Daily Archives: November 12, 2013

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Not about me…or you


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Mark 11:1-7 Now when they drew near Jerusalem, to Bethpage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples; and He said to them, “Go into the village opposite you; and as soon as you have entered it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has sat. Loose it and bring it. And if anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ Say, ‘The Lord has need of it,’ and immediately he will send it here.” So they went their way, and found the colt tied by the door outside on the street, and they loosed it. But some of those who stood there said to them, “What are you doing, loosing the colt?” And they spoke to them just as Jesus had commanded. So they let them go. Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it.

In the other gospels they identified this animal as a donkey but not in this one. I picked this one because it specified that this colt had never been ridden before. I looked online to see if donkeys were super easy to allow a rider for the first time. I found that they are not any easier to train or break than a horse. In fact, they say that you can’t break them by force but instead they must be coerced or bribed into submission. So, naturally, I’m curious about why Jesus picked a colt that had never been ridden before. I know that every prophecy about Him was fulfilled and it was prophesied in Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.” And He did just that.

Several months ago, maybe last year, I was talking with my friend, Jana, about the women’s center I am helping her with. And while I was telling her how I am always thinking of how the people I come in contact with can help with the women’s center The Lord told me I was the donkey. I was like…really?! A donkey? Couldn’t I be something a little more glamorous…I don’t know like an eagle or something? But no, I am the donkey. So then I started praying about what that meant. The first thought was the donkey that Balaam rode in Number chapter 22 because it talked and that was what I was doing…talking to everyone I met about the women’s center. But I never got confirmation from The Lord.

Then I was listening to James McDonald one day that week and he was recounting something that happened to him. There was a lady that was upset with him and called him a donkey in a letter. He prayed about it for a week and never got clear understanding about how he was a donkey and what he should do about it. On Friday, of that week, he went to lunch with a pastor friend of his. James did not tell the pastor friend about the letter. As they were walking back to the car after lunch, the friend said The Lord is pleased with all the ways you are serving Him and helping people into the Kingdom. Then the man said, you know even the donkey knew it wasn’t about him. So there it was. That was my answer. It’s not about me. My job is to bring The Lord in…in whatever way I can. Through this blog, through the women’s center, when I begin to preach and teach, and through every ordinary, mundane, daily interaction with people. And it’s your job too. As christians we are the Lords emissary on earth. We are His designated agent. And Who better to represent?

Are you representing Him in the way He would have you?

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Authority


John 19:10-11 Then Pilate said to Him, “Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?” Jesus answered, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”

Election day…albeit a small election. Just two candidates for the seat in congress that was vacated by Jo Bonner. It is our responsibility, as Christians, to pray about who God would have us elect into office. To get out and vote even if it seems to be between the bad and the worse candidate (not to say that is the case in this election). We are blessed to live in a democratic society and we should not take that for granted.

We may not like the authority we are under but we can be sure they would not be there if it wasn’t Gods will for them to be there. (Romans 13:1-2 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves.) This scripture is why I try to stay out of conversations about the current government. If I don’t like what they are doing I try to remember that I serve the God that put them in office and that I need to pray for wisdom and discernment for them. I also pray that their hearts will be softened to accomplish that which my God put them in office to achieve. Sometimes it is really hard but I believe that His plan and purpose will come to fruition.

Sometimes when we are going through a situation we can see what God is doing. Sometimes when we are going through a situation we wonder where God is, but after we get through it we can look back and see what He was accomplishing thought it. And sometimes we never understand why we had to go through a situation. I think this last circumstance is the hardest to accept. I heard a sermon once that helped me accept the times when I can’t understand why I had to go through hard times. The pastor was using a motorcycle game at the arcade to illustrate. He explained that there were 4 perspectives that you could choose to view the course as you “rode” the motorcycle. The first was just the road as if you were actually driving a motorcycle. The second was pulled back so you could see the rider and a little more of the road. The last perspective was the entire course, the terrain, the other participants, upcoming twists and turns etc. I liken the 4th perspective as Gods perspective. He can see everything, everybody, and how each action is going to affect His plan. This makes it easier for me to live by faith. To trust in my God, Who has a plan.

It’s a choice.

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Seeds


ImageGenesis 1:11-13 God said, “Let the earth put forth grass, seed-producing plants, and fruit trees, each yielding its own kind of seed-bearing fruit, on the earth”; and that is how it was. The earth brought forth grass, plants each yielding its own kind of seed, and trees each producing its own kind of seed-bearing fruit; and God saw that it was good. So there was evening, and there was morning, a third day.

Wasn’t that smart to give the plants the ability to reproduce themselves through seeds? I have been thinking a lot about seeds, dirt, water, harvests etc. today. God does that with me. He gives me a topic and I’m not sure I heard Him so He brings it back to my mind over and over until I stop and get quiet enough to hear exactly what He’s trying to tell me….so here goes.

In the scripture referenced above The Lord is talking about plants but I believe the same principle applies to us. Before I was saved I can remember several instances of people “sowing” into my life. Sowing seeds of words, sowing seeds of actions, sowing seeds of love into me. And I’m sure there are some I’m not even aware of. I wonder if all the people that loved me into the Kingdom knew what they were doing or were they just letting the love of Jesus flow through them.

In John chapter 4 Jesus is talking to the Samaritan woman at the well and then, after she walked away, He begins talking to His disciples about the harvest. John 4:35-38 Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”

Did the people who sowed seeds into my life realize they were entering into other people labors and that they were gathering fruit for eternal life? It must be very gratifying to lead someone to Christ. To lead them in the sinners prayer and watch them become saved. I haven’t had the privilege yet but I do think I have planted some seeds.

In 2012 on Valentines day I went to inner healing at Restoring the Foundations in Hendersonville, NC. During my week there I was exploring the area just after sunset. The Lord took me to a rock, at the top of the mountain, that overlooked the city below. As the sky darkened and the lights in the houses below began coming on The Lord said to me, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Go and join My workers in the harvest.” My response was yes Lord!

Please join me in sowing seeds of love and hope into the lost and hurting in this world. Let the streams of living water flow through you and spill onto everyone you meet today. (John 7:38)