one purpose.  That purpose is Christ, nothing else, because anything else destroys unity.  Our unity is in Christ.  In that unity we should behave like Christ, treating others as more important than ourselves.  That is extremely difficult, because it requires us to set aside the things we see as important.  It’s a radical reprioritization of what we value.

When I was in college I worked at a Christian sports camp.  The camp owner led the camp by a motto, which I have found simple, yet penetrating and practical.  It is simply to be F.I.T.. 

(F) – First

(I) – Is

(T) – Third

First Is Third.  The only way we can ever hope to be first is to be third.  This radical realignment of priorities follows Philippians 2:1-11.  God is first.  Others come next.  We come third.

Take a moment to reconcile shipwrecked relationships.  When you are on Facebook, or when you have a conversation with someone in conflict with you, remember to apply this in your life.  Watch how your relationships change when you remove yourself from the throne.

When conflict occurs with our brothers our first goal should be reconciliation.

 “You have heard that it was said to an older generation, ‘Do not murder,’ and ‘whoever murders will be subjected to judgment.’ But I say to you that anyone who is angry with a brother will be subjected to judgment. And whoever insults a brother will be brought before the council, and whoever says ‘Fool’ will be sent to fiery hell. So then, if you bring your gift to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother and then come and present your gift.” (Matthew 5:21-24)

Our behavior certainly has an impact, but so do our attitudes.  Christ considers the renewal of our relationships so important that he is calling us to reconcile before engaging in worship.  When we harbor unresolved bitterness with our brothers we hurt ourselves by putting a stumbling block to our worship.  This is troubling enough on an individual basis, but devastating on a corporate level.

Do you have unresolved issues with your brothers and sisters in Christ?  Make it your first priority to reconcile.

In reconciliation we need to clean up our own house first.

“Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For by the standard you judge you will be judged, and the measure you use will be the measure you receive. Why do you see the speck in your brother’s eye, but fail to see the beam of wood in your own? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye,’ while there is a beam in your own? You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Do not give what is holy to dogs or throw your pearls before pigs; otherwise they will trample them under their feet and turn around and tear you to pieces. (Matthew 7:1-5)

It is almost too easy to pick another person apart.  We are so frail; it only takes a moment to come up with a long list of another person’s failures.  I have heard a friend say that we judge others by their actions, but we judge ourselves by our motives.  This is so true! 

Our reconciliation with a brother should never be one sided.  There are usually plenty of offenses on each side of a dispute.  Our reconciliation should begin with an honest appraisal of who we are and what we have done.  Christ requires us to take ownership of our own failures before we do that for another.  Imagine how much easier a renewal of relationship would go, if you approached a brother with your own failures first!  The defenses go down, and there is room for both parties to come together. 

Forgiveness maintains relationships not only among brothers, but also with the Lord.

“For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins.  (Matthew 6:14-15)

Look back at your life.  Take into account all of your sin; the times you have been unkind, unfaithful, corrupt and more.  Christ died for all of these sins, yet it is so difficult to forgive when we have been wronged.  We want to hold on to the bitterness and embrace it.  How can we not forgive when we have been forgiven of so much?  Christ is clear that if we do not forgive we will not be forgiven.  We should never allow an unforgiving spirit to come between us and our savior.

All of these things are calling us to humility; calling us to put down our petty differences and live out grace filled lives.  Take time today to show grace and wisdom and mercy to another.  We will all be better for it.