STEPPING OVER THE LINE

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send?

And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"

                        Isaiah 6:7-9

A few years ago, about 30,000 people held a worship service in California to celebrate the 25^th Anniversary of Saddleback Church. At the end of the service, this large congregation rose to their feet and stated aloud a very refreshing vow of faith. More than that, is was a declaration to God and to the world that things are going to change from this point forward and that the status quo was no longer good enough. The statement they made is below. Please read it and keep it near you. Pray it aloud if God gives you the courage. But, be warned, your life may never be the same….

Today I am stepping across the line. I'm tired of waffling and I'm finished with wavering; I've made my choice, the verdict is in and my decision is irrevocable. I'm going God's way. There's no turning back now! I will live the rest of my life serving God's purposes with God's people on God's planet for God's glory. I will use my life to celebrate His presence, cultivate His character, participate in His family, demonstrate His love, and communicate His word.

Since my past has been forgiven and I have a purpose for living and a home awaiting in heaven, I refuse to waste any more time or energy on shallow living, petty thinking, trivial talking, thoughtless doing, useless regretting, hurtful resenting, or faithless worrying. Instead, I will magnify God, grow to maturity, serve in ministry, and fulfill my mission in the membership of His family.

Because this life is preparation for the next, I will value worship over wealth, "we" over "me," character over comfort, service over status, and people over possessions, position, and pleasures.

I know what matters most and I'll give it all I've got. I'll do the best I can with what I have for Jesus Christ today. I won't be captivated by culture, manipulated by critics, motivated by praise, frustrated by problems, debilitated by temptation or intimidated by the devil.

I'll keep running my race with my eyes on the goal, not the sidelines or those running by me. When times get tough, and I get tired, I won't back up, back off, back down, back out or backslide. I'll just keep moving forward by God's grace. I'm Spirit-led, purpose-driven and mission-focused so I cannot be bought, I will not be compromised, and I shall not quit until I finish the race.

I'm a trophy of God's amazing grace so I will be gracious to everyone, grateful for every day, and generous with everything that God entrusts to me.

Today’s Prayer

However, Whenever, Wherever, and Whatever you ask me to do, my answer in advance is yes! Wherever you lead and whatever the cost, I'm ready. Anytime. Anywhere. Anyway. Whatever it takes Lord; Whatever it takes! I want to be used by you in such a way, that on that final day I'll hear you say, "Well done, thou good and faithful one.” Fill me with the utter determination it will take to love and change the world around me. Please do not let me be satisfied with the way of the world, but to continually strive for the Way of God! Amen.

YOU ARE NOT ALONE

We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself

intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.
                                                                      Romans 8:26

Do you sometimes feel like there is no one on your side? We often move through the day and our lives so fast and so blindly, that we end up disconnected from the people and world around us. Well, I have news for you. You are NOT alone! The Holy Spirit is with you right now.

Why is that so important? Because the Holy Spirit is far more than just another character from the Bible or an entity we mention in worship. The Holy Spirit is our personal friend sent by God to intervene on our behalf. Yes, the Holy Spirit is your intercessor. As a follower of Jesus Christ, you have the Holy Spirit, God's divine intercessor, actually living inside you to guide you in prayer, to reveal God's Word to you, to reveal you to the truth and to actively pray for you.

Why is having an intercessor so important? The word "intercede" is from the Latin words "inter," which means "between," and "cede," which means "to go." When someone intercedes it means "to go between." So, when we act as intercessors we bridge the gap between current circumstances and God’s will. That is why we are called to always intercede on behalf of people, crisis situations and nations.

The Holy Spirit knows the gaps that the Father desires us to fill. So He places that particular weight in our hearts and leads us to pray.

Yes, life can be chaotic and lonely. And you may feel that you lack even the energy or ability to pray correctly. Don’t worry about it. God only requires that you be available. If you will just be faithful and turn your face toward Him, God will perfect any inaccuracies and strengthen any inadequacies. Rest assured, your prayers will be heard because you are not alone. You have a helper. 

When you pray, be fully aware that you are in partnership with the Spirit of the living God. Your success in prayer does not come from how well you articulate the words of prayer, but on how fully you yield yourself to the Holy Spirit so He can pray through you.  Don’t be concerned about the Quality of your prayer, that’s the Holy Spirit’s job. You just be concerned with the Quantity of your heart that you put into the prayer, that’s your job.

As you pray today, you only need to believe in God and believe that God WILL! We should always approach the place of prayer with an extraordinary expectation of meeting with God and seeing Him answer our prayer.

Today’s Prayer

Lord, I come to your throne with a heart full of faith; faith in you and faith in your will for my life. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit that I may have guidance through the places in my life that are too dark for me to understand or see. Lead me in my prayer so that I may be closer to you and come to fuller understand and acceptance of your will for my life. Amen.

Praise!

I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

                                                            Psalm 9:1-2

It is important that we do not become presumptuous in our approach to the praise and worship of God. Sometimes people think they must be doing Him a favor by blessing Him. It’s tempting to think that the better or more often our praise, the more blessed God must be.

Then we read about the mountains and the hills breaking forth into singing and all of the trees of the fields clapping their hands; and the heavens telling of the God’s glory and the earth showing forth His handiwork; and the children praising Jesus as He entered Jerusalem, and how He said that if they were somehow silent, the stones themselves would cry out.

You see, when we praise we are simply and finally becoming as we were meant by God to be. Look around you. Everything else God created is engaged in the continual expression of praising His Glory through their mere existence as a natural course of events. Stars in the sky were made to twinkle. Sheaves of wheat were made to wave in the wind. Trees were made with leaves that brush together and branches that grow strong to hold them. So we praise Him for no other reason than He is our creator. It is through praise that we become our true selves. We are just aligning ourselves correctly with the God’s universe and our place in it.

More often than not, we tend to devote our energies to asking God to help us with our problems and needs. Yet it’s in praise and worship that our hearts can be lifted up to God’s presence, where we can gain a new, heavenly perspective. Through praise, we can give the Spirit an opportunity to renew our minds and even to give us his guidance in dealing with the challenges we face here on earth. We praise God simply because it is right and reasonable to do so not for what we get from it or even for what God receives, though all of this is important.

So let us worship Him! But, let us not brag about it or draw attention to ourselves in the process. We praise because that is what we are meant to do. Let us worship Him! But, let us not presume to ever be giving Him anything more than what He is due. And He is due everything.

Today, praise the Lord in a way that is new to you. Lay aside your list of petitions for a short time. Cast off your inhibitions. Lift up your heart and voice—even your hands and feet, too!—in a burst of praise. “Ocean of glory,” sang St. Ephrem to the Lord, “in your goodness receive this drop of praise!” May each of us add a drop of praise into that ocean today!

Today’s Prayer

Lord, We join all the heavens and earth in a loud celebration of your glory! We praise you as your simple, loving children because that is how you made us. You are glorious and eternally worthy of our praise. Bring me deeper to the realization that like a rose in full bloom, I am at my absolute best when I am praising you. Amen