Knowing God's Will

How many times have you been confronted with a decision that left you wondering, “What on earth am I supposed to do in this situation?” How do you know God’s will for the choices you face? Or better yet, does God even have a preference for your life in every situation you face? I think Adam & Eve probably asked those same questions, especially after they were evicted from the Garden of Eden. And if the truth be known, we’ve come up with all kinds of methods and theories about what God wants, from drawing straws to throwing chicken bones. But the Bible is the only reliable source that tells us how we can discover God’s will for our lives. Paul put it this way: “Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing and perfect will of God. For by the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. Instead think sensibly as God has distribted a measure of faith to each one."  (Rom. 12:1-3 HCSB) Paul is saying that since God’s wisdom and knowledge is all encompassing and far greater than the human mind can comprehend. And since all things exist by and thru Him completely according to His will and purposes… when surrender our desires to what He wants to accomplish in and thru us, we will be able to know God’s good, pleasing and perfect will. In His wisdom, God created us to live in relationship as His children – to be joined together in the Holy Spirit, working together by the power of the Holy Spirit, proclaiming together the message of His grace and hope wherever we may be. That can only happen when we humbly submit to one another in God’s will, not thinking more highly of ourselves than we should think, or putting our goals above others, but in faith work together with other believers to further the ministry and message of Christ.

I realize that some of you may be thinking… “Okay dude, that sounds all religious. And it might work for a pastor but what about somebody who doesn’t have a vocational position of ministry? How can we make sensible decisions that line up with God’s will?”

Well dude or dudette... whatever the case may be, it all works much the same way... I think the first thing we have to do is what the Bible tells us about setting our priorities. Jesus said that when we “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness”, then all the other things in life will line up. In other words, when God comes first in our lives, He will take care of all the things the world says we have to make happen on our own. I believe that includes not only God’s provision but His purpose. And as long as our desires are first, foremost and always to glorify the Lord and magnify His grace and love, He will keep us on the right track. What does that look like in a practical sense? First of all, when you’re faced with a decision, search the Scriptures to see if there is clear guidance for which way you should go. If the choice is against the instructions of God’s Word, that’s an easy choice – say “No.” If it’s permissible, in other words, if it’s something that doesn’t go against the guidance of the Bible, spend time in prayer, asking God to give you guidance. One way I do that is to ask God to give me a heart to desire the choice that leads to His will for me. I then ask Him to confirm my desire by “closing doors I’m not supposed to walk thru and opening doors I’m supposed to enter.” When I surrender my wants to His leading, believe it or not, He opens and shuts the doors. Another thing I do is to consult wise men and women of God – those who are spiritually mature in their faith. I think it’s important to ask them to pray with you and give you any advice they discover from God’s Word or from the prompting of the Holy Spirit. As Solomon said in Proverbs 12:15, “A fool’s way is right in his own eyes, but whoever listens to counsel is wise.” He also wrote in Proverbs 15:22, “Plans fail when there is no counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” I believe as I once heard Henry Blackaby say, “The Lord speaks to us at least three ways today: 1) Thru the Scriptures, 2) Thru other believers, or 3) Thru the still small voice of the Holy Spirit.” We should remain open to all three, while understanding that none of them will contradict God’s written Word – the Bible.

When making a decision I also believe we should also ask: 1) What choice will most glorify the Lord? 2) What choice will enable my life to most glorify the Lord? And 3) What choice will help me to grow more spiritually as I serve the Lord? The answer to those questions is most likely the direction God wants you to take. If you have a hard time answering any of those questions, keep praying; keep submitting; and keep surrendering your desires to God’s will for your life. He will lead you when the timing is right by opening the door, confirming the direction by His Word – written and spoken, and by giving you peace. Paul wrote in Philippians 4:6-7, “Don't worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Sometimes it’s tough to discern God’s will. That’s often because we prefer to tell God what we want to do or what we want Him to do, rather than submit to what He desires for our life. We do that especially when it comes to things such as whether or not to purchase a house or a car, whether to change careers, where we should work, whether or not we should marry, or what church we should attend. Those are things we usually pray about after we’ve already made a decision and we’re asking God to bless our choice. Often times when we do that God will remain silent. It’s almost as if He’s saying, “Hey bud, you’re on your own. I wasn’t part of this decision.” I’m not saying that choices we make like that will always be wrong, but I do think it’s far better to consult with God before we make a decision, not just after the fact. Keep in mind, however, that the decision is ours to make. God won’t make it for us. The only choice He doesn’t want us to make is one that is contrary to His Word or His Will. But I believe that when we truly surrender to His Word, and desire to do all things for His glory, He will make His will the desire of our heart. When we put God’s will above our own desires, the desires of our heart will become consistent with His will. When that happens, all you need to do is follow your heart… Pretty cool, huh? 

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A Little "Chapped"

Sometimes when I write this page I’m feeling all spiritual and full of encouraging words, but that’s not the case today. Have you ever had one of those months when you felt like everything you tried to do ended up a pile of dirt (that’s the nice way of saying it) and somebody was standing by the pile throwing dirt clods at you? Well that’s the kind of month I’ve had over the past two weeks. I know. I know. There are more than two weeks in one month, but it sure feels like it’s been at least a month. I am sure I’m not the only one who has tough times, but today I’m going to get a few things off my chest. I’ve tried to make this blog ‘real’ in the past, and tell you exactly what I’ve been feeling. Today is no exception. Shortly after I came to Mountain View we made the decision that our family of faith was going to be a body of believers who were purpose driven. In other words, we were going to be involved in doing ministry that was centered on the biblical mandates of the great commission and the great commandment. Those two basics would be the foundation and purpose for our ministry and mission as a church. So, with that in mind, we adopted a mission statement which said, “Mountain View Exists for the Purpose of Exalting Christ and Sharing His Love”. In pursuing that purpose, we adopted the core principles of: worship, discipleship, fellowship, evangelism, ministry and prayer. You would think these fundamental tenants of Christianity would be above reproach. They’re all definitely biblical and they help keep us focused as we seek to become fully functioning disciples in Christ’s family of faith. As we began this journey, we found that many of the traditional aspects of our religious practice started to change to more relevant practices that people in our modern culture could relate to. In no way was the message of God’s word ‘watered down’, but the method of presentation was improved and modernized. We put up multimedia projectors, screens, and started using a lot more technology and lights. Why? Primarily because people were getting saved who had the gifts and talents to do those kinds of things and they wanted to exercise their abilities as a form of worship to God. Others were saved that had musical abilities and played instruments that didn’t fit the traditional mold of “church music” – whatever that is. So it’s only natural that they would want to join in offering up praise and worship to God thru the talents with which He had blessed them. But if you believe some folks around us, we shouldn’t allow them to play any instrument other than the sacred organ and piano in church. In fact, there is a group of people who have spent thousands of dollars printing and distributing flyers that define a purpose driven church as a heretical church, teaching an apostate doctrine. One of evidences of this heretical church, according to them, is that it exchanges its blessed hymnals for projectors & screens, and swaps the organ and piano for ‘heavy metal’ instruments! I guess that makes guitar playing in church a grievous sin against God! Can you believe that? Listen, I’ve heard some organ and piano playing in church that screamed to be drowned out by a ‘heavy metal’ Stratocaster! All of heaven would probably stand up and applaud in appreciation for the relief! And I can hear the naysayers now, “You can dress up an adulterer and bring him to church but he’s still an adulterer…” Wait a minute. Since when does playing a Stratocaster equal adultery? Besides, I don’t think the traditional blessed organ and sacred piano are specified anywhere in the Bible as a mandate or spiritual requirement. I don’t remember reading any passage that says the disciples got together with Jesus on the Mount of Olives and sang number 119 in the Blue Hymnal while Peter played the blessed organ & John tickled the ivories on the piano! But some folks seem to think that way… This past week I became aware that several of these flyers have been passed around town that suggest that any church that calls itself “purpose driven” is practicing heresy! And the pastor of such a church must be a heretic himself! Excuse me… can anyone show me how being purpose driven is against biblical principles? In fact, the opposite is true. Our purposes are revealed by inspiration of the Holy Spirit thru the words of Scripture. Therefore, our purposes are straight out of the Bible, Spirit inspired and Spirit led. And they lead us to discover the purpose for which we were created – to glorify God! The flyers that attack the idea of being “purpose driven” say that the church has swapped their theological basis for a corporate model of secular leadership… Sorry, but I haven’t got a clue where that came from. I guess the reason this group is so upset could be the fact that purpose driven churches are growing while the dry, cold, religious churches are dead and dying. They attack the purpose driven model because is it set up around principles that cause it to grow, "like a shopping mall"! Duh! Is that supposed to be bad? I thought church growth was a good thing! Shouldn’t we get excited when people come to faith in Christ and are rescued from eternal separation from God? I just wonder how many people these folks have been instrumental in leading to the Lord lately? This kind of thing really burns me up sometimes. I get a little chapped when I hear so-called believers wasting their time and their breath tearing down other Christians when they could be reaching the lost with the love and grace of Jesus Christ. In fact, they ought to be ashamed of themselves! We’ve got far too much more important stuff to be concerned with than this trivial nonsense! And inevitably when this kind of garbage comes up, it comes up like a backed up sewer. It’s a surprise. The stench rises up from the basement... never thru the front door to meet you face to face. Some of the folks who have been spreading this stuff around are former members of Mountain View. God bless them, but I’m not going to be out tracking them down and trying to bring them back. I’ll just pray for them and love them from a distance. Besides, there are too many of you in this faith family with hearts sold out to Jesus, for me to worry about a few naysayers. I probably take attacks like this too personally, but I see them as attacks on you too. They’re really attacks against all of us. But as the Bible says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” And when the enemy starts pushing in on every side, we have great cause to rejoice! Satan is not going to waste his time attacking impotent believers! He’s going to go after those who are making a difference… and Church, you are making a difference! So let us continue on, fighting the fight of faith as we claim the victory that is already ours in Christ Jesus. Let us not turn to the left or to the right but remain focused on the call of Christ upon this family of faith as we each pursue the purpose for which we were created – “to glorify God and delight in Him forever.”
PS - Just for the record, I like organs... especially when they're humming like a Hammond B3 in a good blues band... You like that too don't you Scruffy?

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Teamwork

I watched the Superbowl this year like many of you, expecting New England to walk over top of New York, although I must confess that I was pulling for the underdog Giants. It is amazing what a team can do when they work together. I could not believe how the rookies stepped up to the task and filled in for the injured Jeremy Shockey and others who were not at 100%. It was amazing how #44 Bradshaw was able to play off the blocks of his offensive line and carry the ball for yard after yard. The young quarterback - Eli Manning - described by one retired NFL veteran as not having the leadership ability to take his team to victory over the Patriots, pulled the Giants together in an incredible way. Taking the ball in the 4th quarter, with just a little more than two and one-half minutes remaining, Manning became a field general, directing patterns and hitting his receivers at the weakest points of New England's defense. In the final drive that secured their victory, he completed a final pass to Plaxico Burress in the corner of the end zone that must have sent the bookies running for cover. The most amazing thing to me about this game wasn’t that the Giants beat the Patriots and defied overwhelming odds. The amazing thing is how these folks worked together to accomplish something that was totally outside the spectrum of believability for most football ‘experts’. But when people join together to accomplish something, it’s not unusual for the experts to be “stunned and amazed.” So much more can be accomplished when you work together than when you work apart. Even in the face of overwhelming odds, the job at hand becomes more manageable when you’re not alone.
So often in life we try to survive without other people. We seem to have this built in tendency to be independent and reject the offer of help from others, even God. We have this mentality that we have to “pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps”, otherwise we haven’t done enough. But that attitude does nothing but leave us vulnerable to discouragement, burnout and defeat. And we'll never reach our potential when we're trying to do life "solo". There’s a story about a man who discovered a turtle sitting on top of a fence post. It was the most amazing thing he’d ever seen. The turtle was basking in the sun while sitting about four feet off the ground. Turtles can’t climb fence posts, but this turtle was certainly head and shell above all the other turtles in that field. Someone else had picked the turtle up and lifted him to a place he couldn’t go to on his own. If we could reject our self-dependent tendencies and reach out to those around us, not only could we help them to the top of their fence post, in the process we’d be lifted higher ourselves. I challenge you to begin thinking about the areas in which you struggle. What are your weaknesses? With what do you bogged down when you’re trying to minister? Look around you. Most likely God has placed other people in your life to help you accomplish the ministry opportunity He has given you. At the same time, take inventory of your own strengths. Who can you help in your circle of friends? God has placed you where you are to help someone else on their journey of life. Solomon once said “Two people can accomplish more than twice as much as one; they get a better return for their labor.” (Ecclesiastes 3:9) You may be a very gifted and talented person, but regardless of what you have to offer, you can double your effectiveness when you work with a friend. Solomon also tells us that a friend is a real blessing in times of trouble. “If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But people who are alone when they fall are in real trouble.” (Ecclesiastes 3:10)

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