Deep Impact

Life, it’s an interesting journey isn’t it? As I get older I can’t believe how it just seems to accelerate. As a child I remember time used to take forever. That 12mths leading up to Christmas just never seemed to get there. It’s interesting isn’t it? how our age differs our perception of time. Now that I am just over 40, time seems to be travelling at a ridiculous speed, in fact sometimes it feels as though it travels too fast and to be honest, it has got me asking the question “what have I done with my life?” I wonder, have you ever wanted to know how much time you have here on this earth? 

The writer of Psalm 39 asked this question of God when he said “Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is.” I think when David wrote this Psalm he was asking the very same question: “What have I done with my life, how much time do I have left?”

Paul on the other hand approached this question very differently. He was very aware that time was short, he knew that he needed to use his time wisely. In Ephesians 5 he says: “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” Eph 5:15-17.

You know as I have pondered these thoughts recently something very interesting occurred to me.; there are only two things that we can do during our time here on earth that we simply cannot do once we get to heaven? 1. Sin and 2. Tell others about Jesus and invest in people. You know our time on earth is very limited. Psalm 90 tells us that our years may be no more than 70 or 80 but the reality is that no-one knows the time that we have. Time is precious and we have to use our time well. In a world that is straying further and further away from God we need to take the opportunities to share the gospel when they arise. Friends, how are we impacting our world for Jesus today? When our time is up what is it that we want to be remembered for?  It has been said that life is no more than a dash between two dates. If that is the case then how are we using our dash? Are we impacting the world around us and what is the legacy we want to leave behind? Let’s go one step further; if our church was to disappear off the face of the planet tomorrow, would it even be missed? 

When Jesus was on the earth He had a very small amount of time to make a huge impact. Everything He did was intentional. Every conversation, every action and every thought had a purpose and it was a purpose that glorified God. In John 10:10 Jesus says that: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” What did he mean by that? Quite simply Jesus came that we may have completion. A life not necessarily free from trouble but a life full of Joy, a life spiritually complete, a life lived to the glory of God. Greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world. Friends because of what Jesus has done for us and what He can do through us, we are able to live a fruitful life if we choose to. Our time is fleeting, let’s not waste what time we have left. Let us be a people and a church who has a huge impact on the world around us.

"Don't count the days, make the days count."

Mohammad Ali

struggling

The last few months have, to say the least, been extremely challenging.  Not only this but I have been seriously questioning my ministry and where I fit in the scheme of things.  The spiritual journey is an interesting one and it certainly presents many different emotions and experiences along the way.  As a child who was constantly moved around throughout my schooling years, and seeing the damage that this has caused, I have found myself asking the question: is this what I want for my child?  Do I want to be constantly moving around throughout my working life or do I want to put my roots down somewhere?

Many find ministry exhilarating and many know without a shadow of a doubt that their calling is secure; me on the other hand, I am beginning to wonder.  Am I really called to what I am doing, was it just a great idea at the time?  How do we really know?  For me the past six years have been a very lonely and painful time.  A time when I have been constantly on a rollercoaster ride of spiritual doubt and emotional challenge.  It is easy to say that God has called me when you are not me, or that God will sustain and provide.  I guess he will, assuming that we are walking in His will and purpose for us.  But what if by some bad choice we are not walking the way God wants for us?  What if the path we are walking is simply our human decision and not a God leading?

It is also easy to say (for those not in the middle of it) that the devil is just having a crack, or you must be doing something right if the devil is giving you so much attention.  But again a question needs to be asked: is it simply the devil having a crack or is there something more happening here?  It is always easier to blame the devil.  In fact you can blame the devil every time something doesn't go the way you think it should.  I really feel that blaming the devil is in some instances nothing more than a cop out.  It's too easy to blame him for something that is simply a life factor.

Sometimes we make life changes because of what we feel at a given moment.  Sometimes we enter into a line of work we think we may be called to when in fact it was just a bad choice.  How do we tell the difference? 

I guess as I wrestle with this over the next few weeks hopefully some answers will come to light.

The clothes don't fit

One of the things that kids love to do when they are young is dress up.  I remember as a child I used to play dress ups at my friends house as we played super heroes and the like.  One of the frustrating things playing these games was that my friend was taller than I was.  This  caused a bit of an issue, especially when I tried to put his costumes on my body.  As much as I wanted to wear the clothes so that I could play, one undeniable truth remained; his clothes just wouldn't fit my body type.

Have you ever felt like this?  Have you ever felt like someone else was trying to dress you in their clothes?  This very thing happened to the most well known king in the bible.  King David while still a child went out onto the battle field to take on his enemy Goliath.

³⁸ So Saul clothed David with his armor, and he put a bronze helmet on his head; he also clothed him with a coat of mail. ³⁹ David fastened his sword to his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. And David said to Saul, “I cannot walk with these, for I have not tested them.” So David took them off. - 1 Samuel 17:38-39

So what was the potential problem in this story?  Well simply put King Saul thought that his way was right, he tried to get David to imitate what he thought was the right way to take on the enemy.  The problem is that David was not Saul.  What  worked for Saul would never work for David.  As the story goes on we see  that David threw off the armour and took on the enemy using what he knew best.  He used his skill and his ability and knowledge  to defeat  his enemy.  Had David continued on with Saul's armour he would never have defeated Goliath.

What do we learn from this?  Well often people and the world around us believe that they know what is best.  Sometimes people try to dress us in someone else's clothes.  An example of this is when a particular denomination attempts to imitate another denomination in an attempt to grow their church.  The reality here is that what works for one church will not necessarily work for another.  How one person serves in ministry will also be very different to another.  One of the dangers of any church is that they compare themselves to other churches and then try to copy them.  It is the same with Christian leaders. 

How did David ultimately defeat Goliath?

Well he didn't listen to those who thought they knew best.  David knew who he was in God and he knew whose battle he was fighting. David simply defeated the enemy as David; the way God created him to be.  David fought as David not as Saul.  He also used the weapons and skills that God had blessed him with.  By doing this he was true to himself and was best equipped to take on Goliath.

So what do we learn from David?

Simply, you are who you are.  You can never fill someone else's shoes and to be honest you would be silly to even try.  Every church and every leader is designed to lead a certain way for a certain purpose.  Can I encourage you today by saying don't try to be what you are not.  Imitation may be flattering but it is certainly not innovative or successful in the long term.  God has called each of us as Christians and as the denomination we have been placed in to operate a certain way.  To try and be what we are not will never accomplish what God has called us to do.

 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not of works, lest anyone should boast. ¹⁰ For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:8-10

God-incidences

God....There is no other word to describe Him other than simply amazing.  Over the past week Claire and I have been unpacking our things as we settle into our new home here in Bairnsdale Victoria.  The weather is wonderful and the scenery is simply awesome and I have found myself reflecting on the awesomeness of God's creation.  This week has also presented me with God-incidences that have blown me away. The first took place yesterday when I ran into an old Dysons workmate who I have not see for about 7 years.  Who would have thought that he too would be living in Bairnsdale.  The second took place tonight as again I was privileged to talk with an old workmate.  The conversation was amazing as we spoke about the things of God and I want to tell you that the conversation certainly brought joy to my heart as I heard how God had been working in this persons life.  This conversation was a real encouragement to me as God confirmed the calling that He has placed  in my own life. 

 

This week has  been tough, in fact the last few months  have  been tough as I have battled with anxiety and the attacks of the enemy.  The reality however is this. God will never place us in a place where He is not willing to resource and support us.  God always places us in the right place, at the right time, for His purposes.  So very often though we let our own insecurities and desires get in the way of what God wants to achieve.  In fact sometimes we remove God from the throne of our lives and place ourselves there.

 

Friends, God is always with us, His ways are the right ways and He is most certainly always at work around us.  The trick is though, even for those of us who have been on the journey for some time; is to trust Him completely and to allow Him to use us and shape us in the way that He sees fit.  Friends I don't know  what is  going on in your life, I don't know what God has asked  you to do.  What I do know is that God will  always place you where He  wants you and He is always with us.  Thank God for God-instances that reconfirm who He is.  Thank God that we serve a God that is so  much better than our stuff, so much bigger than our insecurities, doubts and fears.  If you do  not know this amazing God search Him out.  He will never let you down and He will be the best choice  you will ever  make.  Jesus said that He "is the way, the truth and the life..."  Choose Jesus.

Yet I am always with you;
    you hold me by my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel,
    and afterward you will take me into glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you?
    And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail,
    but God is the strength of my heart
    and my portion forever.

Psalm 73:23-26