Surely God Is In This Place!

In Genesis 28:16, after Jacob awoke from his dream he cried out, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn't even aware of it!”

How often do we go about our lives "searching"? Searching for answers, searching for love, searching for meaning, relief, comfort, fulfillment, and on and on and on; when all the time the source of all answers, the presence of love, the provider of meaning, help, power, purpose, and completion is right there with us!

One of the basic tenets of our faith is that God is omnipresent -- everywhere at all times -- yet, we despair, fear, and succumb to frustration and loneliness feeling that we are facing our situation alone and powerless. Perhaps the "secret" of prayer is not so much to bring God into our situation, as it is to open our spiritual eyes to where He already is in our life and our circumstances.

Food for thought!

The More You Grow Like This!

2 Peter 1:3-9 says,
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. 5 In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God's promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. 8 The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

God has given us His promises that empower real transformation – metamorphosis – in our very being! From lowly to divine, from corrupt to eternal! Knowing this, why wouldn’t we make every effort to access and grow in these promises? Peter tells us that although this transformation starts with faith, we must actively add to our faith personal integrity (moral excellence), experiential understanding (knowledge) of God’s Word & Ways, the ability to govern our behavior and harness our actions (self-control), continuing fortitude and persistence in what we know to be right regardless of the circumstances or attitudes around us (patient endurance), a proper attitude of submission and worship of God’s eternal plan (godliness), an encompassing love for other believers, and finally, an inclusionary love for everyone.

Peter then tells us that the more we grow in these areas, the more fruitful and useful our faith will be. Our Christian faith must not stop with how much we know about Jesus – how many times we’ve read the Bible, or how many verses we’ve memorized. If we are truly going to experience God’s plans for us, as well as live out God’s purposes for us, our knowledge must be transformed into decision, commitment, and action.

The Name of HOPE

And his name will be the hope of all the world . Matthew 12:21

Hope is not a feeling. Hope is not wishful thinking.

The Bible says, his name is our hope. It is his name that brings power, purpose, and hope into the circumstances of our lives.

No matter what generation you are in, what season of life, what circumstance, culture, tribe, or family, HOPE is found in Jesus. His name is the hope of all the world. I just returned from a trip to the Navajo Reservations in New Mexico and Arizona. There was a new spirit of hope and energy and purpose swelling within the people I visited. Not because the economics are changing, but because the spirit is changing. Hope is coming to the people!

God's Amazing Goodness

My dear friend Lisa Foto recently suffered a devastating brain aneurysm. Her journey has been an amazing testimony of faith and healing. Here are her own words:

On March 20th, I suffered a very severe brain aneurysm. On a scale of 1-10, the doctors said it was a 10. I was working out at the gym and the Anterior Communicating artery in my brain ruptured during my workout and I had a massive brain bleed. I fell unconscious and had to be transported to the hospital via ambulance. I stopped breathing three times and the doctors call me “The Miracle Lady” because they did not expect me to survive. I was in a coma for 5 weeks and in ICU at Mission Hospital for 52 days. Because of how bad the bleed was, they expected that I would have severe deficits on the left side of my body and I appear to have none. The biggest side effect so far is the back of my head is now bald and the hair is not growing in yet. I guess all things in perspective, I am happy to be living and I may have to be bald. Over the last couple of months I have had a brain coil procedure to encase the aneurysm, a craniectomy, a shunt inserted in my brain and then my skull placed back so I don’t have to wear a helmet. It took 18 angiograms, vasospasm treatments, etc. to ensure that I didn’t have any strokes on top of what I had already experienced. Only 40% of people who have aneurysms survive and if they survive, most have severe deficits like paralysis, speech loss, forget how to walk, etc. I have just lost strength due to being bed ridden for so long. That is expected to fully return with time and exercise. Hallelujah!

I am alive today because many of you prayed for me to live. I feel God has given me a very tangible gift on how precious life is and how powerful He is. God heard our prayers and the sense of gratitude I have to everyone and to Him can not be measured in words. The outpouring of love and kindness that has been shown to me and my family is indescribable. Our small group supported my husband John and my family in a way that cannot be measured. They were there everyday from day one, bringing meals, praying with John and my kids and parents supporting him as he plead with the Lord not to take me yet. Saddleback Church overtook Mission Hospitals ICU waiting room. I overheard my neurosurgeon telling one of the other doctors that “This lady knows everybody.” I would have to say that I do know a lot of people but many of your friends and small groups have prayed for me and I don’t know them. I am so grateful for that as well. God has shown me that he is the true healer and that he loves me more than I have ever experienced before. God also showed me His family working in perfect unison on my behalf and for that, I am truly grateful.
Love,
Lisa
May each of you know God's powerful love in your lives. As Pastor Rick said last night, this life is a dress rehearsal for the next part of our lives.

Clothed in Christ

Henri Nouwen, one of my favorite authors wrote, "Being a believer means being clothed in Christ. Paul says: "Every one of you that has been baptised has been clothed in Christ" (Galatians 3:26) and "Let your armour be the Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 13:14). This being "clothed in Christ" is much more than wearing a cloak that covers our misery. It refers to a total transformation that allows us to say with Paul: "I have been crucified with Christ and yet I am alive; yet it is no longer I, but Christ living in me" (Galatians 2:20). Thus, we are the living Christ in the world. Jesus, who is God-made-flesh, continues to reveal himself in our own flesh. Indeed, true salvation is becoming Christ." Henri Nouwen, from Bread for the Journey

As we prepare to face each day, in addition to washing our face, brushing our teeth, and picking our outfit for the day, let's not forget to put on our most important garment -- the nature of Christ Himself. Then we will indeed be the "Body of Christ" to those wee meet, touch, and encounter through our day.

For Such a Time as This

The Bible says that BEFORE Esther stepped out to serve her purpose, she called for all her people to fast and pray for three days. Then she "put on her robes" and went out to do her work (See Esther 4:15-5:1)

If we want to be truly effective in our work and ministries, we must remember to not only "fast and pray" ourselves before we begin, but to ask others to fast and pray for us. There should be no "Lone Rangers" in the body of Christ. We all are connected to and responsible for each other. (Romans 12:4-5).

Then we must robe ourselves, first in the whole armor of God; the belt of truth, the armor of righteousness, the shoes of peace that comes from the Good News, the shield of faith, the helmet of our salvation, and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:14-17) and remember to cover it all with the robe of humility, graciousness, and above all else, love. Then we will be ready to make a difference for the Kingdom.

Run to Win

Run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step.
1 Corinthians 9:24-26

God has a purpose for each day of our lives. But if we have fallen out of shape we might not recognize that purpose, or be up to the challenge. Runners condition their bodies by exercise, diet, rest, and training so that they can run the distance. Likewise, we need to condition ourselves for our daily “race” for God’s glory. We exercise our spiritual muscles through prayer. Feed our souls with a steady diet of God’s Word. Rest in His truth, and train ourselves to look for opportunities to share His love with those around us. Run for the prize!