YOU ASKED ME TO DO THAT?

“You want me to do that?”  “But that won’t change the world.”  “I thought you called me to something great!”  

You won’t hear many people actually verbalize these statements but, BE HONEST, they have run through your mind.  We come out a great prayer meeting, conference or revival with a fresh call of God on our life. The adrenaline is high, we have a vision of greatness; the world isn’t going to know what hit it, then we open the door to reality.  When Naaman, a commander in the Syrian army, opened his “door to reality,” he had a similar reaction and spoke aloud what we have all thought.

2 Kings relates the story of Naaman, a  great and honorable man through whom God had given Syria victory.  Naaman had a wonderful life except for one thing, he had leprosy.  Through an Israelite servant, Naaman heard about the Prophet in Samaria that could heal him of leprosy.  The story continues with the King of Syria sending Naaman with a personal letter to the King of Israel asking him for healing.  Finally, word gets to the Prophet Elisha and Naaman, his horse and chariot arrive at Elisha’s door.

This is where the story becomes quite interesting.  Naaman, who is used to being in control of the situation, arrives with high expectations.  In his mind, Elisha will humbly welcome him and in awe of such greatness, pray, wave his hands and heal him of such a dreadful disease.  Naaman, will then bestow the gold, silver and fine clothing on the Prophet and swiftly return to commanding the Syrian army.  

Elisha not only ignores such greatness but sends his servant to the door with instructions.   Naaman is to go and wash 7 times in the Jordan River.  Naaman is understandably furious at such disrespect and leaves in a rage.  There is only one problem, Naaman is STILL covered with leprosy.  Finally, a servant reasons with him, Naaman obeys and is instantly healed.

 2 Kings 5:13 And his servants came near and spoke to him, and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do SOMETHING GREAT, would you not have done it? 

OUCH!!! Do I see myself in this verse!  So many times I have found myself answering the call of God and walking through the open door with visions of grandeur, dreaming of all the wonderful things God is about to accomplish through me.  

I will probably be asked to speak to hundreds of women, I will plan, host and serve the most awesome food at Ladies Meetings that will make the General Superintendent’s wife drool and of course I will accomplish it all  in a designer dress, shoes and handbag. Now I understand that I will have to turn down invitations and of course I will only pick the ones that God impresses on my heart because after all, it is really about souls. 

 I walk through the door, to find, not the hundreds I thought were waiting but a distraught little woman that has just lost her husband.  She isn’t waiting for my words of wisdom.  Oh No!!! God says, “You want to serve, serve her. Cook a meal, serve it to her friends and clean up her kitchen when they are gone.”  

BUT GOD, I WANTED TO DO SOMETHING GREAT!!!!!!!  Maybe next time. 

DOOR #2; “God you want ME to clean that little kid’s snotty nose? It’s clear down to his lip and I forgot the hand sanitizer.”   Well of course, who else in the church always carries fresh tissue in her pocket?  He could use a hug too.  “I know he came on the bus and his clothes aren’t too clean but Susan, if you could only see his future and what I will accomplish through him.  Your tissue, your smile and hug will keep him coming back to church where he will get to know Me.”    

Well at least there is DOOR #3!!! 

“But God, he’s so old and his first words to me were, “I want to die.”  Besides it has to be a 100 degrees in here and he sleeps most of the time.”  Well so much for designer shoes, handbag and changing the world.  “But Susan, you will change HIS world in the short time he has left.  He needs you to pass on a message to his daughter that his pride won’t let him say to her directly.  Not only will she have some much needed down time but her father’s last words about his precious little girl will bring comfort and peace in her grief.”

Namaan finally humbled himself and received the very thing he was seeking. How many times have we closed our hearts to the leading of the Spirit because we were looking to do something great.  If we could only understand how important the cry of ONE hurting soul is to God and how important it is that He has chosen you to be His hands and feet to this dear person.

Mark 10:43, Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. . 

In the Kingdom of God, true greatness comes through faithfulness and obedience. It isn’t about the GREAT THINGS WE ACCOMPLISH it is all about the GREAT GOD WE SERVE. 

WHY GO TO CHURCH?

Have you ever heard someone make the statements, “Organized religion isn’t for me” or “I don’t have to go to church to be saved?”  We have all probably heard or uttered those phrases at one time in our life.  Well, I have to agree with the first statement.  I would trade organized religion for a relationship with Jesus Christ any day.  Some would say they are not mutually exclusive so why can’t you enjoy both.  I have experienced both and in myself and others, I have observed the more focused you are on organized religion the more distant your relationship with Jesus grows.  The reverse is also true, the closer your relationship with God the less impact organized religion has on your life.  As to the second statement, let me tell you my story.

It had been one of those weeks.  Everything I had read, heard or thought about reminded me of my faults, failures, shortcomings and inadequacies.  Facebook was full of ministry success posts and it seemed that if I stretched the truth, twisted a few details and overlooked all the “restarts,” I might be able to manufacture one small success to share.  I was missing my grandbabies, my kids were all too busy, my siblings had their wonderful lives and even my mom never asked about me.  Years ago, Steve and I had answered the call of God on our lives with visions of hundreds being saved and in general accomplishing “great things.”  Others would treat the call lightly but not us; we were determined to work, commit, let nothing stand in our way of following after God’s will…yet now I had arrived in 2013 and I was tired with no visible fruit in my basket.

Onto the second statement; I didn’t need to go to church this morning to be saved.   I was just as saved when I rolled out of bed this morning as when I stepped into the sanctuary a couple of hours later.  Being discouraged does not equal a loss of salvation but my pity party was overshadowing my ability to encourage myself.    I needed to go to church because God had orchestrated a service, as an expression of His love, just for me.   

Now I have to admit, I couldn’t bear to go to Sunday School and hear the scheduled lesson taught on “Bearing Fruit through Serving,” as I stated previously, I was serving to the point of exhaustion and my basket was empty.  As the worship service began, I recognized God’s handiwork in the selection of music; “How Can I Keep From Praising Your Name” and “Living He Loved Me; Dying He Saved Me.” Healing tears began to flow, washing away the pain; the sermon was directed at me and the time around the altar completed the process but the sweet surprise God had planned for me happened during the offering.  NOTHING exciting happens during offering. Oh Yeah?  We are talking God here and if He chooses to show His love during the offering, who is going to stop Him!!!  During the offering, a sweet lady behind me, leaned forward and said, “I just want to let you know what a blessing you are to me and how happy I am you are here.  It is so encouraging to talk with you; I love your worship and commitment to God.”  

 No, I didn’t need to go to church this morning for salvation, I needed to go to church to love and be loved.   I needed to be reminded of what a great God I serve, who will orchestrate an opportunity to shower His love on me. I needed to enter the sanctuary, filled with Brothers and Sisters, lifting their voices in worship and be assured there is a whole family of God; I am not alone. “I don’t have to go to church to be saved” but it sure makes the journey a whole lot easier and immensely more pleasurable.

THAT'S NOT THE GOD I WANTED!

In the midst of his sermon, one Sunday, the preacher made the statement, “They hate us because they hate God!”  As I pondered that statement, I realized that people don’t really hate God, they hate the holiness of God that reveals sin, they hate their responsibility to God, they hate the absoluteness of the truth of God, but they love the idea of God. We love the idea that there is someone out there more powerful than we are, someone we can call on when times are tough, and someone to blame when things don’t go our way, but to many God must also be someone that can be controlled with their hand holding the remote.

Throughout history mankind has resisted accepting a God that is so far beyond what we can imagine and requires absolute faithfulness and obedience from His followers. Thomas Jefferson believed in the ethical teachings of Jesus but he did not believe in miracles or the deity of Jesus, so he created the Jeffersonian Bible.  Jefferson cut the passages he liked out of the Bible and pasted them into a book which included the early years and ministry, teachings and parables, the betrayal, crucifixion, death and burial.  There is no mention of course of a virgin birth or the resurrection since they fall into the miracle category and give Jesus, God-status.  This is the sad ending to Jefferson’s Bible; “There laid they Jesus, and rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed."  Thomas Jefferson missed the entire message of the Bible. A message about fallen man with no power to redeem himself from the clutches of sin and a holy, righteous and just God who so loved the world that He would robe himself in flesh and die that fallen man could be saved. It is a message about a God who has promised to prepare a place for those who will accept Him as their God, where they can live for eternity with Him.  It is a message about the Resurrected Christ who reigns supreme in the lives of those who trust in Him.

Lord of the Rings’ star, Ian McKellen, admits to tearing out the page containing Leviticus 18:22 from every hotel bible he finds.  You see, Leviticus 18:22 does not fit with his chosen lifestyle.  In an interview he states, “I'm not proudly defacing the book but it's a choice between removing that page and throwing away the whole Bible."  Mr. McKellen and Thomas Jefferson are not so very different than most of us who through disobedience tear or cut the parts out that we don’t like. Our lives proclaim, I want a God who is just a prayer away, but only when I need Him.  “Don’t call me, God, I’ll call you.”  I want a God who would give His all and die for me, but don’t ask me to sacrifice a few hours every week to go to His house and visit.  I want a God that owns the “cattle on a thousand hills” and can supply my every need, but I think 10 percent is a little much to ask me to give from my paycheck.  I want a God that will heal my body and that of my loved ones but I also want a God to be angry with when it doesn’t happen the way I had it planned.  I want a God who can redeem me and save me from sin but I want to be the one who determines the definition of sin and which ones I want to be saved from.  I want to make God into the image of my choosing, however, THE GOD I CREATE CAN BE NO GREATER THAN ME!!!

Genesis 1:26 describes the beginning of mankind, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” No matter what position you ascend to in life, how much money you may accumulate, how many educational degrees you may earn, you cannot make God into your image.  We can, as the Apostle Paul stated, “become vain in our imaginations and change the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, birds, four footed beasts or other creeping things”, but it will not change who God is.  The bible tells us in Hebrews 6:13 that “When God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no greater, He swore by himself.”  There is none greater than God and He will always be God no matter what we do or think.  The god that you create will be no greater than you but the God that created me is all powerful.  He can supply my every need, heal every disease and sickness, comfort every sorrow and save me from every sin.  Jesus Christ is my God and beside Him there is no other.

YES LORD, RIGHT AFTER I PUT THE GROCERIES AWAY!

I FIRST POSTED THIS IN 2011 BUT AFTER A RESTLESS NIGHT, GOD DEALT WITH ME TO REPOST IN 2013!

As a pastor’s wife for several years, I’ve heard about every excuse for not serving God, missing church, or not being involved that can be invented.  My sister, a fellow pastor’s wife and I have declared that some day we will compile all of this wonderful creativity and write a book.  I’m positive it will be a best seller; we already have friends that are waiting to preorder their copy.  Every time I believe there is nothing new that a person will think up, another excuse is added to my collection.  Human ingenuity never ceases to amaze me.

I will never forget the day, my sister called with this one; it has become my favorite.   Just before service that evening, a dear “saint” called to let the pastor know that she would not be able to be at church because she had to put the groceries away!!!  Now I’m sure the Lord “understood.”  After all, groceries are expensive, meat left on the counter for an extended period of time will stink up your house, our houses should be neat and orderly, etc.  Unlike the Lord, however, I was speechless!!!  Throw the perishables in the fridge, the non-perishables in the closet if you must and GET TO THE HOUSE OF GOD!

Luke 14 recounts the story of a man who had worked hard to prepare a nice dinner only to receive excuses from the invited guests. One had purchased some property and had to go check on it.  Another had obtained five yoke of oxen and had to try them out.  The third merely said, I have just gotten married and can’t come.  The host was so angry that he ordered his servant to go out into the streets and bring in anyone who was hungry enough to accept his invitation. Perhaps, the problem is that we are not hungry enough for the things of God.

 Abraham left all his family to follow God, not even knowing where he would finally settle down.  The Children of Israel were ordered to be ready to leave immediately with their staff in hand and shoes on their feet.  There would be no time to put away the groceries; this was their Night of Deliverance.  When Jesus called the twelve disciples, the Bible records that Peter and Andrew “straightway” left their nets and followed Him.  James and John “immediately” left their ship and father to follow Jesus.  We also read where Matthew left his tax collecting table to follow Jesus, but how many people did Jesus invite to follow him that said, “Yes, Lord, but first let me put away the groceries?” 

What are you allowing to take precedence over the call of God in your life?  Perhaps it isn’t a yoke of oxen, a piece of property or sacks of groceries but what about a career, your children, your age or future experiences?  When will we finally leave the groceries on the counter and say as Isaiah said, “Here am I; send me.”  Make God your priority today.  YOU ARE HIS!!!!

SPEAK HAPPY!!!

Have you ever said or heard someone say, “I just want to be happy!”  We all want to harness that euphoric feeling we call happiness, but for some it remains an elusive dream.  It could be that we have defined happiness as the “pot at the end of the rainbow” and the rainbow keeps disappearing before we find the pot.  Are you ready for a huge revelation?  Once you get this little factoid settled in your brain, you will be on your way to happiness.  “Happiness is NOT the Pot.”  Possessions and things are not happiness, so put your money into a retirement account that you will leave to your selfish children and determine in your heart to BE HAPPY.

Luke 12:15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”

What if I’m just not destined for happiness?  HOGWASH!!!  You want happiness?  Then use your mouth and SPEAK happiness into your life.  REALLY???  It is that easy?  Your mouth has convinced you that you are not happy and you will never be happy so eliminate the “NOT” and “NEVER” and SPEAK HAPPY.

In his book, “Happy This Year,” Will Bowen wrote “Happy people believe they are happy.”  Now we’re talkin’!!!  Happiness really is a “state of mind.”  If you think you are sad, deprived, blessed or happy, YOU ARE!  OK, I’m THINKING happy thoughts and I’m SPEAKING happy words but my circumstances haven’t changed!  IT’S NOT ABOUT YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES!!!  It is about CHANGING YOUR THINKING.  An amazing transformation occurs when your thinking becomes happy, although your circumstances may not have changed, your view of them has and so you think they have.

Now that we have established the “Philosophy of Happy,” it is time to start “Speaking Happy.”  Stand in front of a large mirror and SMILE because happy people are “smiley” people.  SPEAK; define yourself as a happy person.  Go ahead, SAY IT; “I am so happy today.”  Now walk through your house, stop focusing on emptiness or the things you don’t see.  Although, your happiness does not depend on your possessions, start counting the things you own and the people who live there as blessings.  SPEAK thankfulness, SPEAK praise, SPEAK happiness.  This last exercise may stretch you and be the most difficult one but you want to be happy don’t you?  THINK really hard about someone else.  What can you do for them that will put a smile on their face and happiness in their heart?  Got an idea?   NOW, GO DO IT!!!!  SPEAK HAPPINESS to someone else.

1 Timothy 6:6 Now, Godliness with contentment is great gain. We may live IN a World of Discontentment but we don’t have to be OF a World of Discontentment.  If you really want a happy life, then have a happy life.  SMILE, BE THANKFUL, SPEAK HAPPY!!!