The Dawn of a New Day

My spirit has been stirred within me this morning. As I consider all that God has promised His children, how is it possible that we would accept any theology that keeps us from entering into His fullness. Hebrews 6:18 teaches us that it is impossible for God to lie. So I want you to cast aside any thoughts that will keep you from experiencing all that He has provided.

I want you to think about something for just a moment. How often have you heard someone take one of the promises of Jesus and say "What He was really saying is..."? Then we get to hear their dissertation on why we cannot expect Jesus to fulfill His Word to us. These types of arguments are typically based upon logic and/or a person's lack of experience. Any mindset or theology that keeps me from stepping into the fullness of God is not from Him. In fact, Scripture teaches us that we can be filled with all the fullness of God.

John 14:21, "Whoever has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him." I want you to consider the weight of these words to the disciples. Do you think there was anything in them that expected less than what Jesus promised? I don't think so. I believe that they expected exactly what He said. They were not looking for an explanation that would play down the words of their Master. They trusted Him, they trusted His heart, and they lived with an expectancy of continually experiencing the presence of Christ. I'm not saying that Jesus cannot manifest Himself in a variety of ways, but I am saying that He can manifest Himself to His followers.

Another passage from John (verse 12) teaches us that the followers of Christ will do the works that He has done AND even greater works because of the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of us. This is a verse of great debate because there are many people who refuse to believe that we can even attain to the works of Jesus. Did the disciples question what they would be able to walk in? Did the disciples think that Jesus meant anything other than what He said? I don't think so. I believe they fully expected to do the things that Jesus did and to walk in greater works. Why? Because Jesus never lied to them. Whatever He said - He delivered. And on the day of Pentecost when they received the fullness of the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, the stepped into the realization of this promise.

I think it's time for the church to rethink her position in many areas. We have allowed ourselves to live in a mediocre Christianity that expects less than what God has promised. We have settled for a faith that can be explained, that can be controlled, and can be argued. Rather than step into the fullness of what it means to be sons and daughters of God in the earth, we have settled for church membership. Please hear my heart - today is the dawning of a new day for many of you. God is stirring something inside of you that cannot be contained. You are refusing to settle for less than Jesus promised. You are looking for the blessed hope of His coming but you are also expecting to experience His fullness while living in the earth. You are not settling for a faith that simply looks for its culmination in heaven but stepping out in a faith that believes you are the righteousness of God in Christ. You are not settling for a faith that sits and soaks and sours but pressing forward in a faith that is reaching for the mark that was set in the life of Christ.

One of my favorite images is the rising of the sun over the mountains. You know...it's a foggy morning but as the sun rises higher and gets warmer you see the fog disappear into nothing and everything is revealed. Today is one of those days. This morning is one of those mornings. As you allow the Spirit of God to continue to illuminate His Word in your hearts, you will no longer be looking through a glass darkly. You will be able to see clearly all that God has planned for those who love Him. As this illumination continues, you will feel the warmth of His grace, love, and mercy. The heartbeat of God becomes your heartbeat. Faith begins to rise up in you that screams "You are everything that God says you are and you can do everything that God says you can do!!!"

This is the dawn of a new day!!!

The Desires of Your Heart & His

Psalm 37:4, "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart."

I want to continue in the thought from yesterday: "The dreams of your heart may actually be the dreams of God's heart that He has entrusted to you."

Psalm 37:4 has been a favorite source of encouragement for many people. We find here the heart of God in answering the heart cry of the believer who is set on delighting themselves in Him. The basic idea from David is that when we are willing to be sensitive to the Lord (not just the things of God) that we will experience God's answer to our petitions. But...you know me...I want to take this a step further. The fact of the matter is that I grow tired of a Christianity that is self-centered. We often read verses like this and immediately think of what we get in return. I realize that God does reward us for our devotion to Him but I don't want the blessing to become my focus.

What if...
What if the desires of your heart were actually the desires of His heart for you?
Think about it this way: If you have devoted yourself to find your delight in the Lord then you will also find yourself consumed with the things that consume Him. Our value systems become rearranged. The things we used to long for are no longer an issue. We discover a contentment that is based upon the heart of God for us rather than our heart for ourselves. Therefore, if I am finding my delight in the Lord, could it be that I have also come to desire the same things that He desires? Could it be that God has actually placed things within my heart that were not there originally? I think it can happen. Actually...I'm sure that it does.

As a follower of Christ it shouldn't surprise us that His dreams become our dreams or that desires of His heart become the desires of our hearts as well. David sought the Lord with all of his heart and God turned right around and gave him His. How often do we focus upon David as a man after God's own heart without questioning where David received this heart in the first place? Every one of us was created by God for a relationship with Him. I believe that there is something planted firmly into our DNA - the part of our makeup that was created in the image of God - that longs to seek after His presence. We want to know God and be known by Him in a relational way. David took that hunger and elevated it to such a place where he was able to receive a heart that was like the one He pursued.

It seems to me that we have been presented with a Christianity that is so focused on how much we are not like God that we have failed to recognize the God-like qualities that are actually present. How is it possible that people who do not know God seek to have a solid marriage? Or a parent that is not a follower of Jesus that seeks to give his/her children a stable family environment? Some would say that this is the work of society. My question would be: where did society get this idea? Through the Spirit of God I have been able to see things that God has placed within the hearts of people even when they are not walking in relationship with Him. I have seen the desires of the hearts rise to the surface and have been able to call them out. It's an awesome thing when you can look at an unbeliever and say "That desire you have is actually from God and He wants to bless you in it." Because in that moment they realize that the God they have not been walking with has actually placed something wonderful inside of them. And when they are ready to walk in the relationship that He has provided through Christ, then they will be able to step into a greater ability to accomplish the desires of their heart and His.

Some people may ask how it is possible to view humanity in this light. The answer is quite simple - it is because of the finished work of Christ. I have been able to view every man, woman, and child through the accomplishments of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. When you and I are able to do this then we will be able to see past all of the other things. We can (through the Spirit of God) begin to see what God has intended for another person to walk in. In this way we are also able to see the desires of His heart.

Never allow yourself to stop dreaming the dreams of God.
Never allow others to keep you from following after the desires of your heart when you discover that they are in line with His.
Never allow your faith to waiver because of the circumstances that surround you.
Let His dream become your dream - Let His heart become your heart - and Let His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Enjoy the journey!!!

Have You Ever Considered...?

Have you ever considered that God's plans and your dreams may be one and the same? I understand that this isn't always the case. However, there could be much more truth in that statement than you realize. The reason that I'm pointing this out is because none of us should abandon our dreams unless they keep us from fulfilling the purposes of God. This is part of the journey to becoming everything He has created us to become.

This type of thinking usually causes a couple of different reactions:
1) It will scare people away from pursuing something with God.
2) It will encourage people to keep pressing after something that they know is from God.

Typically when I encounter someone who has stopped pressing after a God-given dream (something that is most desirable) it's because they haven't discovered how to trust the heart of God. This may mean that they don't believe that God has their best intention at heart. Or it could mean that they don't want to be what God is leading them to become. It's hard to say, but that's what I normally encounter. The only response that I have for people in this type of situation is to question them in the relationship. How do they approach God with their lives? Have them come to an understanding of the unconditional love of God? Is Jesus really Lord of their lives (not just in confession but in practice)?

Allow me to give you an example: When I answered the call to ministry (that I would give my life to it) it came out of a place where I knew that I wanted to do more than just sit in a pew. My relationship with God had propelled me to a place where I enjoyed sharing His Word, I had a desire to share the Gospel, and I loved helping others grow in their relationship with Christ. I wasn't sure how it would all play out but I was willing to make the journey. I allowed God to set the agenda from that point forward. I knew that my plans and God's plans were running together. It was just a matter of allowing Him to set the pace. I'm sure that I could have done what many others have done. I could have sensed the leadership of God in my life and ran in the other direction. But there was something inside of me that continued to pursue this belief that I was destined to experience more of Him. His leadership led me down a path that was very different than what I expected, but as I sit here and type these words I can't imagine my life being any different or any greater. Knowing that God wanted to use me for His purpose allowed me to fulfill my dream and His.

Here's what you and I must discover in the whole process of dreaming with God. We must allow Him to be Lord of our dreams. I've seen way too many people dream without God and wonder why they struggle. This doesn't mean that they were wrong in their assumptions but it could mean that they took the wrong path. I also want to say that just because you struggle doesn't mean that you missed God. Anything worth doing is worth going through the difficulties. I'm simply encouraging each and every one of us to find a place in our relationship with God where we are completely secure. We can know what He desires from us. We can know His direction for our lives. We can hear His voice and we can follow His instructions.

Never allow your faith to just become something that you have added to your life. From the moment we receive Jesus as Lord, He gets to call the shots. My life has been blessed by knowing people who have made career changes, forsaken every other dream to pursue God's, or chose to use their retirement to be a part of what God was doing in the earth rather than just "enjoy" the golden years. Here's what I have realized: we are never too young or too old to see God's dreams become our own.

Allow me to encourage you with one more thing: Don't automatically assume that your dreams are not from God. It could be that you aren't as far from the heart of God as you think. I believe that God places something inside each of us when we are created. I also believe that God trusts us with this part of His heart. And when our lives become consumed with understanding who He has created us to become, we will also allow Him to shape and mold our lives in this particular direction. That boy or girl in your home that dreams of being an artist, a musician, a singer, an athlete, a doctor, or an engineer - those dreams may very well be the dreams of God. It's up to us as parents to help them follow the Lord in those directions.

In the meantime...know this - He trusts you with His heart. He has done absolutely everything so that you would know that you are loved. He wants you to enjoy this life. He wants you to get the most out of it. There may be times where the things that you pursue are not God's best but He will help you to see that. He will also help you find your way to discover what His best looks like for you.

Enjoy the journey!!!

Park Day!!!

Hope everyone can join us for this wonderful community event. It has been the heart of PBC to give back to our community. The PBC Park Day Event is a way that we can bring an entertaining family environment to Max Meadows free of charge. I look forward to seeing you there.

Admission: FREE!!!

TIME: 10:00am - 2:30pm

Date: THIS SATURDAY - May 26th

Location: Max Meadows Ball Field

You will enjoy...
Music
Food
Games
Fellowship
And FUN for the entire family!!!

A Word About Honor

I cannot explain to you the reason why...but every time I have the opportunity to see someone honored, it moves me. I'm not talking about the type of emotions where you are happy for the one who is receiving honor, but the type of emotion that says something just shifted in the atmosphere around me.

Most of us understand what the Bible says about honoring one another. Therefore, it is not my intention to define the word or tell you how to properly operate in it. What I want to share with you is what I witnessed this morning:

- The honoring of a woman who had served as a custodian for 20+ years in an elementary school. The honor that was given to her wasn't because it was "necessary." It was given because of who she has consistently been during those years. A woman who came to work with a smile on her face. A woman who genuinely cared for the people (adults and kids) around her. A woman who received a standing ovation from parents and children. She wasn't honored for her service. She was honored for who she was.

- The honoring of an administrator. He was honored not because of his position but because of his person. It's who he is that has made the difference in the lives of kids. It's who he is that contributes to the culture around him. When children were asked to remember some of their most memorable times as a student in this elementary school, one after another said that it was when he came to be the principal of their school. WOW!!!

I'm beginning to see that...
Honor brings life.
Honor allows people to function at their best.
Honor is given to people not for what they do but for who they are.
Honor recognizes the greatness in an individual.
Honor never says what can I get from you but what can I give to you.

Honor is a powerful force. The world will even take notice for the honor that is given from the church for those in the community. And when the people of God begin to display honor among one another, it creates an atmosphere that is hard to not be around.

There is a part of me that believes there was a time when honor had left the house of God. I think it was just a response to the culture. It seems as though there has been such a disdain for those in leadership that we have failed to recognize the place of authority that God has given to a Pastor, Teacher, etc. There was also a lack of honor among the membership. I don't know if this had to do with their particular class or social standing...but it was there. However, what I am witnessing (at least in my own church family) is a return to honor. It's an exciting thing to be a part of and an exciting thing to see.

- There was another moment of honoring someone that I have to talk about as well. We personally know several of the teachers within this particular school. They love God, the love kids, and they want to represent God's goodness in their vocation. These teachers go beyond just giving these kids what they need to pass a test. The become a crucial part of their lives. And every year, at the end of school, I hear these kids talk about the wonderful teachers they had and honor them among the parents, staff, and their fellow classmates. How is it possible to see this kind of honor coming from kids? It's possible when you have teachers who honor their students.

Jesus' words continue to ring loud and clear:
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
This is one of the most basic principles of kingdom life. I pray that we continue to see a reawakening of this powerful tool in the lives of our churches and our communities.