Phillipians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
As I continue to ponder Balance, I keep coming back to peace. Last month, I ended my blog thoughts with Paul's exhortation to pray without ceasing. Phillipians adds that the God of peace will be with me to guard my heart and mind, when I pray and let His will be mine. How do I know if I am in God's will?
Take a look at these thoughts from Shelly Radic, Director of Ministry Life at MOPS International:
Years ago, tuning in to a television show meant walking up to the television and adjusting antennae until the picture and sound came into focus. Tuning in required a physical engagement unknown to current viewers. Today, we sit at a distance and with the click of the remote, control everything- volume, channel, brightness. Tuning in is easy.
We often expect to hear God in the same way. We sit at a distance, fire off a prayer and expect God to instantaneously fill our minds with a clear picture of his perspective on a situation. And when that doesn’t happen, we wonder why we aren’t hearing from God.
Hearing God’s perspective involves engagement with him. To know his perspective requires moving ourselves mentally into his presence, acknowledging that we are always physically in his presence, and adjusting our thoughts and daily activities until his voice is our primary focus. Tuning in to God often requires that we tune out all the other voices clamoring for our attention.
John 10:2-5 says The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. 3The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice."
How do the sheep know where the shepherd is leading them?
Why don’t they follow a stranger?
What voices are most familiar to you?
How might these voices make it difficult for you to hear God?
Daniel was a busy leader, with many voices speaking to him every day.
Daniel 6:10-11, Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. 11 Then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking God for help.
How will you organize your day to ensure God’s voice is increasingly familiar? The sheep in John 10 and Daniel, the busy leader, could each follow God because they were familiar with his voice.
In Psalm 48:14, God promises to be our guide forever! I think of how He sent the pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day to the Israelites to let them know when to move. I don't need to pray every day and ask God, "Am I still in your will? Am I still where you want me to be?" The Holy Spirit is even better than a cloud. It is God in us, His very presence. I have learned that when He wants me to move, God will move the "cloud" -- change the circumstances, present a different opportunity, allow a crisis to occur, inspire anger or passion about something, reveal or validate the same thing over and over again in different ways.
Romans 12:2 says Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. You might be surprised where God's will leads you, but it is the safest place to be.
As a postscript, I found this video by Martina McBride, that I had to share! It's called God's Will http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJnoBbueEc0. Be sure to get out the tissues before you listen.
Showing posts with label balance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label balance. Show all posts
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Balance
Luke 9:23 If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
I like Kelly’s entry where it says, “We have started this blog to investigate the Jesus-life, to encourage, equip, and challenge other brothers and sisters in Christ as we journey together.”
One of my favorite songs is One Pure and Holy Passion:
"Give me one pure and holy passion,
Give me one magnificent obsession,
Jesus give me one glorious ambition for my life,
To know and follow hard after you.”
If this is your obsession, you may have noticed that the “Jesus-life” is not always a bed of roses.
As I thought and prayed about what to write about this week, I kept coming back to Balance. Over the past year or so, I have experienced some of the most incredible spiritual highs I have ever encountered, found myself in places I never imagined I would be experiencing God’s kingdom as a present reality. And then there have been extreme lows as I wrestled with God over areas of my life He wanted to reveal and challenge me to let go and live forgiven. So, what does all of this have to do with Balance?
Having grown up without seeing what a healthy relationship looks like, and finding myself at the end of a tumultuous dysfunctional long term relationship, I once asked my pastor at the time, how will I ever know what a healthy relationship looks or feels like? One way he explained is that a healthy relationship is one where there are not extreme highs and lows like a rollercoaster ride. Even though there may be bumps in the road, it should just ebb and flow.
Mirriam-Webster's online dictionary defines Balance as mental and emotional steadiness; physical equilibrium; a counterbalancing weight, force, or influence.
So, applying this to the spiritual life, that is what Balance looks like. God wants to take us to the mountain top, and we do have struggles in our life, but the Jesus-life is a steady flow that lets Jesus write His-story through our lives and provide the mental and emotional steadiness and the counterbalancing weight, force, or influence defined by Webster. I love how Mark Batterson talks about chasing the Holy Spirit in his book The Wild Goose Chase.
Have you ever felt like your life is turning into a tragedy? A spouse cheats on you. A boss unfairly fires you. Or someone hurts you in a way that seems beyond your ability to heal.
Listen, you still get to choose your attitude. And while you may not like the chapter of life you’re in, the final chapter has yet to be written…If you feel like you’re stuck in a tragedy, here’s my advice: give Jesus complete editorial control over your life. You have to quit trying to write your own story.
Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Seeking spiritual balance starts with prayer, which is the foundation of the faithful life, of the calling to which we are called. Everybody does it differently. The same person does it differently at different times. What's important is that you find a way to do it, because it is the way that you ground yourself in the love of God, in the adoration of God, in the desire for God. Don't leave it out.
I Thessalonians 5:17... pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
If you need help getting started, a friend shared a 15-15-15 challenge to commit to 15 minutes of prayer and 15 minutes of Bible study every day for 15 days. You will probably find that 15 minutes isn’t enough and it will change your life.
To be continued…
I like Kelly’s entry where it says, “We have started this blog to investigate the Jesus-life, to encourage, equip, and challenge other brothers and sisters in Christ as we journey together.”
One of my favorite songs is One Pure and Holy Passion:
"Give me one pure and holy passion,
Give me one magnificent obsession,
Jesus give me one glorious ambition for my life,
To know and follow hard after you.”
If this is your obsession, you may have noticed that the “Jesus-life” is not always a bed of roses.
As I thought and prayed about what to write about this week, I kept coming back to Balance. Over the past year or so, I have experienced some of the most incredible spiritual highs I have ever encountered, found myself in places I never imagined I would be experiencing God’s kingdom as a present reality. And then there have been extreme lows as I wrestled with God over areas of my life He wanted to reveal and challenge me to let go and live forgiven. So, what does all of this have to do with Balance?
Having grown up without seeing what a healthy relationship looks like, and finding myself at the end of a tumultuous dysfunctional long term relationship, I once asked my pastor at the time, how will I ever know what a healthy relationship looks or feels like? One way he explained is that a healthy relationship is one where there are not extreme highs and lows like a rollercoaster ride. Even though there may be bumps in the road, it should just ebb and flow.
Mirriam-Webster's online dictionary defines Balance as mental and emotional steadiness; physical equilibrium; a counterbalancing weight, force, or influence.
So, applying this to the spiritual life, that is what Balance looks like. God wants to take us to the mountain top, and we do have struggles in our life, but the Jesus-life is a steady flow that lets Jesus write His-story through our lives and provide the mental and emotional steadiness and the counterbalancing weight, force, or influence defined by Webster. I love how Mark Batterson talks about chasing the Holy Spirit in his book The Wild Goose Chase.
Have you ever felt like your life is turning into a tragedy? A spouse cheats on you. A boss unfairly fires you. Or someone hurts you in a way that seems beyond your ability to heal.
Listen, you still get to choose your attitude. And while you may not like the chapter of life you’re in, the final chapter has yet to be written…If you feel like you’re stuck in a tragedy, here’s my advice: give Jesus complete editorial control over your life. You have to quit trying to write your own story.
Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Seeking spiritual balance starts with prayer, which is the foundation of the faithful life, of the calling to which we are called. Everybody does it differently. The same person does it differently at different times. What's important is that you find a way to do it, because it is the way that you ground yourself in the love of God, in the adoration of God, in the desire for God. Don't leave it out.
I Thessalonians 5:17... pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
If you need help getting started, a friend shared a 15-15-15 challenge to commit to 15 minutes of prayer and 15 minutes of Bible study every day for 15 days. You will probably find that 15 minutes isn’t enough and it will change your life.
To be continued…
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