discipleship

The Spirit Is Always Moving

Dr. Mike Journey in Christ , , , , , , , ,
be still 9Like many children, I had great dissatisfaction for standing still in my youth. I had to be doing something all the time.  Today though, I have found it much easier to stop whatever we are doing and smell the roses. But even today, when we see injustice, pain, misery, sorrow, and the effects of sin in people’s lives, we cannot be still.  A strong internal drive from within the heart wants to reach out, hug them, let them know that God cares, and wants to help them.  An internal force from within our inner being wants to reach out at times and lay hands on those who ignorantly plan and execute evil unto others.  The Spirit of God cry’s out and can’t keep silent!
To be still and not do anything seems easier as we age. Maybe it’s possible because we become tired of exerting energy that disappears as we grow older. Or we convince ourselves that we have done enough already and let the next person do their share. Maybe we don’t want to get involved because it takes time away from our everyday routines. We would rather keep things as they arc than change them and we think by being still nothing will change. How lazy and self­ centered we can become over time.
Today I’ve come to see that “to be still” really means to be dead. It’s the person born in 1972, graduates from high school in 1990, dies in 1999 and is not buried until 2050. Physically he may still be around, but inside of him he died years ago.
To be still means to run away from our problems. To be still means not to accept personal responsibilities for our brother’s condition. To be still means not discovering God’s creation. To be still means having no intimate relationship. To be still means not enjoying life’s good things.  To be still is not the life of a disciple of His. His disciples always keep moving; even when they are still. She may be still, but exercising faith like Moses standing before the Red Sea with the Egyptian Army behind him. ”The Lord will fight for you; you only need to be still (Ex 14.14 N IV).” Or he may be still while praying and asking God to intervene on someone’s specific situation. Then again, she may be still and in communion with her Maker discovering His Presence at the moment. The point is that a disciple of His may look still on the outside but in the inside the Holy Spirit is leading him to response accordingly. It is very difficult to be still when God’s Spirit resides in you!  How do you response to the nudging of the Holy Spirit in your life?

OUR PRAYER

PRAY 8

Our Heavenly Dad, oh how our heart hurts with the injustice, pain, and sorrow that we see people inflict on others. Some of it intentionally, most of it out of ignorance. Either way, help us to pray for those who are being persecuted. To ask you to intervene in their lives that hurt, to lead them to you.

Our soul is restless for you. Our soul hungers for you. We cannot sit still until your Words and Holy Spirit has made their mark in the life of those who are hurting. Help us to be your witness. Help us be your servant. Help us to reach out and touch those who you know need help today. Let nothing prevent us from sharing your Word with others. Oh Holy Spirit, fill us with your fruit. Let it overflow and touch the lives of those around us. Let us not live a life of seclusion, but a life of service. Let us not be still, but alive in you. Let your richness overflow and make others rich. Lead us always unto your paths.  Thank you Creator Dad, thank you Jesus, thank you Holy Spirit.

 

Dr. Mike

 

It Will Take More Than A Moose to Change Our Direction

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

moose 1

Have you ever denied someone that you are a Christ-follower? Maybe out of fear, or rejection, or possibly even being physically harmed?

We know the story of Peter denying that he was a follower of our Lord. Not just once, nor twice, but three times in a single night. Most likely, you or I would have behaved in the same way.  But later, when he is brought before the courts because of his witnessing for the Kingdom of God, he doesn’t deny Him. He speaks up about Him. And gladly accepts a physical beating to speak up about Him.

I remember a backpacking trip with two friends the month before we had to return to college. It was a dreary, raining day. We had been walking single file for over three hours with my turn to lead. We each had over 60 pounds of weight on our backs, covered with a hooded rain poncho, our heads looking down on the trail with each step, our feet in rhythm with each other and with the rain. The trail was narrow, muddy, and slippery. It was raining so hard that with your head bowed down and eyes narrowed to the ground you could only see two to three feet in front of you. As we walked, I came to a sudden and complete stop. My friends couldn’t stop in time and both crashed into each other and into me. Fortunately, I was able to keep standing in place while leaning backward to prevent myself from crashing into the largest moose that we have ever seen. He stood over eight feet tall, antlers wider than the trail, and his face with nose snorting and eyes questioning my sanity looked me face to face. There was less than one foot that separated his bodily presence from mine. If he took one step forward and turned one of those antlers in my direction, it would more than hurt. What seemed like an entire freshman year in college, I yelled “Moose”, then “Backup” while stepping backwards and pushing my friends to reverse their direction. (Its amazing where one finds strength in a time of emergency.) When everyone realized what was happening, we all stepped backwards in unison. Step by step, inch by inch, foot by foot, until we were a safer distance from our new found friend. After discussing the situation we realized that it would take us twice as long to turn back and take a different trail. Therefore, we decided to take our stand and wait. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait long. Our friend took a few steps towards us and then turned off the trail and proceeded on his lonely way. I felt like a prisoner released from jail. I knew somewhere, someplace this experience would teach me a lesson for life. And it has. When you believe in something strongly, don’t back away. Stand up to your true self. However, there comes a time when you may have to back up for a better perspective of the situation; a time when you need to view the forest above the trees; a time to evaluate the situation before moving forward.

As we grow older we realize that life is such that we may not only take three steps forward and two steps back in our journey, but sometimes its two steps forward and three steps back. But as long as we know our destination and our purpose for living, each struggle, each step, each obstacle is only a temporary delay of the inevitable. Our life is a learning process preparing us for eternity.

There is a time to step back. There is also a time not to step back. However, when it comes to living a life as a disciple of His, are you going to step back or are you going to fully accept His calling?

OUR PRAYER

PRAY 9

Almighty Dad, we thank you for always being here, for always being with us, for always guarding our steps. Help us always to walk with you. To allow you free access into our heart, mind, and soul. To allow you to lead us down paths where no matter what troubles or problems are ahead, we know you will help us through.

Help our unbelief to diminish. Help us to be strong. Provide us with directions each and every day in how we can best serve you and those you have given us to minister. Again, thank you. Amen.

Dr. Mike

Tired?

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

Keep On Keeping On

tiredSpeed is a relative term.  What may be fast for you may be slow for me. and what may be fast for me may he slow for you.  If we were all running in the one hundred yard summer Olympics race, we would all be measured under the same conditions.  There would only be one first place winner who would be considered the fastest person and everyone else would be slower in comparison.  Thank God that our Kingdom race doesn’t have only one winner.  For all who participate, receives the prize.  And the prize is not awarded to the person who gets there first, but the one who endures to the end.  So that everyone who enters the race is already a winner.

When I use to take my early morning six-mile walk around the public lake there were people who would jog, run, roller blade, bicycle, stroll. etc.  There were many times when these same people circled the lake two and three times while I would only complete one time around.  But we all finished.  The key is to just keep moving.  Find a steady pace that is acceptable to you and just keep moving.  You know when you are slowing down.  When you walk, the spring in your feet may be missing, the legs may feel tired, or the rhythm of your breathing may be erratic.  But when you become aware of it, you may do a little dance, stretch the legs, or do some deep breathing exercises, but you keep on moving.  Likewise. when we are spiritually slowing down, when the carnal self is taking charge of the situation; when we are not surrendering our will to God, when serving others becomes a chore, then we need to realize something is wrong with our relationship with God.  It’s then when we need to realize our communion with God has slowed down.  The spiritual disciplines have been reduced from a practical experience to a mental exercise.  We’ve slowed down our pace by not spending more time with God but by allocating less time with Him.  A dangerous position when you are a disciple of His.  Therefore, what shall we do?

We return back and emphasize the basic Christian disciplines: prayer, Bible study, fast, worship service, simplify, and celebrate. Not for the sake of exercise, but for the intense purpose of strengthening our relationship.  We pick up the speed again.  Our pace may be slow in comparison with some of our brothers and sisters, but then it may be fast for some of our other brothers/sisters; either way, it’s the speed we are comfortable to move at to maintain a deep relationship with our Heavenly Dad.  What speed are you moving at as a disciple of His?

OUR PRAYER

PRAY 8

Almighty Dad, thank you for calling us out of this world and allowing us to participate in the greatest race of a lifetime. We thank you for bringing people into our life to teach us the disciplines that allow us to keep focused on you.  Help us to keep in the race, not to detour or to quit, but to endure to the very end.  Let the speed that we move be at a rate that we can handle and not burnout.  Let our walk with you he steady and refreshing.  Let it always lift up you and me.  Let it always revive the soul and energize the spirit. Let it always change our heart to become more like yours.  Let everything we do, say, think, and breathe be done in your glory and honor. Our success is your success.  Your success is our success. Help us to be successful in your eyes. Again, thank you Jesus for intervening each and every day in every prayer in every way.  Amen.

Dr. Mike