WANT TO SEE SOMETHING AMAZING?

This weekend I saw the move Evan Almighty. I found it to be very entertaining and I was pleased to see so much positive representation of God's involvement in our lives. But here's the strong idea I took from it.

Do I want God to do something amazing through me? If I do, what would I be willing to sacrifice for such an opportunity? It just makes me think.

COST OF DISCIPLESHIP: one

Yesterday, at church, I was have a conversation with a friend about making plans. We both talked about how our plans are subject to God's plans and although we should plan for our future, God is still in control.

But the verses that came to my mind in the discussion were regarding a man who plans to build a house and is unable to finish due to poor planning. And then a king who trying to determine if he can win a war or should he make peace. Today I read the verses that discussed these ideas and they have nothing to do with planning. They have to do with counting costs. That is understanding what you'll have to pay in order to accomplish your goals. They refer to counting the cost of being a disciple of Jesus.

The idea expressed is that once you start something (even discipleship) you have to follow through to pay for everything in full. And when we evaluate the cost of discipleship, we come to the following number: one. In order to be a disciple of Jesus we have to give Him one life, our own. Not a fraction of our lives. Not a portion. But one, complete life. Then we can be His disciple.

BE AFRAID

...of letting fear take a hold of your life. When fear becomes a central theme in our lives, we make poor choices.

Fear is the great inhibitor of leadership. If a person has allowed fear to become a stronghold in their life, they lose their ability to lead. They become second guessers and fall backwards believing that security lies in the past (or the familiar) and they fail to move ahead, and are in turn, unable to help others move ahead.

Fear is the great advocate of mediocrity. When someone lives with fear at the front of their decision making process, they will resist any decision that doesn't give them high odds for success. But great things are not accomplished because the odds were in their favor. Stories of greatness revolve around people overcoming horrible odds to achieve great things.

Fear is the "home" for the masses. Millions of people choose to live a life that is guided by fear of failure, fear of pain, & fear of humiliation. These people are comfortable in staying put. They don't venture out. They don't take chances. Honesty, they barely live.

We are called to live our lives with a spirit of strength and of power. God's very Spirit lives within us, so we should be leaders who direct others onto a path leading toward Christ. We should strive to live lives that accomplish extradordinary successes. And we should not shrink back into the comforts of safety, but stand out at the risk of total loss. We are God's children. We are not only called His, children, but that is what we are. We are children of a king; children of a God! Let's live like it!

I THINK JESUS IS RUNNING LATE

I was thinking this morning about Jesus' timing. We always say that Jesus will act at just the right time. We believe that sometimes our prayers are answered "not now" or "not yet," as if there is a perfect time for Jesus to act. So it made me think, were there any times in the gospels where Jesus was late. I could find two.

First with Jairus' daughter. Jairus asked Jesus to come heal his daughter who was dying. While on the way, the bleeding woman touched Jesus' cloak and was healed and Jesus stopped to interact with her. Then someone from Jairus' home came and told him to not bother Jesus anymore, because the girl had died. Jesus told Jairus to believe and continued on to his house. He then raised the twelve year old girl from the dead.

Second, Jesus was intentionally late to help Lazarus, his good friend who was dying. In this example, Jesus chose to be late so as to exhibit God's glory in raising Lazarus from the dead, just days before Jesus was to face death himself. It was as if Jesus wanted to give another reason for the disciples to have faith when He was crucified, that he could indeed conquer death.

So the question is, "Is Jesus running late for you?" Do you feel as though time is about to run out and Jesus will have to work a miracle? Be assured, He can. Jesus knows what you are going through and he will always come through for you at just the right time.