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Living the Difference

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But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:17-18 ESV

My world looks and feels a little different these days.

My family and I just returned from a week in Jeremie, Haiti where we served alongside Haiti Bible Mission over our boys’ Thanksgiving break.

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I have never witnessed such a glaring contrast in my surroundings. Nestled amid God’s glorious display of some of the best He has given us— amazing turquoise seas, lush jungle landscapes and rolling green mountains—bare feet walked dusty roads littered with trash, and half dressed children played in the streets, hungry for both food and attention.

My heart broke for them.

But then again, I had prayed before I ever boarded that plane to cross the sea that God would pierce my heart and open my eyes to see the people of Haiti like He sees them.

I had asked for it, and still it caught me by surprise.

The first time we stepped out of the truck and began walking down the street along the poverty stricken waterfront, a wave of emotion swept over me with such force, I had to ask God to strengthen me to keep on walking without tears.

Oh, how He loves them! My heart swelled with compassion. His compassion.

Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? James 2:5

God sees those people the same way He sees you and me. He loves them. He died for them. He longs to save them. And He’s looking for people who are willing to show them.

Yep. That’s what I said. Not tell them. Show them. People are supposed to see who God is when they look at you and me.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. 2 Corinthians 5:20a

When people look at you, dear one, do they see Jesus?

Last week I had the privilege of seeing some of those ambassadors at work. I watched the HBM staff loving people, not just with words but through their actions. And when love is demonstrated instead of talked about, it moves people. Just like Jesus moved people.

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That day along the waterfront, the HBM team spent time and built relationships. They asked people to show them where there was need, and then they joyfully did what they could to meet it.

Carrying ladders and supplies, they moved from house to house, fastening tarps on the roofs of needy homeowners so they could keep out the rain.

Tying a tarp onto a roof seems a pretty small thing. It didn’t take much time. It didn’t even take much money. But you should have seen the smiles on the faces of those who received them!

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Then we bowed our heads together in the street, praising God and blessing the families in the name of Jesus.

The next day a man approached us in the street, hugging Pastor Mark and thanking him for the tarp. Grinning from ear to ear, he said, “It rained and I did not get wet.”

That man showed up as a first time visitor in church on Sunday.

In fact, three new people entered God’s house in worship for the first time as a result of a few men taking an hour to hang some tarps.

You see, love that gives draws people to seek the Giver.

God doesn’t just feel love in His heart toward mankind, dear one. He demonstrates it (Romans 5:8). And if you and I are going to be ambassadors through whom God makes His appeal, we need to demonstrate love too.

But here’s the good news. We don’t have to visit a foreign country to show God’s love. We can do it wherever we are.

Yes, God has commissioned us to carry His gospel to the ends of the earth. But He also mentions quite a bit about our neighbors.

For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:14 NIV

What if you and I stopped worrying about what we’re supposed to tell people about Jesus and just started loving people? What if we asked God to change our hearts and open our eyes to ways we can bless people around us and make a difference in their lives?

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It doesn’t have to be big things. It may only require a little time. But when we bless others, the life and love of Jesus gets poured out, and that changes things.

We may even find ourselves caught in the tide.

Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered. Proverbs 11:25

Are You God’s Friend?

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I am a friend of God.

You’ve probably heard songs making that bold claim. You may have even sung them in worship on Sunday morning. It’s a wonderful concept, and I love the reminder that God is approachable and seeking relationship. But I wonder if God’s definition of friendship matches ours.

Are you really living as God’s friend?

Only a handful of people received the distinction of being called God’s friend in Scripture. Abraham earned the recognition first, followed by Moses. You’ll notice that God used both in mighty ways to bring about His plan for this earth.

Through Abraham God created a nation, a people group He called out from the world to become His own. Through Moses, God delivered that people from slavery in Egypt and led them to the banks of their promised inheritance. God revealed His miraculous power through each of them, their faith in what God told them becoming a catalyst to release His glory.

And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. James 2:23 NIV

Along with their amazing exploits of faith, both of them share the distinction of having direct communication with God. Exodus 33:11 tells us, “The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.” God consistently spoke to both of them, and they each responded to what they heard with faithful obedience.

I have to ask, dear one. How does the description fit so far? Are you allowing God to use you in mighty ways to further His Kingdom? Do you speak with Him face to face and allow Him to whisper direction into your life? When you hear from Him, do you trust Him through your obedience so that His perfect will comes to pass?

Another group also earned the title of friend in Jesus’ day. Eleven men who left everything to follow Him received His invitation to friendship in an upper room right before He gave His life for them. The twelfth had already left to sell his “friend” for 30 pieces of silver. Here’s what Jesus said to them.

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. John 15:13-15

Did you catch it, dear one? Do you see God’s definition of who His friends are? In case you didn’t pick up on it, I’ll repeat it for you. Jesus’ friends are those who do what He asks of them.

Perhaps we have been throwing the word around a little too flippantly.

You see, according to Scripture, friends of God live with Kingdom purpose. They draw near to Him, pressing in close to hear what He has to say. And when He speaks, they follow, even if it means heading in a different direction than they had intended to go.

Beloved, Christ delights in sharing His Father’s business with His friends. He longs for eager Kingdom builders to come alongside Him and boldly exercise the faith they profess. Why? Friends of God living in faithful obedience release kingdom power that changes things.

Unfortunately, while we love to sing songs about friendship with God, most of us actually live as friends of the world. We embrace its principles and found our plans on its beliefs. We tune into all its channels to hear how the world defines who we are or who we should be. Then we eagerly align our lives to what it speaks.

Here’s the thing about that, dear one. We cannot live as friends of both God and the world.

You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? James 4:4-5

You see, biblically, what unites us in friendship is purpose. Look at what Scripture reveals in Luke 23:12, right after Herod and his soldiers had mocked Jesus and sent Him back to Pilate during His trials:

That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.

It is our common ground that unites us. Our friendships are built on what we believe, on our goals and motivations, on the principles we live by.

Dear one, we’ve been trying to claim friendship with God while standing on the world’s principles. In doing so, we’ve inadvertently made ourselves God’s enemies. Then we wonder why He doesn’t seem to want to bless.

Hear Jesus’ heart for you, beloved.

. . . As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world . . . John 15:19

What if you and I determined to live according to the biblical definition of friend of Jesus? What if we took up His cause as our own? What if we pressed in close to hear what He desires to speak to us? What if we determined to realign our lives with what He speaks?

I’ll tell you what we’d see, beloved. We’d see the glory of God poured out on this earth. We’d see power that changes circumstances. We’d see life that heals and resurrects. Is that not worth the risk?

I am a friend of God.

 

 

A Divine Appointment

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“ . . . no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.”                         1 Corinthians 2:9 ESV

“I opened this door.”

God whispered the words into my heart one morning in the parking lot of the YMCA. And I have to be honest with you. It wasn’t what I wanted to hear. I had other plans.

I had purchased my ticket to the Beth Moore Conference months before, and I couldn’t wait to attend. My heart longed for some rest and refreshment, and it had been years since I had been to one. Determined not to miss another, I had marked my calendar as unavailable and prepared to take some me time.

So when God brought several invitations to speak on the Saturday of that conference, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about it. Something told me He was trying to get my attention.

One particular event kept occupying my thoughts, and that day in the parking lot, I opened my heart to ask His direction. “What do you have for me, Lord? What is it you want me to do?”

“I opened this door.”

It figured. I had committed myself to walking through any door that God opens, so I immediately knew what that meant. I wouldn’t be going to see Beth Moore.

Really, Lord? I took a moment to voice my frustration. “But I just wanted to get filled up.”

His response was immediate. “I will fill you up.”

Have you ever been there? Have you ever set your heart on a particular path and then realized God was leading you in different direction?

That day I stood at a crossroads.

I knew what I wanted. In my mind, it seemed the best possible scenario, and I wanted to hold it tightly with both hands. Giving it up felt like a sacrifice.

But I also know that Jesus calls us with two, simple words. “Follow Me.” And behind those words, He offers a promise.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

At every crossroads along our journey, you and I must decide if we believe Him.

My logic wanted to argue against His leadership. After all, didn’t I need someone to pour into me sometimes instead of always being the one who pours out?

But Jesus had promised, “I will fill you up.”

I decided not to argue further. I’ve trusted Him often enough to know that obedience is always best.

I surrendered my heart to obey Him, and He softened the blow with an idea. I could attend the conference as planned on Friday and then drive to a hotel in Chambersburg so I’d be there for the event on Saturday.

I felt a hint of excitement. Apparently God would allow me to do both.

The weekend arrived for Living Proof Live with Beth Moore. A few of us attended the You Lead Conference beforehand and were finished up by lunchtime. Having cancelled our original hotel room in Hershey, we had lots of time to kill before heading to the Giant Center for worship. A friend who was staying at the Hershey Lodge generously offered us one of her rooms to rest before the event.

We had just parked the car and unloaded some things to take into the hotel for the afternoon. Walking the few short steps to the door near our rooms, we noticed a minivan pull up in front of it. A moment later the door slid open, and out stepped Beth Moore.

IMG_1491It took a moment for my brain to register that it was really her. She stepped toward me, taking my hand in greeting. An overwhelming sense of divine providence washed over me, filling me with emotion. God had orchestrated this appointment.

I struggled to find words at first, caught off guard by this outpouring of God’s favor. But then, as Beth graciously leaned in and listened, I found myself able to share my heart.

I told her that I’m a Bible teacher, and that ten years before, my sister-in-law had invited me for a “sisters” weekend to one of her conferences in DC. I hadn’t heard of her at the time and wasn’t sure what to expect, but when I saw her passionate love for Jesus and witnessed her devotion to His Word, it validated what I had been feeling in my own heart. That weekend released something in me, and not long afterward, I opened my home to lead my very first Bible study. That event marked the start of my journey toward ministry.

I can’t tell you what a precious moment that was to me. I never imagined I’d be able to voice my gratitude in person over the IMG_1487impact she’d had on my life.

But God wasn’t done. While we were speaking, my assistant approached carrying two copies of my Bible study. I handed them to Beth, and she gladly took them, sharing that she had self-published her first book just as I had.

Everything faded as I took in that profound moment… Beth Moore held my Bible study in her hands.

My cup overflowed.

Here’s why I share this, dear one. Had I insisted on my own plan instead of obeying God, I never would have been there. We had reserved a room at another hotel. My stubbornness would have cost me that divine appointment.

God wasn’t taking anything from me by sending me to speak that Saturday. He had a blessing He wanted to give. One that would prosper me, that fit perfectly into His plan to offer me hope and pour into my future.

Will you trust Jesus to write your story, beloved? His plans are far greater than you can imagine.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21

 

Encountering Jesus

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“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” John 17:3

On Sunday we celebrated Jesus’ resurrection. A throng of people filled our sanctuary, many dressed in pristine Easter finery. Ushers scurried to find seats, busily lining folding chairs along the walls and aisles to accommodate the overflow. It was no ordinary Sunday.

How it must have delighted God’s heart to see the crowds uniting in praise of His Son. Voices rose together in worship, a beautiful melody lifting before the throne of the King. I felt my heart swell with love and gratitude in response to what my Savior chose to suffer for me. My hands rose heavenward involuntarily.

It was a good day.

Today, sadness pricks at the edges of my heart.

You see, I wonder how many of the faithful Easter attendees flooding our churches really know the Savior they came to worship. How many went out of duty for a distant God they hoped to appease by their annual presence on resurrection day? How many others rifle into church each week from that same sense of duty, with no thought of encountering the Living God?

Please hear my heart, dear one. I don’t say this in judgment. I say it because for 26 years I was one of them. I say it because I know the emptiness of being a church attendee who had no fellowship with Jesus. I say it because I want desperately for everyone to experience the transforming power of His unfailing love.

Beloved, do you know Him?

I remember the day I finally met Him.

I wasn’t looking for it when it happened. I was simply trying to finish my homework and get my blanks filled in before our home group met the next time for Bible study.

But my relentless, loving God had plans for this lost and wandering sheep. Four words stared back at me from the page in my workbook, seeking my response: Do you love Jesus?

The question was an easy one, and I lifted my hand to answer “yes” without even thinking. I knew the right answer.

But my hand began to tremble as a fresh revelation dawned. Conviction fell over me as the Spirit of Truth invaded my thoughts and allowed me to see what He saw.

I didn’t love Him.

I had thought I did. I’m sure I’d said it a hundred times in my twenty-six years. After all, I’d grown up in church. And I wasn’t just an Easter worshiper; I worshiped every week. I could quote Scripture and tell you all about Jesus’ life.

But knowing stuff about Jesus isn’t the same as knowing Him.

And that day, the Spirit lifted the veil so I could see the truth about myself. I realized I had been a pretender, living a lie. I couldn’t love Jesus because I didn’t even know Him. But I realized something else that day that was even more important: I wanted to. And so, undone by the Holy Spirit in my living room, I confessed my sin, exited the kingdom of darkness, and gave my life to Jesus.

I have never been the same.

Have you had your encounter with Jesus, dear one? Does your Christianity bear the marks of religious chains, or a transforming work of grace?

If you’re not certain, ask the Lord of Glory to reveal Himself to you. He will never withhold Himself from a seeking heart. In fact, He’s the One stirring you to seek Him. And when you do, He promises,

“I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity.” Jeremiah 29:14

He will lift the veil for you to see, piercing darkness with glory and disclosing your truth. And then, you have a choice to make. Will you step into the light and head toward Jesus? Or do you prefer the comfortable familiarity of the darkness?

Choose life, beloved. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and you will never see heaven without Him (John 14:6). To spend eternity with Him there, you must know and trust Him here.

He beckons you to life with the same invitation He gave the Twelve, “Follow Me.”

Will you follow?

 “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” John 17:3

Overcome by the Word of Your Testimony

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“I am sending you.”

The message penetrated my heart in the middle of worship on Saturday afternoon during our annual women’s conference. An image of my friend who is battling end stage colon cancer flooded my mind.

My lips stopped moving as everything faded, the presence of the Spirit commanding my attention. I knew without doubt He was asking me to go and pray healing over my friend.

I wanted desperately to comply. I would like nothing more than to be a vessel Jesus used to heal her. But in the same moment fear and doubt took hold. Who was I? Nobody. Just a friend…a soccer mom…a Bible teacher. Not a miracle worker.

Do you notice how we tend to focus our eyes on our own inability rather than God’s ability? When God calls us to exercise faith, we make everything about us. But the tasks He appoints have nothing to do with who we are and everything to do with who He is. And in those moments, He asks us to trust. “Will you believe I AM who I say I AM?”

It might be interesting to note the theme of the conference I attended: Empowered by the Spirit. The speaker challenged us to Feed on the Word, Believe the Word, and then Live the Word. What good, after all, is knowledge of the Word if we can’t live it in the everyday? What does Truth mean to us if we don’t believe it and put it into action?

“I am sending you.”

The moment passed and we all settled in to hear the final message from the speaker. I found myself challenged by Revelation 12:10-11,

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:

 “Now have come the salvation and the power

and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah.

For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,

who accuses them before our God day and night,

has been hurled down.

 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb

and by the word of their testimony;

they did not love their lives so much

as to shrink from death.”

You’ve probably felt the weight of Satan’s accusations against you. We deal with the burden of his lies every day. But do you see how these brothers and sisters in Christ triumphed over him? By the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.

Hear me, beloved. Christ’s blood poured out on that cross guaranteed our victory over the enemy. But if you want to experience that victory—if you want to see the glory of God poured out— it isn’t enough to simply rest in the knowledge of what Christ accomplished. You’ve got to live it out. You and I have got to live like the enemy is the defeated foe he is and let the word of our testimony proclaim our victory.

That means we can’t allow Satan to fill our heads with doubt. When God speaks, we must simply believe and take action in faith. The rest is up to Him.

That night I prayed for God to increase my faith. I rose early the next morning and opened the Scriptures, determined to feed on the Word of God and fill myself with His presence. He confirmed His message to me, and I knew I was to go that day. For a moment, I allowed the doubt to creep into my thoughts again. What if it didn’t work? I can’t…

Immediately God spoke, this time bringing a familiar Scripture to remembrance.

 “Go in the strength you have … Am I not sending you?” Judges 6:14

I began to weep. I could not deny His message to me, and I determined to believe.

In worship at church that morning, I presented myself to God as a living sacrifice. I confessed my sin, received His forgiveness, and asked Him to anoint my lips with His Word.

After the service I shared my mission with two dear sisters and asked them to pray. One of them asked to accompany me, and we headed together to the home of my friend.

My heart hurt when I saw her lying on the couch. Breathing was difficult due to fluid filling her lungs from the cancer. I bent down to hug her and she began to cry, confessing she felt forgotten and abandoned by God.

I looked into her sweet face and was able to tell her, “He sent me to you. He loves you desperately, and He has not forgotten you.”

I knew in that moment it didn’t matter if I witnessed a miracle that day. God had already provided what my friend needed simply because I showed up. She needed hope. She needed to understand that she was not forsaken. She needed to grasp the height and depth of God’s love.

I read from Ephesians 3:16-21.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

I cannot adequately put into words what happened next. The Spirit led us in the sweetest time of prayer I have ever experienced. We laid hands on our friend and prayed as the Spirit moved us. We declared His glory and proclaimed His Truth, surrendering our wills to allow the Spirit in us to pray what she needed. We declared healing, praying for the fluid in her chest to recede. We proclaimed life and invited glory.

Minutes passed unnoticed, and nearly 2 hours had lapsed when we uttered the final amen. His presence was so thick I felt my hands going numb. I didn’t want to move, not wanting to sever the connection we had as we united our hearts in submission to His purpose.

I can’t tell you what the road ahead holds for my friend, dear one. God alone knows what happens next. But I did see Jesus touch her that day, and what a privilege to be the hand that He used.

When we left her, her breathing was less labored and there was pink in her cheeks we didn’t see when we arrived. But above all, she and her husband had hope.

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Psalm 27:13

 

Strength in My Weakness

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God amazes me.

Two and a half years ago, God directed me to write a Bible study, Tested by Fire. In April of this year a revised version of that study will become available for distribution to bookstores across the country. I have no idea where God will take it, but I remember well where Jesus had to take me to get here.

I recently came across this post from January 2012, written as God was preparing me to speak at my very first women’s conference outside of serving my church. I am humbled to remember the steps of the journey and where God has taken me along the way. I pray that reading it will encourage you to take your own steps of faith with Jesus, trusting that He’s with you even in the hard times. It just may be those moments of great brokenness that allow you to experience all Jesus wants to be in your life. When you let His strength overshadow your weakness, His glory surely follows.

 

More Than a Conqueror

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. 1 Corinthians 10:13, NIV (1984)

In two and a half weeks I will have the remarkable privilege of sharing Jesus Christ with hundreds of women at the new “Women of Purpose” conference in St. Petersburg, Florida. It astounds me to think of the plan God has chosen for my life. One particular verse comes to mind as I consider my story. Romans 4:17 celebrates “the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.”

Recently, Karen Hickam, the founder of Strive for Greatness who is hosting the conference, challenged each of the speakers participating in the event to consider the raw, painful moments of their journey. I prayerfully asked the Lord to take me back to some of my own struggles and allow me to feel them again. I asked Him to help me describe them in a way that others might feel them too and relate to my experience. Here’s where the Lord led me.

  • I sat under the shelter of my covered porch watching the rain wash over the earth around me and wondered briefly if God had opened the skies to match my tears. Thunder shook the heavens, literally rattling the chair beneath me. I felt each crack shudder through me, every pounding blow echoing the ache in my own fragile heart. Doesn’t obedience bring protection and blessing, Lord? Could I have been wrong about Your will for me?
  • I swallowed hard, attempting to quiet the churning in my stomach by sheer will. It would be easier if I could just retch. Maybe then, it would at least be over. But it wasn’t over. It hadn’t been for . . . How many days, Lord? When will it end? . . . I can’t do this anymore . . . I’m not strong enough . . . forgive me . . .
  • Reeling from the sting of betrayal, I sobbed until my face hurt. Darkness hovered about me, undaunted by the break of day. Life had turned upside down. Everything would be different now, the comforting familiarity of my routine stripped away from me by one who claimed to love me. How could this happen, Lord? Of all people to do this to me . . . how could it be her?

Tears flowed freely as my fingers moved across the keyboard, the vivid memory of my darkness flooding back in poignant waves. This time, however, my tears did not find their source in anguish.

They fell in worship of the One in whom I overcame.

My story isn’t marked by perfection, success and glory. Far more consistently, my story revolves around the breaking of my heart. But you see, my heart was bound in chains that needed breaking, and Jesus loved me enough to allow the pain so He could set me free.

Dear one, in your moments of greatest darkness, Jesus has not abandoned you. He is there with you, holding you, even when you can’t feel Him. Very often, what keeps you from recognizing His presence in your difficulty is the very chain in you He seeks to break.

In those moments of weakness, temptation comes. The enemy hisses in your ear that Jesus doesn’t love you . . . that He doesn’t even exist. He will do everything He can to convince you to turn back and abandon God’s plan for you. After all, just look at you. God has obviously already abandoned you.

His lies, dear one, come at you in those moments with such ferocity out of his own desperate fear. The enemy knows what lies on the other side of your victory: your freedom.

As you press on, taking hold of Jesus by faith, and allow Him to show you your way out (1 Cor 10:13), the enemy’s grip on your heart is broken. The oppressive chain that once bound you to him—your fear, your pride, your need for significance—falls idly to the earth with a thud. And you, dear one, will discover with elation that you are free—free to experience the all-surpassing joy of Christ’s fullness dwelling within you unfettered by the enemy’s chains.

 “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.” Psalm 126:5

Will you let Him turn your broken moments into a song of praise as He ushers you into the beautiful purpose He’s planned for you? Nothing compares to the wonder of living in your God-given Promised Land.

When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed.  Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.”  The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. Psalm 126:1-3

When Gifts Become Gods

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They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Romans 1:25

We like to think of idolatry as an Old Testament sin. After all, most of us don’t set up altars and statues of foreign gods in our living rooms. We proudly display crosses and plaques engraved with Scripture. We place Bibles on our coffee tables. By all appearances, we worship and serve the Lord!

But idolatry involves much more than graven images. It occurs every time something other than God rises to claim the worship and obedience of our hearts—like my need to be right that I shared with you last week. Inadvertently serving that need interfered with my ability to fully serve the Lord.

That’s idolatry, dear one, plain and simple.

Can you think of anything you have exalted to God’s rightful place in your heart? Something you “serve” that keeps you from living out God’s plan?

Our idols can be any number of things, ranging from addictions to relationships. Even comfort can be an idol.  We often refuse to follow Jesus into anything that makes us uncomfortable; we serve the promise of comfort instead of obeying God.

Let’s face it. Most of the time, the things we serve that pull us away from God aren’t things we’d obviously recognize as sin.  Sometimes they’re good things—even wonderful things—things God Himself gave us.

Beloved, sometimes we exalt and serve the gifts that come from His hand.

The Israelites did that when they made their famous golden calf. Do you know where they got the gold they used? Exodus 12:35-36 tells us:

The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing. The Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians.

I find the thought a little unsettling.

Israel used God’s own gift to them—a blessing He provided for them through His deliverance—to construct a god to replace Him.

What’s more, God had other intentions for that gold. It was supposed to build the articles for the tabernacle that would house His presence.

These people had witnessed God’s power through the plagues in Egypt and had seen Him descend in pillars of cloud and fire. They crossed the Red Sea on dry land and then watched the waters God had parted for them collapse and consume their enemies.

But they hadn’t seen any sign of Him for a couple of weeks while Moses met with Him on the mountain, so they thought it would be a good idea to abandon their Deliverer and come up with some new gods.

Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.”  So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron.  He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” Exodus 32:2-4

Jeremiah 2:11 comes to mind.

Has a nation ever changed its gods? (Yet they are not gods at all.) But my people have exchanged their Glory for worthless idols.

Indeed. How like humanity to exchange the Glory God meant for them—His power, presence and protection—for something man himself designed. Something that holds no power at all, whose only value comes from the fact that originally, it came from God.

And why did they do it? Apparently God took too long.

I can’t help but think of Abraham and Sarah. They found themselves trapped by this kind of idolatry when God’s blessed gift of a son became the idol they served.

God gave them the beautiful gift through a prophecy. He told them He would give them a son through whom He would bless the world. And they received God’s gift with joyful faith!

But then God took too long. So instead of waiting on God and trusting His timing to fulfill His promise, they began to serve the gift itself.

Sarah took matters into her own hands, giving her maidservant to her husband in marriage so they could conceive the son. And they did. But from the moment of that conception, misery followed. They had wandered from God’s purpose to bring about their own. Sadly, they discovered their idolatry also brought painful consequences.

Dear one, you and I often take God’s gifts to us and fashion them into gods. 

We naturally tend to worship and serve the gifts God gives us rather than worshiping the Giver through the gift.

I almost did that very thing with this ministry. I hadn’t intended to, but once God gave me His vision for Kelley Latta Ministries, I felt responsible to somehow make it happen. I put pressure on myself to establish it and grow it. God simply wanted me to rest in His plan and follow Him to its completion. Instead, I almost ran ahead of His timing.

I found myself tempted to serve the gift at the expense of the Giver.

Has God given you a gift, beloved, that you have unwittingly served as a god? Perhaps a relationship, a job, a child—even a talent that was meant to serve Him?

Serving our idols will not only weary us; it will also diminish the blessing God meant to provide through the gift. Just look at Abraham. The child born through his union with the maidservant became the enemy of the child of promise.

Dear one, serving anything other than God sets us on a destructive path. Let’s ask the Lord to show us every idol demanding the worship and service of our hearts. Rejecting them as gods and exalting God’s purpose alone allows us to fully receive the blessings God intended through them. They become gifts without bondage or consequences, gifts that remain good and perfect.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17

Are you ready to receive?

When God Stirs, He Hears

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This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.  And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15

On Sunday we celebrated Father’s Day at church. A guest speaker—a husband and father from the congregation—brought the message. Well, perhaps I should rephrase that. The Holy Spirit brought a powerful Word through a real estate salesman. The result?

At the close of the service, our Pastor took the stage and gave an invitation. Moved by God’s presence hovering in that place, his voice caught as he told the congregation that he would be joining the speaker on his knees at the altar. He invited any willing man to join them . . . any man desiring to lead his family by submitting himself daily to Christ’s leadership . . . any man ready to believe that true power comes when we bow down.

The next moment bore witness to God’s glory. Men from all over the sanctuary began to rise and walk to the front of the church, dropping to their knees one by one as they reached the altar. When the floor space at the front could no longer hold them, they began filling the aisles between the chairs. I wept before the Lord in worship as my gaze took in the empty seats and the sight of hundreds of men kneeling before their Creator, committing to know Him more, to follow Him more faithfully, to be the example for the next generation.

I could do nothing but bow in my own seat, lifting my hands in worship and my voice in praise.

It was a beautiful moment, glory descending as worship rose to heaven’s throne from the hearts of a people united, carried on the wings of praise. You know what made it even sweeter? The moment reflected an answer to prayer.

Have you ever felt compelled to pray for something that reached beyond the scope of your personal circumstances? That focused on the rise of Jesus’ glory instead of your own needs? If not, I challenge you to listen for the stirring of the Spirit within your soul to intercede for His kingdom. That’s the kind of praying that calls heaven down.

In response to God’s prompting, several women within our congregation have been praying for a spiritual awakening among the men of our church. Specifically, we had prayed for God to raise up leaders among them who would turn their hearts toward the Lord. We asked God to stir up mighty men of faith who would model whole-hearted devotion to God and lead others to follow in their steps.

Those prayers began almost 8 years ago.

And God did it. Last Sunday morning, we saw visible evidence of the invisible work God had been doing within the hearts of our congregation as a result of our prayer. And He raised an ordinary man to challenge His people with powerful truth at just the right time when the hearers were ready to respond.

Don’t you just love God’s faithfulness? It shouldn’t surprise us. It’s what God does. He stirs among the hearts of His people to pray and then He delights in answering. As we read in our opening Scripture,

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.  And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15

Even if it takes 8 years to see the evidence of it.

Just this morning, I came across these words in David Earley’s, 21 Most Effective Prayers of the Bible (Barbour Publishing, Inc., 2005), a prayer journal I’ve been working through in my quiet time. [Original quote from David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), p. 40-41]

Pastor David Jeremiah has written, “I scoured the New Testament some time ago, looking for things God does in ministry that are not prompted by prayer. Do you know what I found? Nothing. I don’t mean I had trouble finding an item or two: I mean I found nothing. Everything God does in the work of ministry, He does through prayer. Consider:

·      Prayer is the way you defeat the devil (Luke 22:23; James 4:7)

·      Prayer is the way you get the lost saved (Luke 18:13)

·      Prayer is the way you acquire wisdom (James 1:5)

·      Prayer is the way a backslider gets restored (James 5:16-20)

·      Prayer is how saints get strengthened (Jude 20; Matthew 26:41)

·      Prayer is the way to get laborers out to the mission field (Matthew 9:38)

·      Prayer is how we cure the sick (James 5:13-15)

·      Prayer is how we accomplish the impossible (Mark 11:23-24)

. . . everything God wants to do in your life He has subjugated to one thing: Prayer."

 

Do you see the work of God displayed in and around you, dear one? If you are missing out on experiencing the revelation of His power, perhaps you haven’t picked up the key to unlock it.

Allow the Holy Spirit to lead you in prayer, beloved. As He directs you to pray the Father’s will, you can know with confidence that God hears. And when He hears, He acts.

And you get to witness glory.