Free Book Opportunity

Here is a link for a free book: Revolution in World Missions. There is a video endorsement by Francis Chan. From past experience, you will probably be added to the ministry mailing list as a result of requesting the book, but from the looks of it, it will most likely be worth it.

Redirect: 11-26-10

Following are some exceptional posts I have read in recent days that I feel compelled to share with you. Click on the titles to go directly to the posts.

From Tim Challies: Manna in the Morning

From Desiring God: The Grace of God in Our Circumstances: Why You Weren't Born as an Impoverished Child in an Unreached Nation

From Desiring God: What are the Three Most Disturbing Words on TV?

From Desiring God: Money, Stuff, and God Will Never Leave You

How to Journal

Next year, our church will be reading through the Bible and using the journaling process outlined in the book, Divine Mentor. More information can be found on this page. I have been using the approach for the past several days, and I really like it. Following is my journal page from today. I encourage you to give it a try. And please prayerfully consider signing up to read through the Bible along with our body. It would be great if we could occasionally discuss as a class what God is teaching us through our reading together. (Click on the journal page for a larger view.)

Blackaby on Spiritual Gifts

Following are a few paragraphs from the passage I read in class yesterday from Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby and Claude King (Chapter 6: God is at Work Around You)...

Many people long for God to do a significant work in their life. However, they try to bypass the love relationship. The love relationship is why God created you. That is far more important to Him than what you do for Him. Anticipate that the first thing God will do in your life is to draw you into an intimate love relationship with Himself. When your relationship with God is as it should be, He will begin giving you assignments at His initiative. Whenever it seems that God is not doing anything fresh in your life, focus on the love relationship and stay there until God gives you a new assignment.

If God merely provided us with a gift, we would tend to place our confidence in the gift rather than in Him. But since the Holy Spirit does the work through us, we must continually rely upon our relationship with Him if we are to be effective in the ministry He gives us.

Keep your attention on God's call to an assignment rather than on your spiritual gifts, personal desires, skills, abilities, or resources. Once you understand God's call to an assignment, obey Him, and He will work through you to accomplish His divine eternal purposes.

Spiritual Gifts

This morning in class we discussed spiritual gifts. Here is a sermon from John Piper that complements Dr. Blackaby's position very nicely. Both pastors emphasize God's call and His equipping through the Spirit for the purpose of building up the body, rather than focusing on the gifts themselves.

Living Sacrifices

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Romans 12: 1

God has been asking me to give some things up. He's been asking for some time, but I have been resisting, making excuses, looking for evidence to the contrary, thinking wishfully. However, a few weeks ago, He made himself very plain. First, in the following passage from Praying God's Will for Your Life by Stormie Omartian, which was shared with me by my friend, Amy...

...a time comes when each of us must place our desires and dreams in the hands of God so that He might free us from those that are not His will. In other words, you secure your future by realeasing your dream to God and, if need be, allowing it to die. If you've always had a certain picture of what you think you should do, you have to be willing to let that picture be destroyed. If it really is what God has for you, He will raise you up to do that and more. If it isn't, you will be frustrated as long as you cling to it.

Often the desires of your heart are the desires of His heart, but they still must be achieved His way, not yours, and you must know that it is He who is accomplishing them in you, not achieving them yourself. God wants us to stop holding on to our dreams and start holding on to Him so that He can enable us to soar above ourselves and our own limitations. Whenever we let go of what we long for, God will bring it back to us in another dimension.

Then, the very next day, I read this blog post at Desiring God. Please read it. It is another very short post, and you will be blessed.

The bottom line is this: God doesn't ask us to give things up in order to be cruel or to punish us. He asks us to give them up because they are distracting us from our relationship with Him or because they are lesser things. Lesser things are not bad in and of themselves, but they have little or no eternal value, and they take time away from more profitable pursuits.

Yesterday, I read Isaiah 56, and the phrase "who chose the things that please me" has stuck in my mind ever since. Lord, enable me to always choose the things that please You.

Prayer Answered by Crosses

In light of the recent events in my life (of which more will be written later), Michelyn sent me a link to the following poem yesterday. I thought that it would be an encouragement to you as well.

Prayer Answered by Crosses
By John Newton

I asked the Lord that I might grow
In faith and love and every grace, 

Might more of his salvation know, 

And seek more earnestly his face.

‘Twas he who taught me thus to pray; 

And he, I trust, has answered prayer; 

But it has been in such a way 

As almost drove me to despair.

I hoped that, in some favoured hour, 

At once he’d answer my request, 

And by his love’s constraining power 

Subdue my sins, and give me rest.

Instead of this, he made me feel 

The hidden evils of my heart, 

And let the angry powers of hell 

Assault my soul in every part.

Yea, more, with his own hand he seemed
Intent to aggravate my woe, 

Crossed all the fair designs I schemed, 

Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.

Lord, why is this? I trembling cried; 

Wilt thou pursue this worm to death? 

This is the way, the Lord replied
I answer prayer for grace and faith.

These inward trials I now employ 

From self and pride to set thee free,
And break thy schemes of earthly joy, 

That thou may’st seek thy all in me.