Recently, I witnessed a scene that caused me to consider how easy it is to digress from a powerful and vital relationship with God to simply putting together programs and pulling off events.  I usually refer to this as “check the box church,” which I am convinced has little to no kingdom expanding power.

Okay, back to the scene.  There was a group gathered together and everyone was busy.  It was obvious they had a mission and purpose. They were all willing to complete the task and were glad to be working for the Lord. What was made abundantly clear as I watched the scene unfold was the absence of the presence of God.  Though the task was for him, it really wasn’t about him. It wasn’t fueled by faith, passion, or love for him.  They work was fueled by other motives.  It was at that point that the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to this thought:  people are making ministry/ service their lives instead of using their lives to serve.  I know it sounds like a conundrum, but think about it for a moment.   We often get so focused on performance and accomplishing tasks (especially if we say they are for God) that we forget the most important thing is our relationship with the Father.  Ministry is a gift from God and does not replace the cultivation of an intimate relationship with the Lord or holy living.

God doesn’t simply look at the works, but the heart of man.  Works that are not motivated by God and surrounded by faith are pointless.  A sacrifice given from an unclean vessel is unacceptable.  This is a major contributor to a believer’s inability to live at the next level.  We must accept that God first calls us to him then to service.
Our lives are a gift from God.  We are strategically positioned to reveal his glory. Be careful that you are being who God wants you to be more than doing what you “think” will please him.  Be careful not to fall into the trap of offering God your works when what he really wants is you.  God doesn’t need another program, event, or offering placed before him while your heart remains far from him.  In the course of your busy life remember to dedicate and guard your time for personal prayer, renewal, and growth.  Honor the Lord by the way you live every day. Your service will be more powerful.  You’ll also experience more personal joy and fulfillment.

The word of the Lord is: “to what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? I am full of the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed beast; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of the goats. What the Lord requires is:  to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, to keep his commandments and his statutes.”

Don’t try to give God a sacrifice before you’ve first given him your obedience.

Blessings to you!
MC

Prayer is one of my passions.  I know the power of prayer and it is by far the most important thing I do in a day.  It is my life line.  Having said all that let me share some thoughts with you about prayer that I hope will inspire you to become more passionate about your prayer time.

Just the other day, when out of the blue the thought came to me that Tiger Woods would return to the golf course soon.  At that time, I thought okay, I’ll say a little prayer for Mr. Woods, his family, his golf game, etc.  I didn’t think it strange at all that someone would come to my mind out of blue, I knew it was a prayer assignment, and quickly obeyed.  What I didn’t expect was the revelation of the Holy Spirit of the power of passions and prayer.

You have passions; and those passions are great areas for prayer assignments in your life.  You must recognize that God created EVERYTHING.  John tells us that in first chapter of his gospel and Paul magnificently reminds us of this fact in the 3rd chapter of Colossians.  God created everything, visible and invisible for himself and by himself.  He should be glorified in all things. He wants to be glorified in all things.  Believers who are committed to prayer can truly have a remarkable impact in the world—the entire world.   The diversity of our passions is a strategic move on the part of our all- knowing God to expand the kingdom.

Blessings to you,

MC

  I must admit, although I love running, my extra long distance days used to present a challenge.  Those run days seem to take forever to reach the end.  Now I suppose the primary reason for this is that I am required to slow my pace in order to accomplish the distance.  You might be thinking, “That seems logical, what’s the problem?” The problem is I can run faster and I really want to run faster. So it stands to reason that yesterday about half way through an extra long run I had the desire to speed up.  Just as I was about to step it up, I heard my run coach (the Holy Spirit) say, “This is a study in discipline and restraint.”  I smiled and maintained my slower pace. As I continued for several miles, I reflected on the words, “discipline and restraint.”

  The fact is we all have strengths, those things that we can do well and usually quickly.  Although most of the time we operate in our strengths and are often taught to push harder and longer, the truth is it may not always be what is needed at the time.  As I continued to run, I thought about the fact that it doesn’t really take much discipline to run faster but it takes great discipline to deliberately slow down.  We must remember the lesson of always being yielded to God.  When we have strength and power we are apt to take matters in our own hands but God wants us to remain submitted and yielded to him regardless of the power us posses. Beloved of God, recognize that one mark of spiritual maturity is being able to deliberately slow down.  We must learn not to sacrifice effectiveness for efficiency.  God can and will use you mightily if you will learn the lesson of discipline and restraint.  After all, that is how Jesus walked the earth.  He possessed all power; yet He yielded it to be guided by the Father.  As I completed my run, feeling strong and energized, I had to praise God for the reminder. So, in turn, let me encourage you to develop discipline and restraint alongside speed and power in order to be an effective servant of the Lord. 

Let the Word of Lord bring you strength today and always.

Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall mount up with wings of eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Be Blessed,
MC

   Only 4 shopping days before Christmas and 11 left in 2007.   During this time of year, people begin to reflect on where they are, where they should be, and where they want to be in the year to come.  As you reflect, you may realize that you have gotten off track and haven’t accomplished all that you desired or planned.  If you realize that, there are some things you definitely need to do. First, don’t panic. Honestly admit to yourself and to God that you missed it and commit to change.  Second, recognize that God knows exactly where you are and has a process to get you back on track.  Third, take some time to understand the process and surrender to it.  God has plan for your success.  He knows that you just need a little more inspiration, clarification, and purification. 

Getting off track happens as the result of many things. Things that don’t necessarily equate to the commission of murder, adultery or fornication. Perhaps you have been serving and committed to God, yet during the course of 2007, you have spent too many days complaining and worrying instead of giving thanks and praising God for his faithfulness and goodness.  Or you have spent a good bit of time feeling overwhelmed and exhausted instead of  resting in the Lord and enjoying the stability of  his peace.  Maybe, you have even been using your creative energy to invent new ways to procrastinate and make excuses instead of being focused, and working diligently and efficiently to accomplish your God-given, God-driven goals. God’s desire is that you are inspired, clear, and purified to accomplish your work.  His process to get you back on track includes blowing down the hindrances, shaking out that which is unnecessary, and burning up unrighteousness to bring you to a place of greater spiritual maturity and accomplishment.   Let’s look at the process. 

Blown away by the wind. The first part of God’s process is to get you inspired.  Inspiration is what you need to feel refreshed,revived, and full of creative energy. Sometimes there are mountains in the way that block the inspiration or the breath of the Lord.  Therefore, the wind blows to tear down those mountains. By mountains, we mean the things that we stand behind for comfort and security.  You can have mountains of fear, distrust, disorganization, etc.  Interestingly enough though is that  the key to receiving inspiration from God is to come out from behind the mountain.  Step out of your comfort zone.  You can not get fresh inspiration if you are afraid to step into a new place.  Decide today to come out from behind the wall of insecurities, fears, and other things that have hindered the fulfillment  of Gods plan for your life.  The wall that you have erected for protection and security is the same wall that keeps the breath of life away from you.  You must be inspired by God to obtain God like results.

Shaken up by the earthquake.  Last month’s post discussed the shaking that occurs in our lives to cause our true desires to surface.  Taking that a step further, shaking also causes that which is not connected to fall to the ground.  The is part of the process can be termed clarification. Clarification of what your true goals are; as well as what you need and don’t need  is important to your ability to remain focused and stable.  Clarity helps you say,” yes” and “no” to the right things and with confidence.  Holding on to the wrong things keeps us from holding the things that are profitable for our lives.  In order to free us of things that are not pertinent to our next level, God will begin to shake things up.  Nothing is immune to the shaking: thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors alike. When the earth starts shaking it becomes easy to identify that which is stable, solid, and secure. We are then empowered to identify and deal with distractions.  You must be clear and focused to completely follow the instructions of the Lord.

Tried by the fire. Fire is used for purification. In order to succeed according to God’s standards, your motives and methods must be pure. The fire comes to burn up all that is not pure or unrighteous.  Unrighteousness occurs when we are unable to think, do or speak in line with the will of God.  Going through the fire can feel like a trial but look at it like this, as you are going through it the fire is being used to bring your mind, will, and emotions to the place of purity and power.  Your motives and methods must be pure before the Lord in order to truly please him. 

Today, consider this process.  Can you identify your mountains?  What are the attitudes, thoughts, beliefs, or behaviors the Lord is trying to shake out of you? Are you fully surrendered to the process of purification? Right now, take a few minutes, to write in your journal or share your comments on this post.  Please know that in all this, God only wants you to give you greater inspiration, clarification and purification so you can fulfull your kingdom purpose.  As he prepares you to walk in Dominion and Authority in 2008, yield to his process and allow him to do a powerful work in you spirit, soul, and body.

Blessings today and always,

MC

excerpted from the message: Earth, Wind, and Fire

Leadership is a gift.  Leadership is a privilege.  Leadership, as defined by John Maxwell, is “influence.”  Such a global definition of leadership is so inclusive that it would be hard not to recognize yourself as a leader.  To that end, whether you are a stay-at-home mom leading your children into purpose, a supervisor leading a staff to accomplish this quarter’s goals, or a minister leading the Joshua generation into promised territory; your character and attitude matter to God.   

   Earlier this week, I had the honor of speaking to a group of women preparing to launch their new year of women’s ministry.  Each one at different places in their lives and spiritual walk yet divinely put together to infuse a local body of believers with the joy, strength, and love of God.  It is from that talk that I  share a few points with you today. 

Walking the road of  Christian leadership can sometimes be daunting. It only takes few minutes to realize that as leaders you really do have to work with people.  Working with people can sometimes present challenges–just ask Jesus, he had “The Big 12″.   There will be times you get excited about things but others don’t always share your enthusiasm.  You will find that even in the perfect world of faith things get mixed up and misunderstood.  You will definitely find that  sometimes you have more ideas and thoughts than resources. Yet, be encouraged and know that God has positioned you for this hour.   As you walk the road of leading others, keep these four points in your heart and mind and you should find the road more amiable.  

1.   Focus.  Okay, an old word but here is a new twist.  As you lead others focus on the commonalities rather than the differences.  We are all different from one another in some way but we are bound together by the love of God.  Focusing on differences only increases division, while magnifying the common ground builds unity.

2.  Balance.  Great leadership flows out of a balanced life.  The amount of balance in your natural life is an indicator of the true balance of your spiritual life.  If your life is out of balance, it is difficult to serve others at the level God desires.  The concept of creating  and living a balanced life  means having your priorities identified and being true to them.   Also, recognizing the importance of  knowing when to say, “yes” and when to say “no.”  Personal stability is the foundation for leading others with power.

3.  Grace.  When we mess up, mix it up or otherwise “get it twisted,” we are very quick to understand our situation and give ourselves grace.   As a  leader be quick to appropriate the same if not more grace to others. Forgiveness and compassion must flow out of you freely. 

4.  Sanctify your feelings.  Be aware that even as a chosen leader everyone won’t agree with you and you won’t always be right.  First and always, in the face of disagreement follow the Biblical model for resolution.  Next, don’t take it personal.  Don’t allow your emotions to take control of you.  Believe it or not people are not sitting up at night thinking about how to hurt your feelings.  You are called to be lead by the Spirit.  Finally, if you make a mistake admit it, fix it, and grow from it.  This demonstrates Christ in you and speaks volumes to those you lead.

Again, keep these four points in your head and in your heart as you travel the road of leadership and you will find that as you grow in character, so will your level of influence.

Blessings to you today and always,

MC