apprentice of Jesus

We Owe! We Owe! Off To Work We Go!

Dr. Mike Journey in Christ , , , , , , , , , ,

owe

Are all our financial  obligations paid  up to date? Are all our other obligations paid up to date? Do we owe anyone anything?

The Bible states that we need to owe no one anything except our love. In which case, whom do we owe our love to? When it comes to the gospel of Christ have we done everything that we are capable and responsible for at this time?  To say yes is a peaceful and content state of mind and heart. To say no is unsettling. To say we are not sure is closer to the truth.

There are moments when we feel like champions after fulfilling our obligations as a Christ-follower. We either hung in there long enough to see God produce His fruit or we plowed full steam ahead until the job was done. Another project accomplished for the cause of Christ.

Yet those moments pass quickly as we struggle with the unsettling accounts and obligations that we realize we may never be able to accomplish nor fulfill. While we are serving our local church a call for help comes from the community food shelter, immediately followed by a call from the a senior housing project. Meanwhile as we open the mail, requests come from several organizations that need our financial support. The list is endless with all the opportunities to serve. But where do we draw the line? When is enough, enough?

This is why whenever we feel all our obligations are taken care of for the moment we thank God for the privilege and opportunity of serving. Though God is unlimited in His resources, our faith and resources are substantially smaller. We have learned not to overextend our self and trust that God will give us the wisdom to select our opportunities for service without destroying what He has already built.

Whenever our heart disturbs us, we then deal with the issues. But if our heart doesn’t disturb us, then we pray thanking our Lord for allowing us to serve Him in our small capacity. We have come to learn that service doesn’t have to be a national or community project to pay dividends. The best return of our money and time has come in small events where someone personally has benefited from God’s grace.  As His disciple, we are thankful for His grace and mercy. Because of it, we gladly work to fulfill all our responsibilities in Christ and allow room for those extra situations when the Lord works through us to make a difference in the life of another.

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OUR PRAYER

PRAY 8

Our Awesome Dad, you are our reason for living and breathing. You have given us life and the power to create. Like yourself, you have given us the ability to freely choose our paths in life. You have given us every tool at our disposal to live a productive and rewarding life. Thank you for your generosity and graciousness.

Yet we need your wisdom, strength, and character to proceed in life. There are days when we feel beaten, discouraged, and dismayed at our situation. Yet we wait on you and you deliver us in your typical, low-key manner. You are always with us and want us to be successful in everything we do for your glory. We thank you for the opportunity. But we need your help to succeed.

You have taught us that money is not the answer. You have taught us that power, status, fame, and whatever is also not the answer. You have revealed to us that Jesus is the answer that we need. Our problem is only asking the correct questions. Help us Dad to focus on the major issues and not waste time on the minor ones. Bless us with your riches: both spiritual and physical Let all our needs be taken care for and help us to enjoy even the finer moments of life. But also help us to give to others less fortunate than ourselves. You know who they are.  Thank you Jesus. Amen.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Coach, Consultant, and Encourager

Author of Great Business Emulates a Good God
Portal: Be Radical…EnjoyLifeInChrist.com

Walking Daily in His Presence

Dr. Mike Journey in Christ , , , , , , , , ,

PRAY 4

Do we invest as much time in prayer as we like to?  Or are most of our prayer time the convenience brand?  Most the time, as it relates to food, the convenience brand costs more and provides the least amount of nourishment.  Is that how our prayer and spiritual life has become?

Remember in our early walk with the Triune God where we would schedule at least thirty minutes in prayer upon rising and again before retiring to bed in the evening?  Most of that time of course we probably prayed about our world and the people in our little world.  As we matured though, don’t we now find ourselves spending more time communicating in prayer during the entire day?  While commuting in traffic, or standing in line at the grocery store, or just in between projects at work,  don’t we tend to thank God, or ask for His intervention in a specific circumstance, or wisdom to deal with the situation at hand, or whatever else that may occur during the day?

Though the first Person we speak with in the morning and the last Person we speak with at the end of the day is our Heavenly Dad, those prayers are more like loving “good morning” and “good evening” chit-chats with the rest of the family.  Yet God knows our heart.

How does one become prayed-up?  Prayer use to be a daily ritual for many of us.  Now it is a daily discipline.  The difference between ritual and discipline is a fine one.  A ritual is typically doing something to earn favor with God whereas a discipline is placing oneself before God to seek His answer.  It really is a matter of attitude and heart.  Maybe when it comes to prayer, it is likewise an attitude of the heart.  Prayer is not something we keep score at; it is communion with the Greatest Lover and Provider: the Creator and Master of the Universe.  It’s walking and living in His presence every single minute.  It’s realizing that He is watching at all times.  It’s knowing that He cares about us and the people we are with.  It’s requesting His intervention in the lives of others.  It’s focusing on His work in progress.

If being prayed-up means total communion with God at all times, than Amen.  If it is trying to pick our self up by our bootstraps, than good luck.  We will need it because God wants us to become totally involved with Him.

Luck is life without God; blessings is life with God.  Wouldn’t we rather live a blessed life rather than a lucky one?  Luck will eventually end, whereas blessings will eternally continue with Him.  As a disciple of His, we pray in His presence all day.  That is how we define being prayed-up.

OUR PRAYER

PRAY 9

Our Heavenly Dad, thank you for giving us prayer.  Thank you for introducing us to you.  Thank you for sharing your Truth and Your bountifulness with us each and every day.  Thank you for wanting to develop a personal, close relationship with us.

Help us to continue in prayer and communion with you each and every day, every hour, and every minute whenever possible.  Help us to be aware of your presence in our life each and every moment.  Help us to live our life totally in your awesome presence.

Rejuvenate this life each day for your glory and service.  Let people come to you through this life.  Let everything we do be done truly for you.  Let us live and walk with you each and every day.  Amen.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Coach, Consultant, and Encourager

Author of Great Business Emulates a Good God
Portal: Be Radical…EnjoyLifeInChrist.com

Investing in Spiritual Treasures

Dr. Mike Journey in Christ , , , , , , , , , , ,

rainy day 2

Do we have a spiritual rainy day fund?  Today’s experts suggest that we keep at least six months of income in reserve for physically emergency purposes. Spiritually speaking, Jesus gave the parable of the man who demolished his barn and built a larger one to store all his possessions. The problem was not building a larger barn, but not also being rich to God.

Our heart and attitude determines our motive. If our motive is pure and holy with God, almost anything is possible. If we have no care or concern of what matters to God, how do you think He will relate to us?

How does one store up a spiritual, rainy day fund?  Is it even possible? We could probably invest more time in prayer, Bible study, fasting, serving, and in the other disciplines of a Christ-follower, but is that enough? We could invest our time to serving the Lord in full time vocational ministry, but is that enough? We could do more of whatever, but is that enough? Most probably, it is not.  The important thing is to have our physical house in order where it doesn’t become the number one priority in our life. Didn’t David write in the psalms that he didn’t want to be rich, nor poor. The middle of the road is the most balanced. We all need emergency reserves to help us in our physical life. It also allows us to give to others who are less fortunate. And it also gives us the luxury to focus on the more important aspects of life.

Likewise, when our Lord is the number one passion in our life, everything else seems to fall into place. By walking with Him on a continual daily basis, we don’t have to have an emergency supply around when He seems to disappear from us. The reason is that He doesn’t leave us. We leave Him. He is always close to us. We sometimes build walls to keep Him away from us because we do not want to deal with an issue or sin in our life. But He is faithful. He has called us to a life transforming process that doesn’t happen overnight. He works daily with us, leading us to follow Him and depend on Him in everything we do. It’s only when we become independent of Him that our trouble begins to follow us.

The best way to store up spiritual reserves is not too. It’s to have your meal and walk with our Lord every day. It’s to live our life in His presence every, single minute. It is to remember that our citizenship is in heaven. Likewise, we need to remember that our treasure is kept in heaven. We do not have to worry about our return on investment or worry about robbers. Our crown is being kept in preparation for our wedding. Everything we do for the Lord is in heaven. Our reward awaits us.

As a disciple of His our calling and election is sure. Our faith is being built-up in hope and love for eternity. Everything we have learned in this life is ours to keep. Everything we have experienced is ours to keep. Everything is ours and will be kept in heaven until our resurrection. That is what we are storing up.  We are not accumulating physical wealth, but instead, spiritual treasures. Invest wisely.

OUR PRAYERPRAY 21

Our Faithful Dad, thank you for always being with us. Thank you for caring about each one of us each and every minute. Thank you for being concerned about our health and welfare. But help us when our unbelief confronts us.

Remove all doubt and hopelessness from our life. Always, always, help us to keep you as the center of our life. Let nothing come between us. You know our service, our heart, and mind. You know who we are and what we do each and every minute. Let us not fool our self in believing anything that is not true. Let your presence always be with us. Help us to trust you and invest in your Kingdom each and every day.  Your way is the passion that drives us each and every day. Let that passion always be channeled towards you in service and in the relationships in our life.  Help us to invest the time and opportunities in this life for the greater good of all.  Amen.

Yours In Christ,

Dr. Mike

Coach, Consultant, and Encourager

Author of Great Business Emulates a Good God