Show Me Your Glory

 One day Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Take these people up to the Promised Land.’ But you haven’t told me whom you will send with me.

You have told me, ‘I know you by name, and I look favorably on you.’  If it is true that you look favorably on me, let me know your ways so I may understand you more fully and continue to enjoy your favor. And remember that this nation is your very own people.”

 The Lord replied, “I will personally go with you, Moses, and I will give you rest—everything will be fine for you.”

 Then Moses said, “If you don’t personally go with us, don’t make us leave this place.  How will anyone know that you look favorably on me—on me and on your people—if you don’t go with us? For your presence among us sets your people and me apart from all other people on the earth.”

The Lord replied to Moses, “I will indeed do what you have asked, for I look favorably on you, and I know you by name.”

Moses responded, “Then show me your glorious presence.”

The Lord replied, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will call out my name, Yahweh, before you. For I will show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show compassion to anyone I choose.

But you may not look directly at my face, for no one may see me and live.” The Lord continued, “Look, stand near me on this rock. As my glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and let you see me from behind. But my face will not be seen.”

~

Exodus 33:12-23

     Yesterday after I got off work, I was enjoying some quiet moments crocheting and listening to some messages by Loui Giglio (I definitely recommend that you check him out on youtube!!). One message that I listened to yesterday was on WORSHIP. Within the message Loui used Moses as an example and used the verses from the passage above to make a very important and vital point.

     So before I continue on please take a moment and read (or reread) the verses from Exodus because they are so jammed packed with treasure and nuggets of gold.

     So the scene is set....Moses is meeting with God. That is enough to blow me away! But to give you a clearer idea of what is going on, I will back up for just a moment. In Exodus 32 a terrible thing has happened in Israel...Moses has been up on the mountain for forty days and nights, receiving from the Lord all the commands and laws that the Israelites are to live by. God has made the covenant with Moses that the people of Israel are His chosen and special people...He will be with them and take them into the promised land and bless them as long as they follow His laws and regulations with joy.

All the while this is happening, the people of Israel have assumed that Moses' is dead and they have decided to make themselves a gold calf to worship. They have turned away from the Living God and made an image that they can wrap their minds around and bow down to.

 

     God is not pleased with His people because of their faithlessness. So in chapter 33 He tells Moses to get going and lead the people of Israel into the promised land, but He Himself would not go with them. So now Moses is before God, asking Him to go with them...but He does not stop there.

     Moses dares to do what few of us would ever imagine. He is not satisfied with just the thought of God's presence going with them....He is not satisfied just knowing that God's favor is upon Him...Moses is not just satisfied because God told Him that he would have rest and be fine. No Moses wanted something more...something so much better and deeper and real. Moses wanted to see God's glory. He wanted to know this God who had promised to go with them into the promised land.

     And God did in part what Moses asked. He had all of His goodness pass before Moses as He hid him away in the cleft of the rock and than allowed Him to see his back. The Lord proclaimed His name that He is a God who shows mercy on those He wants to show mercy and compassion on those He wants to show compassion. And Moses was changed. His face was glowing! And the people saw it when He came back to the camp. They knew that Moses had met with God.

     But Moses' request was only partially answered...but years later in the town of Bethlehem a baby was born. And the angels shouted, "GLORY! Glory to God in the highest!! And on earth, peace to men on whom His favor rests." And that night born in a stable was the very Son of God who is the glory of God.

     Colossians 1:15 says: "Christ is the visible image of the invisible God..." Hebrews 1:3 also says: "The Son radiates God's own glory and expresses the very character of God ..."

     God's glory has come! Jesus Christ came to earth and has revealed the invisible, awesome God to us humans. How incredible is this truth!!!! Moses asked to God's glory, and He received his request in part only because the time had not come yet for Jesus Christ to be revealed.

     So now let me come in on this truth from my perspective. I read the story of Moses and I just long for such faith...for such a passion and commitment to God in my own life. I long to ask God to show me His glory, but often times I just know that He won't say yes yet because I still have so many things in my life that need to be fixed. I really don't want to be disappointed because I know that if I ask God to show me His glory that nothing miraculous will happen. I won't see flashes of light or see God's face or hear His voice. So I don't ask because I don't want to experience that let down nor do I think I am worthy to experience it. These are the conclusions my mind comes to all too often.

     But yesterday as I was listening to the message, something clicked in my mind...something I always tell others but find so hard to grasp myself. And that is this: God is not hiding His glory from me until I arrive at some pinnacle in my life where I have reached Moses like perfection. NOOOOOO!!! God has given me His glory in the person of Jesus. O I cannot even write the words that I long to express because this truth is so deep and we need to get this because our lives as Christians will not be what they are supposed to be until we do.

     Jesus Christ---the very Son of God, King of kings, Prince of Peace, Lord of lords, Creator and Sustainer or the universe, Word of Life, Eternal God, Majestic Lord, Mighty Savior---came to earth to DIE. Why? Because we were going to die. We broke God's law and the punishment was death...not just physical death but spiritual death and eternal separation from the goodness and love of God. All we would have know was God's wrath and that was our fate because of our sin. But Jesus came to take our place. Jesus came to take our punishment. Jesus came to give us His righteousness so that we could know God and not experience His Father's wrath. Jesus Christ died in our place and took our punishment and gave us new life. Jesus Christ was buried and on the third day He arose!!! Jesus Christ is no longer dead...He is ALIVE!!! And He stands at the Father's right hand interceding for us. When Satan accuses us, Jesus speaks up for us because He took our place and now we can be with Him forever when we die.

And now in this life we can see the glory of God in Jesus Christ. And it is miraculous!!!! God has completely transformed our hearts and as we look into the Word of God we are changed because we are looking into the glory of God because Jesus is the Word of God and we have His Word in our hands.

So today, ask God to show you His glory...and then set your face on Jesus. Look at Jesus, fix your eyes on Jesus, and let the things of this world fade away. Set your face like flint on seeking the Lord. Do not be satisfied with God's blessing and presence in your life. Go for more...KNOW GOD!!! Ask to see His glory, and He will not disappoint you. As you gaze at Jesus, you will be transformed. And this watching world will see that something is different about you. They cannot see Jesus, but they can see you and they will be wondering what in the world you are looking at as you gaze at Jesus. And then you will be able to say, "I am looking at my mighty, awesome Savior!"

A Soul Awakening

A Soul Awakening


Lately I have been struggling knowing what to say when I share my faith and witness to my fellow Coasties. An overwhelming fear and dread has paralyzed my heart and I have not known what to do. I have cried out to God, but continue to struggle. However He is perfect in wisdom and faithful to make me like Jesus, and He has been teaching me to wait on Him, but as I have been reading Macarthur’s book, He a great soul awakening has been taking place in me by the power of the Holy Spirit.

I have been worried and anxious about what I should say when I am sharing my faith---because I have been trying to make it appealing. BUT I KNOW WHAT TO SAY!!! The Bible is clear---enough trying to please men for I am a slave of Christ.

So may the Lord’s name be praised for He has shown me my sin and forgiven me! And now through the Spirit’s power I must destroy it and not allow even a remnant to survive. I have been weighed down by the burden of sharing my faith because of fear of so many things because I have fallen into the trap of watering down the Gospel to make it sound good. But God has delivered me by His power and continues to deliver me---to preach the truth of the Gospel as His Word declares without fear for it is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe…I have been entrusted with the message and God is in control of the results.

What great weights have been lifted from my soul, what renewed joy is mine in Jesus!

I AM NOT ASHAMED OF THE GOSPEL FOR IT IS THE POWER OF GOD TO SAVE!

Holy Spirit, help me live this out every moment.

Without Compromise

Without Compromise
December 5, 2010


God has truly blessed me today by challenging me from one of John Macarthur’s I have been reading: Hard to Believe. In a nut shell, Macarthur wrote this books to “Christians” pleading and urging them to examine their faith, realizing that true faith requires taking up ones cross and following after Jesus. He delves into the traps we have fallen into of making Christianity into some sort of social club and how we water down the Gospel to make it easier to believe; when truly the Gospel, without our light shows, is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes (Romans1:16).

So tomorrow I commit to praying that I would live, speak, and share the truth of the Gospel WITHOUT COMPROMISE. I have been watering it down trying to make it look good and appealing. I am wrong---O God, please help me! This message…Your message….is foolishness to the world. May I not compromise because I am trying to please them.

One Life

One Life
December 5, 2010



I find that all too often, which is almost all of the time, we spend our lives in a fantasy world of our own making; as though we were building castles in the sands of time only to find that they will all too soon be swept away once the tides of reality come in. Life is only a vapor and it will soon fade away like the last rays of the sun before it finally sets below the horizon and is hidden from sight and darkness falls. We only have but one life to live on this earth, and it will soon be over.


So as I think over this reality, that God has placed me here on this earth for such a short time to declare His praise and live for Him, I charge my soul in the sight of God:


Put off all wickedness, and put on Christ. Cease complaining, arguing, speaking worthlessness, and belittling others to make myself look good; and instead give thanks to God, live at peace with others, set a guard over your mouth and say things that point to Jesus and encourage those who listen.


Run hard for the goal. Fix your eyes on Jesus, O Soul, and think of your true HOME, which is not this earth. Set your thoughts on heaven where Jesus is and be filled with eager excitement and joyful expectation of the day when you will finally be home with Christ.


Testify to the Gospel of God’s grace with all boldness and gentleness. Share the hope that Jesus has given you and do not hesitate to be an ambassador of our mighty Savior. Soul do not cower in fear but remember the Jesus is always with You and that He is your greatest Treasure. Acknowledge Christ before men and He will acknowledge you before His Father in heaven.


Life every second in the shadow of the cross, relying fully on the grace that was given you from God to enter into His presence with sure confidence because of the atoning work of Jesus Christ. He has ransomed you, He has cleansed you, He has put His robes of righteousness on you and now you are hidden in Christ. O Soul, live today with this close to your heart so that joy overspills from your life.

The Reason of Christmas

"She will give birth to a son, and you will give Him the name Jesus, BECAUSE HE WILL SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS."

-

Matthew 1:21

Behind the glamour and glitter of Christmas; behind the wrapping paper, Christmas trees, parties, and family reunions; behind the black Friday sales, the Nativity scenes, the busyness and bustle of the holiday season is the true reason of Christmas. The angels announced Jesus’ birth to the shepherds---THEY ANNOUNCED GOOD NEWS. But to understand why it is such good news, we must first understand the bad news. Because if we stripped away everything we depend and cling to, if we ripped the wrapping paper away from our hearts and looked at the truth in God’s Word, concerning our heart’s condition it would not be good for we are desperately lost in our wickedness and sin.

Isaiah 53:6: “All we like sheep have gone astray…each of us has turned to His own way.”

Psalm 14:2-3: “No one seeks God, NOT EVEN ONE.”

Isaiah 59:7-8: “Their feet rush into sin...their thoughts are evil…the way of peace they do not know.”


Imagine you had to go to the doctor and He calls you into his office and tells you to take a seat. “After examining your heart we found some things that cause us GREAT CONCERN. Your heart has a hereditary condition that has poisoned you with self-love; parasites of pride and arrogance have deteriorated your whole being, leaving you completely and utterly infected by sin and hate for God and all that is right. It does not matter what medications you take, lifestyle changes you make, or treatments you undergo you cannot undo the damage that has already been made nor can you be rid of this terrible, TERMINAL soul condition you are in.”


Wow…so this is where we are at---WE ARE WITHOUT HOPE. We have sinned against a holy God and have turned away from Him…we have become God’s enemies. There is no way for us to fix the situation we are in or change our standing with God. We are headed for Hell where we will pay the penalty of our sins for all eternity…living in complete separation from God.


But the story is not over yet….


This is the reason Christ came…to save us!!!!


The doctor continues after a great pause. “However, you may be saved yet, if someone is willing to do a heart transplant. Their heart must be completely healthy and perfect without any sin or wickedness. They must be willing to die because to give you life they must die in your place.”


You sit there shaking your head in your hopelessness, thinking “Hardly anybody is willing to die for a good person, who would die for me?”


The doctor smiles at this point. “But I have good news for you…someone already volunteered to save you. his blood type is correct and it matches yours and his heart is perfect. He willingly gave up his life so that you can have his heart. And he did it for free…though it cost Him everything.”



This is what the angels announced---GOOD NEWS!!! We had no hope, but what we could not do Christ did. He came to earth as the God-man…lived a perfect life for us…went to the cross…bore the punishment of all our sin…was utterly crushed by His Father…FORSAKEN…He went to Hell for us who would believe in Him and He died.

They laid His body in a tomb, but three days later He rose from the grave! God the Father had accepted His sacrifice; our debt had been paid. The great exchange was finalized: Jesus took all of our sin and had given us all of His righteousness! Now we can have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. HE IS THE ONLY WAY TO THE FATHER.


Christmas is the celebration of the Good News of Jesus Christ. We were helpless and hopeless because of the bad news that our sins had brought us. But now Jesus has come and He has brought us good news that we can have forgiveness because of the sacrifice that He made at the cross. Now we must believe and confess that Jesus is Lord and Savior, take up our crosses and follow after Him. The way has been made to the Father---the only way is Jesus Christ.


Isaiah 53:3-5: “…BY HIS WOUNDS WE ARE HEALED…”

Living Strategically for the Glory of God-Part One: Living on Purpose

"First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.”
--
Romans 1:8

I think it is safe to say that we have all at some point in our lives made the excuse that, “Sometimes life just happens!” Time seems to speed up, our schedules seem to fill up, and before you know it all we can do is hold on as our busy lives seem to unfold like a giant, roller coaster ride. I find that this happens to me quite often, in that I get so busy with life that I do not truly live life to the full. I believe in Jesus Christ that He died on the cross to pay the penalty for my sin, rose from the grave, and now is seated at the right hand of the Father, interceding for me; but is my life truly being transformed by what I believe or is it just another thing that I add to my already busy life? How am I acting out my faith, and how do I glorify God by the way I live? I do not glorify God when I am not living for Him and pointing to Him, and it is just as true that I do not glorify God when I just “let my life happen.”

Everything is not always so cut and dry, this I know for a fact; but even amid life’s business, we should never let it determine how we live and who we live for. Sometimes life can be busy, and I have felt the pressure of a busy life. The past couple months have seemed extremely busy for me, between mess cooking for two weeks---which entailed 14 hour days, 7 days a week, plus two hours of class, and homework every week day---and three weeks of double watches---which entailed 8 hours of watch a day, anywhere from 2-6 hours of regular work a day, my classes, and homework. Life can get busy, and we have two choices we can make: We can either get dragged along with our busy schedules and watch our lives pass us by as life happens, or we can begin the discipline of “living on purpose”. Our choice will not necessarily change what our schedules look like all the time, but it will change the way we look and act as we carry out our schedules.

Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome and told them that he thanked God that their faith was being told all over the world. This does not just happen on accident; such a testimony is only established when we live our lives purposefully for the glory of God. I am greatly burdened for the Christians in my generation, because I meet a great deal of “Christians” but I do not see how their faith has impacted the way they live their lives. We are selfish Christians, captivated by the “American Dream”, mastered by our lusts, slaves to our wallets, exhausted from the fake Christianity we profess, and quite satisfied with making Christ a part of our lives so that we can have the assurance that we will not go to hell when we die. We are Christians who have fallen in love with comfort, embraced security, surrendered to the reality of this world,  renounced any sort of risk taking for the Kingdom of God (especially if it will hurt our bank accounts or cut into our “me“ time), and settled for an “American Christianity”. We would rather be spectators in the crowds of this world rather than join the “extreme Christians”---the Jesus’ Freaks---in the arena who fight the battle of faith to the death. We have become Christless Christians---perhaps we are not Christians at all for to be a Christian is to be a follower of Christ and if we are not following Christ than surely we are not Christians. We are in the hands of an angry God who hates us with a righteous and holy hatred (I am sure your Sunday school teacher never told you that one!). Yes, He does offer mercy and grace to those who believe in Him that Jesus is Redeemer and Lord, and that those who are true lovers of Christ are held by Grace. However those who only know the truth but do nothing about it have no such assurance, for even Satan knows and believes that Jesus is God and came to earth as the Savior of the world, and he revolts in anger.

Hudson Taylor, a missionary to China and founder of the China Inland Mission, once said, “There is a needs-be for us to give ourselves for the life of the world. An easy, non-self-denying life will never be one of power. Fruit-bearing involves cross-bearing. There are not two Christs---an easy-going one for easy-going Christians, and a suffering, toiling one for exceptional believers. There is only one Christ. Are you willing to abide in Him, and thus to bear much fruit.” This is the cross-roads of life that we all come to where we must chose whom we will serve. We cannot chose Christ while refusing to take up our crosses and follow after Him---you cannot have one without the other.

Oh what I write, I am not just writing to others, but it is a message so dear and fresh in my own heart for it is a message that God continues to challenge me with as I live out my life. My heart stings from conviction as I think over these truths I now wish to share. So I lift up my voice and I take a stand to challenge Christians to live strategically for the glory of God. Strategy should not just be used by the missionary in a foreign land, a military commander on the battle field, or a corporate executive in the business world; but in order for us to live out each day for God’s glory, we must be living purposefully, planning carefully, strategizing effectively, praying fervently, and living momentarily in the shadow of the cross of Christ. Life will just happen if we let it, that is why we must decide right now to live on purpose for the glory of God.


To the Cross I Cling
Living on purpose for the glory of God is definitely not an easy thing to do, which is why I think it is good to remind ourselves of the verses from Hebrews 12:1-3: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning it’s shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you do not grow weary and lose heart.” From these verses we can conclude that if we are not fixing our hearts and minds upon Christ and what He endured for us at the cross, we will become discouraged, worn out Christians. If we are to live our lives strategically for the glory of God, we must first be fixed upon the cross of Christ. We must be rooted in the Gospel, which is the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16); a message that must not just be preached to unbelievers, but to believers too!

A good question to ask ourselves is, do we preach the gospel? Do we ever share our faith; and the reason for the hope we have? I find myself getting discouraged when I realize how little I share the gospel with others, but then I realize that I hardly ever share the gospel with myself! How can I preach a message I hardly know, and how can I hardly know a message that has completely turned the world upside down? The first step to living on purpose and glorifying God in every area of our lives is to preach the gospel to ourselves. Think about Christ’s great sacrifice for you that He would die and bear the Father’s wrath for your sin, know His love which is better than life, rejoice that now you have peace with God because of the Lord Jesus Christ. This should be a daily discipline of joy that we eagerly carry out in our lives. We must cling to the cross of Christ---we must live each day centered on the cross---or we will give up and quit. Why do we linger so far from the cross? Why do we hesitate to preach the gospel to ourselves? We are in a spiritual battle, and our enemy is strong, but the One whom we serve is stronger. The Lord Jesus Christ is our stronghold and He is our deliverer. When we are weak and weary He is strong, when we cannot stand He causes us to stand, when we are afraid He is by our side, in Him we are more than conquerors. So cling to the cross---live life on purpose by knowing God’s great love for you that He sent His Son to die in your place.

A Daily Battle
As you cling to the cross and begin the discipline of “Living on Purpose” also keep in mind that it is a battle you must fight daily. Even as I write this, I find the struggle to live purposefully for God’s glory more fierce than ever, which causes me to turn to God, begging Him for help and mercy. I do not want to waste my life, but rather I want to be spent completely and fully for God that He might be glorified in me.

Remember that you will grow weary and lose heart if you do not consider Jesus Christ and the great work He has accomplished on our behalf. He died that we might live, He took our punishment that we might share in His glory, He was raised from the dead that we might be made right with God, and He lives that we might also live. We must fix our gaze on Him so that we do not give up when the way is hard and the road is tough. We must rely on His strength to persevere through the difficulties that lay ahead that He gives us to exercise our spiritual muscles. Press on as you daily battle sin and choose to live purposefully for God.

Give Me Words To Speak!

June 25, 2010

“Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.”
--
Ephesians 6:19-20

This morning I read these verses during my devotions with the Lord. I think we place Paul on a high pedestal in the church, and sometimes fail to realize that He was just an ordinary guy like us. He was a sinner, saved by grace, and transformed by the work of the Holy Spirit. It is true that He knew God in a way that many of us cannot even begin to imagine, yet it was not because He was the “super apostle” or something like that, but because He lived a cross-centered life…He made Christ His number one priority in everything.

Read these verses again. Paul was afraid…he experienced fear when it came to sharing His faith. But He did not allow fear to hold Him back or keep Him from doing what Jesus Christ had commanded Him to do. So what did He do? He turned to the Lord for help…and he asked his friends---the Ephesians---to pray for him.

I feel so inadequate to share my faith here on the Midgett. Fears torment me and threaten to overwhelm me at times, and when I do find the courage to speak up when people ask me about my faith or why I am so happy, I feel like my tongue is tied in a million knots. I am Christ’s ambassador here on my boat, but I struggle having the courage to testify to the gospel of Christ, and finding the words to say to testify. So I turn to the Lord as Paul did, and I present my plea before the Father. “O give me Words to speak! Give me words to declare Your grace and truth to these people who need You and may I declare it fearlessly as I should!”

Pray for me, Lovers of Christ…that God would give me the words to speak when He brings opportunities into my life to share the gospel. And pray that I may declare the gospel here on the Midgett fearlessly as I should.

I'm Back!

June 22, 2010

I’m back! The irony of it all is that I’ll be leaving in less than two weeks for the Midgett’s South Patrol. Time seems to have flown by the passed several months; along with dry dock, my trip home to see my family, and my six-month mark here on my boat. God continues to teach me lessons on His faithfulness, demonstrate His patience in sustaining me each new day, and never fails to stretch and challenge me in my faith.

Today I sanded and varnished the “teak rail” on the bridge (I’ll have to post a picture of it sometime), then I took a walk through downtown Seattle, and then headed over to my favorite---Seattle’s Best! At times moments and days seem to blend into each other and I wonder where all my time goes. Oh that I would not waste my life frittering away the time I have been given! My aim is that every moment I spend on this earth, I would spend pointing people to Christ. I fail, but God remains faithful to me and picks me back up.

I so easily forget that Christ is the most important thing and the people on my boat need Him. They need the Gospel. I am to be Christ’s witness on my boat---His ambassador.

So I press on today, and the joy that pulses through me each moment is that I have been reconciled to God! Jesus Christ has taken my place and I have forgiveness! I have peace with the Father because of the sacrifice of the Son. I am so happy that I am a child of God. This is the reason I smile.

The Question We Never Think to Ask

~The Question We Never Think to Ask~

God has certainly used the Coast Guard to stretch me in many ways in my walk with Him. He has given me opportunities to share my faith with the unbelievers I work with, He has shown me how dear His friendship is, and how precious His Word is to me. I have never been surrounded by unbelievers 24/7 before and I have found it to be a good challenge for me to learn how to live Christ before them.

Lately I have been wrestling with fear---fear to share Christ, fear of what to say, how to say it, when to say it, and who to say it to. I know I should share the Gospel, but I have felt parallelized by all the unknowns that nag at my soul. I do not want to be afraid and do not understand why I am afraid. I long to be like the missionaries that I read about and like the apostle Paul who boldly proclaimed the good news of Jesus Christ, but my heart shrinks back afraid of what might happen. I get nervous about saying just the right words and end up saying nothing at all because I do not want to mess up. I even find myself unconsciously avoiding and evading opportunities to share Jesus with others. I try to stay away from such confrontations with people.

But the Holy Spirit has convicted me with a question, I have never thought to ask before. I have asked myself what will others think, what will I say, how do I convey my faith attractively, or is now really the best time to bring Jesus up? Perhaps these are not the right questions I should be asking though. The question I should ask myself is not what others might think if I share about Jesus; but rather, what will God think if I do not share with them about Jesus?

The One who took my place at Calvary, who bore my sin, endured God’s wrath, was buried, and seated at God’s right hand, stands defending me before the Father against Satan’s accusations. He intercedes for me and speaks on my behalf. How dare I shrink back in fear, and hide the Good News of Christ from others because of what they might think! I should not fear man, but God alone. My eyes should not be fixed upon what others may think---the waves crashing around me---all that I should care about is glorifying my precious Lord. I am His and my heart must find refuge in Him. The world will hate me, but that is because I am not of the world.

I struggle with this, but the Holy Spirit has challenged me to fear no man, and only fear the One true God. He is my joy and I must not hide Him---He is the best thing in my life and I must proclaim the Good News. He will uphold me and give me the strength and courage to live for Him in a world that hates Him.

My Heart Is Set

April 6, 2010

Recently I have been reading a biography about Mary Slessor who was a missionary in the late 1800s. She had such passion and love for the people of Calabar, Africa. She pressed on amidst great challenges and difficulties to tell the people there about Jesus. Oh how I want my life to be spent doing the same thing! I want to go to Africa and tell the people there about Jesus. I want to share with the lost that they can be forgiven and know Jesus too. God has people in Africa---the harvest is ripe in the field---and I want to be one of the laborers!

Missions is not the same as it was 100 years ago when the missionaries took their caskets with them to the field, but the heart of missions should never change. As for me, I may not take a casket with me, but I fully intend to be spent and poured out for the people of Africa. I want to lay down my life for them that they may know Jesus. So my prayer today is that God would prepare me for the work He has already planned for me to do and that He would give me a love for the people He will send me to. I really struggle with compassion and having a selfless-love for others with no strings attached. But God is able to work in my heart---uprooting sin and making me into the vessel that can best be used by Him for His glory.

My heart is set, my mind made up, and my soul determined to share Christ with those who have never heard, to go where no one else wants to go, to shine the Gospel’s light in the dark, and to be broken for my God in a foreign land. What is more, I have the joy of holding God’s Word in my hands and reading it whenever I want…I must share what God has given me and I long to give the people in Africa God’s Word so they can hold it in their hands and read it for themselves.

Midgett Adventures~ #36 Turning the World Upside Down

March 11, 2010

I am struck by what half-hearted people we are today. We are either living in anticipation of tomorrow or trapped revisiting yesterday; never do we seem to live completely in the present. We idolize our weekends and dread work days. We spend our free time sleeping, watching TV, playing on the computer, or doing other mindless activities. We avoid difficulties and challenges like the plague, seeking comfort, security, and ease in our daily lives. We daydream about retirement, but never seem to daydream about heaven. We buy animals and then regret buying them; we purchase items and then grow tired of them; we plan extravagant vacations and then bicker during them; we make commitments and then go back on them; we start serving in church and then become burned out from serving; we go to college and only do enough homework to get by; we look for friends that will gratify our needs; and we do almost everything in our lives to please ourselves and that keeps us from exerting too much energy in the process.

However this is all superfluous when we dig deeper and find out what the root cause of our half-heartedness is. Is it not accurate to say that our daily lives are so half-hearted because our daily walk with the Lord is half-hearted? I think so. We were created for a purpose and that purpose is to glorify God with our lives. We do this by enjoying Him and making much of Him by the way we live. So many Christians today are living self-centered lives instead of living cross-centered lives. We do not live wholeheartedly unto the Lord, hence the reason why we are such half-hearted creatures. God is not our greatest treasure and pleasure in life---no wonder we are such pitiful, wimpy people. What is our problem? We have forgotten what is real. We think that this life offers us the things that will make us happy, all the while not realizing that this life is but a vapor that will soon be past. Our view of God is distorted by our sin.

My question is if we found out that this moment---right now---is the very last moment we have to live, how would we live it? Would it make a difference in our lives if we only had one more moment to live? Perhaps we would realize what is truly important and throw ourselves wholeheartedly in living out that last moment?

God has challenged me to live each moment as if it was my last moment. I know I need this challenge because I find it so easy to slip into the wrong thinking that I am going to be on this earth forever. When I think this way, I do not live fully for the Lord because I think I have time and can wait until later to serve Him, I’ll start spending more time with Him when I am not working on this project, or I’ll go to church when I am older. I place God off to the side, all the while the few moments I have on this earth quickly speed away.

Lovers of Christ, we must realize and come to grips with the fact that we are dying people, living in a dying world that has no hope. We have hope in Jesus Christ and we must be sharing the hope we have with those around us! In a whisper all that we see will fade away and the opportunities God has given us here on this earth to share His love will be past. Do not live in the future and do not dwell in the past, but live fully in the present, making much of Christ with everything that is in you.

So I will live as a dying person, I will take each breath as though I were taking my dying breath, I will work as though I will never work again, I will sing to the Lord as though I will never sing to Him another song on this earth, I will pray as though I am praying my last prayer on earth, and I will live wholeheartedly for the Lord with the moments God has given me. Will I fail? Yes, but God will remain faithful.

Remember we will never live fully unless we live as dying people, throwing ourselves wholeheartedly into the work of the Lord.

So will you too live as dying people? Will you fight sin as if you’ll never fight it again, will you run hard toward the goal as a runner who is running his last lap? Pastors will you preach as though you will never preach again? Missionaries will you serve and proclaim Christ as though you will never do so again on this earth? Children will you obey your parents as though you will never have the chance to obey them again? Parents will you love your children, hold them, care for them, talk to them as though you will never do so again in this world? Teachers will you teach as though you will never teach again? Christians will speak as though you are speaking your last words? If this characterized our lives as Believers, would the world not be turned upside down in complete and utter shock and confusion, resulting in an awe for the God we serve who has given us such a living hope?

Midgett Adventures~ #28 Not I but Christ

February 20, 2010

So I had another interesting/good conversation with one of my fellow Coasties on board the Midgett after dinner tonight. God continues to bring opportunities my way to share my faith, and lately it starts with them talking about how “good” I am. Well this certain friend of mine was going on about me having a “heart of gold”, but that most everyone else on the boat is crazy and you got to watch out for them and he went on about that for a while(this friend of mine is a real talker so it is hard to get a word in edge wise) . I felt so powerless to know what and how to share anything at all with him about my faith in Jesus Christ. I cried out to the Holy Spirit, “Oh give me words to speak to share my faith---to share Jesus.” The Holy Spirit graciously gave me an opportunity and the words to say at one point in the conversation. He was talking again about me being so good and I looked at him and said, “You wanna know why I am good? It’s not me, it’s Christ. I am no better than anyone else. It is Christ who makes me different.” I could and wish I had said so much more, but I know the Holy Spirit will continue to teach me what to say and when to say it and how to say it. He is my comforter and counselor.

So I praise God for these opportunities to share Him and I continue to pray that the those around me would not just see a “good person” but that they would see Christ. Pray for me that I would boldly proclaim the love of Him who has saved me and share the good news that has set me free.

Midgett Adventures~ #27 The Missing Link

February 19, 2010

The Missing Link

Of late Hudson Taylor’s life, but more specifically his day-by-day walk with the Lord has challenged me greatly. This man who gave himself for the lost souls of China was dedicated to his God in a way not many Christians are today. He was a cross-bearing man who “counted all things as loss, compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord” (Philippians 3:7). I also want to follow Hudson’s example and be completely and wholeheartedly committed to my God and serving Him. I want to take up my cross and follow Jesus and that is the daily battle I face as a warrior of the faith and soldier of the cross.

This leads me to wonder why there are so few Believers who also long to be like Hudson and live for God as He did. I have felt so confused because I see plenty of professing Believers who can talk up a storm about God and sound so sincere and genuine and in part they are, but then I watch them live their lives and things do not match up. It is as though God gets Sunday (just the morning mind you) and as long as He gets His hour or two at church then the rest of the week is theirs. Why do so many claim Christ as their Savior but so few obey Him as their Lord? And what has happened to cross-bearing men and women who will give all willingly, eagerly, and happily for the sake of Jesus’ name?

So I have been contemplating and mulling over these questions for the past several weeks, but today I believe I have an answer though perhaps just in part. I started a new book, which is actually an old one that I read back when I was thirteen---Knowing God by J. I. Packer. Oh, how it is full of rich teaching and instruction for Lovers of Christ! In it, I believe I have found my answer to why so many professing Believers who seem to be genuine Christians live such powerless lives and have so little passion for God’s glory. Packer starts his book by delving into the topic of knowing God and makes the quick distinction that there is a difference between knowing about God and actually knowing God. I believe that Christians today know a lot about God, but they do not know God. They fill their minds with knowledge but their hearts are empty of true fellowship with the Almighty One.

How little we think God is that we fit Him into the mold we want Him to be instead of trembling in His presence that He would even draw near to us. For surely that is what it is, not that we are drawing near to God, but that He has come to us and befriended us. Oh, let us stop knowing Christ through other peoples experiences and actually know Him ourselves---daily walking with the Lord as we spend time pouring over His Word and treasuring it in our hearts (yes there is a difference between reading and treasuring), momentarily lifting our souls up to God in humble prayer, exalting His name on high, and rejoicing in who He is.

So this is my challenge for all Believers, a challenge I have first of all been challenged with myself, know your God and do not just know about Him. Do not let a day go by that you are not in the presence of the LORD. He is always with us---His presence, He has promised us---but are we living our lives with Him?

Midgett Adventures~ #25 The Cross

February 18, 2010

“There is a needs-be for us to give ourselves for the life of the world. An easy, non-self-denying life will never be one of power. Fruit-bearing involves cross-bearing. There are not two Christs---an easy-going one for easy-going Christians, and a suffering, toiling one for exceptional believers. There is only one Christ. Are you willing to abide in Him, and thus to bear much fruit.”
--Hudson Taylor

Why is it that when it comes to receiving salvation and blessings from the Lord that we are pushing and shoving our way to get first in line; and yet, when the same Lord who bestows us with such gifts calls us to suffer and count the cost for following after Him we drag our feet and look for a way out? We are a society who has mastered the art of making excuses and justifying our actions. We would much rather serve a Jesus of our own making. This is why our lives are so empty and so powerless as Believers because we call on Jesus as Savior, but refuse to submit to Him as Lord.

Hudson Taylor hit the nail on the head by saying there is not two Christs. If we want lives that reflect the Lord and are bearing much fruit we must take up our cross’ and follow after Jesus down a road filled with suffering and toil. There is no such thing as an ordinary Christian and an extraordinary Christian. You either take up your cross and follow Jesus or you don’t. You cannot be Christ’s disciple unless you deny yourself and take up your cross daily and follow Him---there is no other way. Salvation is free but it will cost you everything in this life, but you will gain the riches that are in Christ Jesus that far outweigh anything you could gain on this earth.

Let Hudson’s words sink deep into your soul and pierce through your heart. Do not just brush them aside and think that you will have time to go over it later. Now is the time to act and choose whom you shall serve. As for me, I will serve the Lord---taking up my cross, I will follow Him down suffering’s road. I know my strength will fail, but He will not fail me; my love will sputter, but His love will burn strong; and my faith will dwindle, but He will remain ever faithful---so I press on trusting Him to keep me close to His heart.