Things Are Picking Up

God recently "shook our cage" here at The Crossing. We had poured most of our energy into planning and had neglected deep, prolonged times of prayer for the church. Yeah, God wasn't real impressed. Don't get me wrong, the structure is definitely needed, but prayer is the necessity. Every since we have really made prayer the utmost priority things have really been picking up...bigger crowds, breakthroughs, and so on. With that said, please continue to join with us in prayer as we continue this journey that God has chosen for us. Thanks so much!

Just Enjoy the Ride

I am a firm believer in spiritual authority, especially parental authority. So, when my parents speak something into my life I don't just pass it off. I try to apply myself to it and pray about it to see just what God is trying to speak to me through my spiritual authority.
With that said, my mom sent me a text this morning and it just said, "read Ecclesiastes 8:14-17." I have been going through a difficult time without a lot of answers, so it was exactly what I needed to hear at the moment...guided by a good combination of the Holy Spirit and a mom's intuition. It broke me away from my scheduled reading for the morning, but God knew exactly what I needed to hear today.
That Scripture reference talks about how we get all tied up with the "big questions" of life. We let hard times and hard questions challenge our faith when they are meant to sharpen our faith. The passage goes on to say that not even the wisest man could comprehend all that goes on under the sun. So, why should we bog ourselves down with questions that we will never know the answers to? Why don't we just trust God and be content with the hand that we have been dealt? Why don't we just enjoy the ride with the hope of knowing that God is in control and He has a good outcome in store for us?
Here's the bottom line, don't waste your valuable time by trying to over-analyze everything. Everybody has questions, and everybody experiences hard times...you aren't alone. Give it all to God, trust Him. Count your blessings and enjoy the ride.

Impressionable

I have hair like a brillo pad. It's true. To let it grow out would be embarrassing at best. So, I keep it cut short and always use gel. But, there is a catch. If I let my hair start to dry after I get out of the shower for any more than about 10 minutes...it's too late! At that point it is back to the same old stubborn mop it was before I loosened it up with some conditioner in the shower. It is a very small window of opportunity.
Same principle applies with new Christians. We have a very small window of opportunity to impress upon them sound doctrine, because if we don't, it is inevitable that they will be influenced by other myths and ridiculous ideologies and theologies. They are like play-do in the hands of a child, or clay in the hands of a potter. If not done anything with right away, they will harden up by the surrounding elements and shaping becomes difficult to impossible. Discipleship is crucial, and early discipleship is absolutely essential. Just a thought.

Looking in All the Wrong Places

Two nights ago, Seth woke up in the middle of the night (his regular routine) and headed off towards our bedroom crying and looking for us. What he didn't know was that we decided to sleep on the Guest Room bed, which is right next to his room, instead of our own that night. So, he runs to the other side of the house to our bedroom looking for us and we weren't there. Poor child, he was probably feeling pretty lost and confused until I could orientate myself and lumber down the hall to catch up with him.
In many cases, we do the the same in relation to our walk with God. We wake up in a lonely and scary situation and we begin to look for God...and maybe, just maybe, you have found yourself feeling eluded by God's presence in the midst of your darkest hour. Could it be that the Lord is simply closer to you than you thought? Waking up in a dark and scary place can be very disorientating. Maybe, you are lost, looking way out in the mystery of the "cosmic nowhere," when all the while God is right at your side...the foot prints in the sand beside you. Could it be, that you sub-consciously didn't even think God could be close to you in your unstable and embarrassing situation.
God definitely keeps things interesting, and you may not always find Him in the same place or in the same way you did before...but, one thing is for certain, He is always there and maybe He is closer to you than what you thought.