Saturday, October 26, 2013

10 Things That Have Changed My View on Prayer


      As the third part of my spiritual discipline series, this is one of the disciplines that I have been more attuned to lately.  I have also noticed that God has taught me a lot lately.  We could probably go on for chapters talking about this, but I wanted to give a brief synopsis of what I have been learning.

It is first and foremost a conversation with God:  When I think about prayer, it is not necessarily a formal or rigid process.  When praying with others, I will sometimes joke around while praying and talk to him like he is my neighbor.  There is no specific formula, you just start chatting with Him and share what’s on your mind.  What I have found is that most people who spend a lot of time talking to God know his voice and know his heart very well.  Just like any relationship, the more you communicate the better you understand the other person.
2.     There is power in our words: Recently I have struggled with the notion that my prayers are ineffective and that they don’t change people’s lives, and it affected me to the point where I was going back and forth on whether or not I should join a prayer ministry.  What I have learned is that I have the power of life and death in my tongue (Proverbs 18:21), therefore I am responsible for praying life into people and into myself.  Whether or not people accept it is a different story, but even if I am not seeing major or immediate results, I can be confident that I am saying something that is beneficial to the person.
3.     Sometimes I’m on the wrong channel:  I can be so guilty of this!   When I think about prayer that I think is getting unanswered, it could be getting answered in a different way.  For instance, I ask for patience and it seems that every irritable situation comes up.  God never handed me patience, he allowed me to go through tough situations where I can work on myself and grow into the man that he wants me to be.
4.     God is more concerned about my character than my comfort: Growing up I was taught that God works on a reward system.  If I have the faith, he gives me what I want.  At one point I struggled with school stress, depression, injury, and the effects of manipulation, and I was being told that I was not blessed because I lacked faith. I was looking for the comfortable life.  I realized that I was way off.  If I ever have a bad day, I think about what Paul had to endure (2 Corinthians 11:16-25), it was a nightmare!  If God allowed that to happen to Paul, then it could happen to me.  But God was shaping him into the man that he needed him to be, and I understand that God is interested in my character as well.  In the past I was asking God  for a comfortable life instead of asking for his comforter, the Holy Spirit.  This is why I now ask for the Holy Spirit and I ask for wisdom, patience, and understanding for God allowing my circumstance to happen.  I may not like it, but I am willing to be conformed to his will.
5.     Sometimes an answer is on the way, but I am just not patient enough:  Often times God answers as yes, no, or not yet.  The problem is that sometimes answers take years to come about, and we as American’s want it right away.  God does answer prayer, but he has the scope of eternity in mind so it may take longer than expected.  Instead of trying get mad and give up on God, I will keep asking for that answer and I will keep praying for others and myself knowing that he will answer.  For those who have been praying for physical or spiritual healing, know that healing is a process, not an event.  That is one thing that I had to learn because otherwise my expectations would not be met.  In most cases, prayer is a continual need and is a process that usually has small improvements over time.
6.     When I refuse to communicate with him, I cut myself off from him: During one period of my life I decided that I was done with God.  Instead, I should have tried to refuse to communicate with the negative people in my life and work on forgiving those that hurt me in the church.  I know that it grieved God that I was not talking with him, but he also grieved the wounds in my heart and the fact that I misunderstood cold and distant Christians as him being cold and distant.  In return, I became cold and distant as well.  It wasn’t until I had Godly Christian people in my life who modeled Godly love that I realized that I wanted to communicate with him and know him better.
7.     My choices can often interfere with God answering my prayers:  During another rough part of my life, I was trying to seek God but unwilling to change certain aspects of my life.  I found that I was like David looking at Bathsheba.  I was supposed to be out to war with my men, but instead I was in the wrong place and I was staring at something that could set me back for years if I was not careful.   Friendships soured, the job situation was bad because I didn’t feel at peace and it gnawed at me, the ministry I was in became dysfunctional and harmful, and I was not liking the man I was becoming.  Worst of all, I was feeling cut off and lost.   So what did I do?  I got rid of the job because it was holding me back from God answering a prayer for something greater and it wasn’t providing for me anyway.  I tuned out the negative voices so I could try and hear Godly voices better.  I quit the ministry and just worked on getting myself right.  I read books from a variety of authors with a variety of perspectives that helped me reconstruct my life.  The bottom line was that what I was doing was not working and interfering with the work of God, so I continually made changes until he had room to work.   
8.     “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.” What am I asking for?:  When you look at what Jesus taught his disciples in the Sermon on the Mount, here is how it looks:
           
            Revering God
            Asking for his kingdom to come and his will to be done
            Provisions for the day, be it spiritual or physical
            Forgive us and help us forgive others
            Keep us safe from temptation
            Keep us safe from evil
            Recognizing that he is sovereign and holy
           
            After reading that, I feel guilty at times because I do not always ask for those            things.  I have made it a point to pray with these points in mind in my alone time.  That being said, I have a long way to go but I hope to make changes.  

9.     I need to put myself in a position to see prayer answered:  Whether it is a job, a spouse, healing, change in character, or whatever, I always cringe when people say, “Well God will bring this along for me.” I like their faith, but it is not inappropriate for me to turn in my resume, seek counsel, read books, etc. while waiting for the prayer to be answered.  The truth is that God works through many avenues, not just miracles.  As I like to say, if the Israelites never left Egypt, they would have never seen the miracle of a parting sea.  Therefore I have to remember to try to be active so that I can create opportunities for God to move on my prayers.
10.   God really does care.  He already knows, and my doubts, frustrations, or anger does not shock him.  I admit, sometimes I get angry at life and I talk with him about it.  For the longest time I was afraid to talk to him a certain way because I did not want to offend him.  But here’s the thing: HE ALREADY KNOWS!  One of the most real moments of my life came by me yelling in prayer with tears streaming down my face.  I was so upset at my life falling apart and I felt abandoned by God, and then the next day he answered me time and time again through other people.  I can personally attest to this idea, and I want you to never be afraid to go before him in prayer.  He loves you deeply, he wants to free you from bondage, help you find your way, and he even wants to hear about your day.  He wants our friendship, and he wants to talk with us.  Never forget that.

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Meditating on the Right Stuff


So my question to you is, “What do you meditate on?”  And no… I am not talking about the rather large man with the big belly.  Not that type of meditation. Christian meditation is about filling up your mind, not emptying it.

Filling up my mind?  Yes.  Filling up.  So what that means is that we are taking the time to reflect on what God is saying to us and obeying it.  How can this be done?  A few different ways:

Meditating  on Scripture:  Reading a passage or passages and taking the time to focus on those passages and allowing them to become applicable to us.  I do this a lot on days that I can not focus long enough for bigger passages and I will find a smaller one and let it take root in my soul.

Meditating to re-center your life:  This is taking the time to reflect on your life and to ask God to take those sins, anxieties, and other toxic thoughts away from you and to love on you.  I have always found this to be helpful because it allows God to de-clutter my mind and replace the toxins with his love.

Meditating on God’s Creation:  Have you ever stopped to think about the idiosyncrasies of everything that God has created around us?  It is absolutely amazing!  Spending time appreciating what God has done and soaking ourselves in that beauty can be rejuvenating and he wants to meet us there and enjoy it with us. 

Meditating on events:  Sometimes events in our world or events in our personal life seem to be confusing.  Spending time to ask God for clarification for these events can give us peace, understanding, and perspective in ways that we could never do on our own.  I admit, when dealing with my own life, re-entering the wound can be irritating and painful, but any form of healing has a cleansing pain.

So these are a few examples that I have read about and have done.  The key is that God is filling you as you are creating a spiritual and emotional space for him to operate in.  Whether he is filling you with his knowledge, wisdom, beauty, or love, we are seeking a closer bond with him.

That being explained, I will return to my question: what do you meditate on?  The truth is that most of my life I have struggled have with locking onto God.  I know that I am susceptible to negative thoughts due to what I have been through and Satan likes to grab hold of that, so that is why I try to keep this scripture in the back of my mind:

Philippians 4:8:
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

I find that when I stray from meditating on the right things, that’s when my thought life becomes damaged.  Sometimes, even my relationship with God is damaged because of it.  This is because I dwell on a perceived offense, I misinterpret something that I should not have and meditate on it, or that I entertain and welcome into my life any other myriad of negative thoughts come to mind.  That’s why I try to focus on the things of God, because his thoughts do not exhaust my soul… they give it life.

I would like to challenge you to do that this week.  Consider one of the forms of meditation mentioned above and do it.  My hope is that in the shortest time possible that you will feel a deepened sense of intimacy and friendship with God.

Monday, September 30, 2013

Ten Things That I am Learning About Studying Scripture


If you are anything like me, there was some point in your life when you would rather drill a hole in your head than read scripture because it was not alive to you.  That, or you were just so overwhelmed by the fact that the Bible is massive and you get turned away by the list of who begot who in both Genesis and Matthew (both logical starting points with frustrating introductions!).  The good news is that the Bible is packed with wisdom, stories, poems, and drama…  It is just a matter of being diligent.

This is going to be the beginning of my walk through Richard Foster’s Celebration of Disciplines.  Rather than preaching at anyone, I am going to try to share what I have learned by trying to get to know God.  Sometimes it was a success, other times I was a hot mess that did not get anywhere!  But my hope is that I can inspire you to desire a closer relationship with God.

Here are ten things that I am learning as I try to study scripture:

1.     Expect resistance.  It is no coincidence that you get hungry, remember to make a phone call, remember a bill you have not paid, etc.  If Satan can try to occupy you, he will do that.  That’s why I read scripture even when I don’t feel like it… because more than likely he is trying to deter me.
2.     It is not always exciting, and that’s okay.  Just like any friendship or relationship, there are days when you get on the phone or sit at the table and stare at each other awkwardly.  It happens, and I do it with friends and I do it with God… it is awkward but I try again because my friendship with him is worth it. 
3.     Reading the scripture is like any relationship that you have.  If you cease to talk to a friend, the friendship will fade.  That is why I do my best to talk to him and read his scripture every day.
4.     If I don’t read the word, I starve.  Just like a meal, I find that I need to read scripture regularly or else I start filling that time with useless things like too much TV, sports blogs, or video games.  That and I find I am more vulnerable to attacks of Satan because I am exhausted spiritually.  That’s why I try to always “stay full” and quench the hunger once I feel it.
5.     Sometimes scripture hurts, and that’s okay (John 15:2).  God prunes and disciplines those that he loves, and pruning hurts.  But it is not abuse… I grow from it and produce more fruit.
6.     Podcasts and Self-help books are good, but not the same.  Drinking apple juice is different than eating an apple.  Why?  Because there are additives.  When you read scripture, God directs you.  With a person, they direct you.  By all means, listen to sermons and read books (I do), but know that any healthy teacher will tell you to have your own time of Bible study and not depend solely on them because they can mess up.
7.     Scripture speaks differently during different times of our life.  The cool thing about scripture is that during one season of your life it could speak to you one way, and another season edify you another way.  It is not a matter of molding it to what you want, but speaks differently.
8.     I get to know the shepherds voice better.  Isn’t it interesting that negative self-talk sounds nothing like Jesus’ discipline?  You know that by knowing the shepherd’s voice.  
9.     It is life giving.  It gives me strength in hard times and when I pray for others, I recall the verses to give life to them.  I feel that learning scriptures and stories from the Bible has blessed me in more ways than one.
10. Most of all, God wants me to visit him.  Just like a friend who I have not spoken with in a long time, God is more happy to hear from his friend than angry about the time that has not been spent not communicating.  I say that because too many people are afraid to go to God because of time spent away.  But do not let that deter you, he loves you and wants you to spend time with him. 

So it has been an interesting journey for me.  I had the hardest time studying scripture for the longest time, but now it is one of my favorite disciplines.  For me, my goal is to be close to the vine (Jesus) and to continue to grow with him (John 15).  In getting to know him and conforming my heart to his, I am hoping to love others the way Jesus did and help them get to know our savior better.

Monday, August 19, 2013

Burning Building Theology

One thing that I have been thinking about lately is how often times God sends us into the very places that we want to avoid.  For some it is helping people in areas that we have been wounded deeply.  For others, it is learning to love again after we have been hurt real bad.  And yet for others, it is doing a job that we know is stretching us waaaaaaaay beyond our comfort zones.  Whatever it is, it is the last thing we WANT to do... yet it is the one thing that we HAVE to do.

Imagine this.  You live in an apartment building for many years.  You have grown accustomed to walking the halls every day.  You are familiar with the lay of the land, and you generally feel that you could get out of there in an emergency.  Now... set that building on fire.  What happens?  Hopefully, since you know the building through and through, you can get out there.  So, with a bit of a struggle, you manage to get out of there in tact.

Thats when God tells you, "Okay, great.  You got out of there.  Now get back in there and save some of my people."

You nervously laugh, and say, "No God.  I just got out of there with my life, lets let the professionals do their jobs."  Thinking you convinced God, you try to get comfortable.

God responds with questions: "Do the 'professionals' know the building like you do?  Do the 'professionals' know where the most recent damage is?  Do the 'professionals' know the residents as well as you do?"  Then it hits you, you are being called to go back in there because you know what it is that needs to be done to help those people in your building.

We all have a burning building, we all have an area of our life that we would rather not go into because of the risk involved.  Whether it is past memories, a fear of what could happen, or something that could be traumatic, we do not want to reenter that area.  However, we are often the best people to go back in because we understand what it is like.  We have been there, done that, and overcame.

Paul says that we are conquerers through God who loves us (Rom 8:37).  Because of the fact that we have overcome the trials in our life, we can help others overcome the trials in their lives.  The truth is, that people who are enslaved to a sin or imprisoned by something will not look to a person who looks like they have it all together.  They will look to someone who can help guide them out.  The only way to be a guide is to have gone through the same spiritual terrain.

This is why I am writing today to remind you to never think less of your past.  If you have been through something, yes be careful about who you trust your information with, but do not be afraid to share your experiences with someone who could really use your testimony.  Remember, we overcome Satan by the blood of the lamb and the power of our testimonies (Rev 12:11).  So NEVER be ashamed of your testimony because SOMEONE needs to hear it!

I am going to close by encouraging you to pray about finding an opportunity to help someone who is going through what you have gone through.  Even if you think that you can not do it, I am confident that you can and you will be able to totally bless someone!  More so, God is confident in that.  There is a reason that he has allowed you to experience what you have.  So now the question is, are you going to bless someone by helping them through or are you going to sit on the sidelines.  My hope is that you run back into your burning building and save some lives!


Monday, August 5, 2013

Scrub Brush Theology


This post is going to be a little more off the cuff than normal, but here we go…

I was at work today and I noticed that the handrails were filthy.  I was so grossed out that I decided to clean them.  The only tool that I could find was an equally filthy scrub brush that had all sorts of adhesive stuck to its bristles.  I was thinking, “what good could this do?  I might as well find another one.”  But I stuck with this one.

As I was scrubbing the handrails, I noticed something odd.  The adhesive on the bristles were falling off, and by the time I was done I had a clean scrub brush!  Then I had an epiphany.

Often times, we think that we are the scrub brush.  Since we are covered in black gunk that other people leave on us, we feel that we shouldn’t be used for our intended purpose.  I found this in my life at times, and I have heard a lot of people use these phrases:

I would get back into the ministry, but I am still healing.
I would like to have a relationship someday, but I am still hurt.
I would like to pursue my dreams, but I am not in a good place right now.

To that, I answer:

As I begin to serve others in ministry, I find healing through caring for others and others caring for me as well.  It was frustrating for me to not get my career in church ministry or in the Navy Chaplain Corps, but once I engaged in my new vocational field, life sort of came together for me and made sense and I was able to let go of the frustration from the past.  But I had to put myself out there to get the gunk off.

If I focus on the gunk left on me due to drama from past relationships/interests, I will never accept the joy of a healthy relationship.  Even though I have dealt with dramatic and abusive women in the past, that is the past and I can't let it dictate or hinder my current relationship.  As time goes on I have found that the gunk that has built up over the years begins to disappear and healing is found in a reciprocating relationship.

God believes in you and he gave you dreams for a reason, it is never too early and rarely ever too late to pursue those dreams.  God has a funny way of bringing things into place as we pursue his will.  I have definitely seen the hand of God a few times when the impossible became possible.  That’s why when I find myself in his will, I find that fear, past failures, criticism, and other destructive thoughts that gunk up on me fade away as I am pursuing his will.  As for perfect timing, the only timing that is perfect is God's timing!

The thing is that as we pursue our intended purpose, we are like that brush that is scrubbing on the rail.  It is doing what it was made to do, and in doing so, it is freed of the burdens that are attaching itself to it.  As someone who has been going through that cleansing process, I can say that it is a great feeling and I hope that you all can experience it!