My God Is Mighty To Save, Part 2

One of my friends sent this video today. Check it out! Very powerful and it is very appropriate based on my last post. Praise Him that He continues to fight for us regardless of how far we may stray!

My God is Mighty to Save!

The last several days have been weird. Periodically we all deal with some spiritual warfare and I think Satan picked me this weekend for whatever reason. There's no need to go into detail about all of it as it has all been dealt with and life is good now. However, it confirms a few things: 1) no one is exempt from it - no matter how much you think "it can't/doesn't happen to me." 2) good friends and people that care about you are essentials in life; they don't have to know what is going on, but just be able to sense that you need something 3) being part of a good church is important 4) you can't let yourself get bogged down in everyone else's junk; they have to deal with that themselves; that is not to say that we shouldn't be good friends and listen and pray as needed 5) everything is made better by talking with someone that can offer an objective viewpoint. With all of that said, the most obvious even before these confirmations is that we need to be in the Word and spending time with God. And even still, we're going to face some "stuff."

So when you deal with our "little red friend" or whatever color he is in your world, remember to tell him "Hey, Satan, dude, MY GOD IS MIGHTY TO SAVE. So take a hike!"

Does Your Faucet Need to Be Cleaned?

I mentioned in a previous post about our new team at work and that we are really in for some adjustments in the near future. Today we had a team meeting and discussed a lot of the team dynamics and began development of our working agreements. A few of the things we came up with were in regards to respecting each other, how to work well and communicate, and basically never make each other look bad. Ever!

Reflecting upon these interactions this evening and thinking back to the last several weeks of Joey's messages, I wondered how often we say things or do things to co-workers, family, friends, or just the person we pass on the street that either comes out wrong or we say something before we have a chance to really think it through. How many times have we said something and ended up trying to suck the words back in as they escaped from our mouths? I know I've done it. Sometimes it really stinks to know that we've hurt someone or made them look bad and the damage is already done. The worst thing is when it's in writing and more than just the two of us see it. Technology like email and blogs are not always our friends. I've learned that the hard way. Note to self: Never leave a paper trail. It doesn't make the situation any easier, but it does save a little embarassment.

One of my favorite quotes is "People will forget the things you say and do, but never how you made them feel." And so I try to think about that before I speak or write, especially since I've been on the receving end of those hurtful words before.

Having said all of this, how can we overflow with God's love and show it to the community when we don't even treat co-workers, family members, and friends the way we should? Is our proverbial faucet (i.e, our minds and mouths) clogged up with gunk that needs to be cleaned out? Do we need to spend a little more time with our assigment from week 1 - spending time in the Word - before we can focus on overflowing? I ask all of this becuase I know that I'm challenged with this sometimes too. My words may not be particularly telling, but maybe my actions speak more loudly.

After reading Joey's post today, I think we are doing the right thing at the right time. The community around our church and Confluence, and even the communities where you live, need us. We have to clean out our gunky faucets so that we are truly overflowing with the right things as we come into contact with the people we want to touch. But things have got to be right in Jerusalem before we can tackle Judea. How are things inside of your Jerusalem walls? Are they ready to overflow or does the faucet have some issues?

BOHICA!!!

That was the motto of the day yesterday. If you don't know what it means, you'll have to ask me. Yesterday was one of those days where everyone and everything seemed to be against you. Every single way that we turned at work there was a roadblock or a complication. We were not feeling the love!

Thankfully there was Life Group to look forward to last night. I needed to be around people that could bring things back into focus. We talked about our challenge for this week - finding someone within our "own personal Jerusalem" (Acts 1:8) that we could be of help to and could minister to. After thinking about this and talking about the people that we want to reach out to, the problems of the day seemed to fade into the background and not seem so overwhelming. Don't get me wrong, they're still there. But with proper focus, they seem manageable compared to what other people are facing.

Sometimes its good to stop, listen, and hear God saying, "Child of mine, I promised you that I would never give you more than you could handle. Think of others. . .you could be in their shoes."

OH! And By the Way. . .

If you're not doing anything Friday or Saturday nights - even if you are - come hang out at Confluence for a little while. We're having live music both nights and it'll be great. Check out www.confluencecoffee.com for more details. There is also a page on Facebook if you want to check there as well.

Stuff usually gets rollin' between 7:30 and 8 and goes until near closing at 11pm. So come join us! Even if you don't want to hear the music, you should come for a strawberry freezer. Don't know what I'm talkin' about? You'll have to figure it out for yourself! :)

Joy and Trials Go Hand in Hand???

I can't believe that I haven't posted since Sunday. It just doesn't seem like it's been that long. This week has been a little crazy with meetings and travel for work. We're experiencing some change at work which will eventually be a good thing. Right now it seems like a huge test since we've suddenly grown from a team of five to a team of sixteen. And unfortunately, quite a few of our new teammembers have not been coached in the same manner that we have, so I'm noticing quite a bit of what could be considered negative behavior. That's not their fault and they are not bad people by any means. But when you've had as much coaching as we have on personality types and preferences, things tend to stick out at you a little bit. They say that teams go thru four stages: forming, storming, norming, and performing. Our smaller team has been together for about three years and I truly feel like we've been through each of those stages and have successfully achieved "performing" status. So now that we have a new group of folks, it feels like we're back at square one all over again. I really hope they catch on quickly! Maybe our manager can work with them the same way she did with us and help the two groups gel more quickly. Pray for patience on everyone's part (I know they say not to pray for that, but I think it's in order here) and that we will learn how to work with each other and find the best process that works for the larger group.

On a more positive note, I attended a class today in Charlotte which our friend Justin Luckett also happened to be in. It was called Quality Philosophy. Interesting! A couple of us were wondering what this was all about before the class started. It was exactly that - the philosophy about how to achieve, manage, and maintain quality. I'm really excited about the content and how it can be applied to work and even to everyday life. I know. . . sounds weird. Just go with me! :)

Life Group was awesome again tonight. I had the opportunity to meet Cherie and Bill Smith. I've seen them at church but haven't met them before tonight. What great folks! It's always nice to meet someone else - maybe eventually I'll get the chance to meet everyone. We had a great conversation on how God is speaking to us thru the book of James. I'm really loving this group more and more. We spent a good amount of time talking about the first few verses in James 1. I guess the above situation with work would be my "trial" at this point. And with most trials there is a fear - in this case probably the fear of the unknown and uncertainty, the fear of failure of the whole group. We (our team) don't have a reason to fail - they put two very successful groups together. But this union changes a lot of major processes. I realize that this fear is unfounded and that Satan is trying his best to enter this situation and my mind. But James tells us to consider it pure joy when we face things like this because we know that our faith will be tested and that it will persevere. So I'm approaching this with joy and a positive spirit. I'm approaching this the knowledge that my faith will persevere and bring me through this time. It has before - God has before - and it will happen again.

Are Ya Drinkin' Your Jesus?

This was one of the questions that Joey, our pastor, asked this morning. He was using the analogy of a Gatorade commercial where the guys are playing sports and instead of sweating like normal, they are sweating the color of their Gatorade drink. The tagline of the commercial is "Are you drinking your Gatorade." Appropriately, he then asked us, "Are ya drinkin' your Jesus?" So I have a few things to say about this.

We started a new series today called "Overflow" and I totally can't wait to hear more in the weeks to come. Our church and Confluence (our coffee shop) is in such a neat position right now for our people to be used in the community and to reach out to people; not for the purpose of bringing them into our church (although it would be really cool if they joined us), but for the purpose of loving them and meeting them where they are; to remove those barriers between the "y'all" and "us" of non-Christians, Christianity, religion and denominations. But before we can be used, we have to be right within ourselves and with God and overflowing with Christ so that others can see Him in us. And in the process Satan is going to do everything he can to stop this. He was in one little corner of our service today causing people not to be focused; trying to pull others' attention away from what Joey was saying to what he had going on in the back of the room. And the funny thing is, he uses distractions like that to cause us to miss something - many times the most important thing. So we have to manage that and make sure that we don't allow Satan to have the access that he can so easily gain sometimes. Otherwise, we'll never overflow because he'll constantly be working the drain plug ever so slowly letting out just a little bit of what is being put in.

It's been such a long time since I've been a part of a church and a group where I felt like God actually wanted me to be. Moreover, it's been a long time since I've had a desire to be completely focused and centered on Him. Don't get me wrong, my faith has always been there and I have never doubted my beliefs and where I'll spend eternity. But the fire wasn't there. Life was repetitive, very uninteresting, and very disappointing. I was tired of putting so much into the relationships and supposed friendships that I formed with other people only to be disappointed in the long run when something better came along for them or when they were bored with me or whatever the problem was that caused them to pull away. (I don't claim perfection in that statement, by the way. What I mean is that friendship is a give and take with both good and bad. Some folks tend to bail when its not going their way or when they are disenchanted with some facet of the relationship.) I prayed for a long time, "God, show me a church, a place where you want me to be, where I can be involved, and where others will take the same interest in my life that I want to take in theirs." Now I only wish that I had listened to Him six months ago when He tried to show me The River - when I took time to read their door hanger, which I never do. All of those type things usually go directly in the trash at my house. But for some reason, I kept this one for a very long time. I checked the church out online. I read everything I could find about it and the people who are involved in it. And finally, after constant reminders and gentle prodding (okay, maybe not so gentle) I decided to give it a try. Wow! I'm glad I did. For those of you that go to The River who are reading this, I value each and every one of you and thank God daily that I'm part of this movement and that as I get to know you we are part of each others' lives.

Now that I have a church home, it's time for God to start work on the other areas. I totally know that He's going to do it too. I hope He does for you as well. There are things that apply from all of Joey's points this morning - it will just be interesting to see how God is going to carry out His plan. I'm definitely part of the group that needs to work on the "But you" part of my faith. Our scripture that we're looking at over the course of this series is Acts 1:8. .
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be
my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the ends of
the Earth.
Jesus said "But you," not your neighbor, not the guy down the street, not the person at the store who serves you, He said YOU - that means ME. And while contact evangelism may not be my thing (it's totally not), there are other ways that I can fulfill that "But you" part of His message. Perhaps its in my daily work and interactions, or by being involved in various ways at church, or by writing something on my blog that others will read which will allow God to speak to them. But I have a purpose and a command and I have to figure out how to fulfill it with God's direction and timing. Nonetheless, I have responsibility, a mission, in the "But you" part of scripture.

This will defnitely flow into other areas of my life as we go along and you'll probably see a posting about them. But I want to leave you with a challenge. If you're the person who just goes to church and goes thru the motions of Sunday service just so you can say you were there; if you're the person who goes to church just so your kids get to attend and you're not actively involved; if you're the person who says that you're "involved" in the children's ministry or the nursery or some other part of the church and it's not truly a ministry but a barrier to hide behind, a hindrance keeping you from getting involved in your church and the lives of its people and fulfilling the 'But you' part of scripture; if you're the person who goes to church but none of your friends that you hang out with are invovled in a church of their own and its obvious that it's not a good crowd or they are causing you to lose the "But you" focus, I challenge you to re-examine those parts of your life.

If you're not fulfilled spiritually by anything you do in your life; if you're unhappy with who you are and where life is going; if you've been disappointed by others or burned so many times by supposed friendships that you now withdraw more often than reaching out, ask God what "But you" is supposed to mean for you. Ask Him to show you where you belong and how you can be obedient to His word.

We only get so many chances to reach out to people, to make a difference, to impact their lives. If we pass up those chances, what good have we done? What are we doing in our own lives to make sure that we are filled and overflowing and that others see this? What are we doing so that we possess what is needed to reach out and give to others? Are you drinkin' your Jesus?