GraceCreates

By Jon Walker

“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13 NAS)

Do you respond to God’s direction, even when you don’t understand what’s going on?

Part of the strength God gives you to “do all things through him” is the ability to choose to do his will, even before you know the full implications of what that means. He will begin to change your “wanter,” developing within you more and more of a ‘want’ to do his will.

But this is where we often stall in our steps toward being more like Jesus. We get into a battle of wills with God, wanting him to reveal his plan first, and only then – when we have a full understanding of his plan – will we decide to respond, or not.

But that has us walking by sight, and not by faith, the exact opposite of how God teaches us to walk: “We live by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7)

Am I willing to decide – in advance – that I will do what God asks me to do, no matter what it is? Am I abandoned to him and his will, believing he will strengthen me to do all the things he asks? Or do I behave as if I believe I am the final judge of what is best for my life: “God, show me the whole plan, wait for me to understand, and then I’ll decide whether or not to do what you ask.”

The Good News is that, even if you’re not ready for immediate obedience, God will give you strength to be honest with him. He already knows about your hesitancy, so he won’t be surprised by prayerful confession, such as: “Father, I’m not sure I’m ready to do your will. I don’t know if I want to do it or not.”

Yet God is gracious and patient. Tell him, “I don’t know that I’m willing to step out in faith without first knowing everything that’s going to happen, but I’m willing to be made willing.”

What does this mean?

• Build your confidence in God – Each time you take a step of faith, your confidence in God will increase, as you see that he is waiting for you on the other side of your decision.
• Polaroid vision – Each time you take a step of faith, God will reveal more of his plan to you. It’s what Rick Warren calls “Polaroid vision:” You can see God’s picture developing, but not all of it is visible right away.
• Grow into God’s vision – You may be frustrated that God hasn’t shown you the whole picture of his vision for you, but he may be holding it back because he knows you will be overwhelmed by what you see. He’s calling you to a God-sized mission, one that will appear impossible for you to complete. But that’s the point – there’s no way you can fulfill your mission without God and his strength working within you.
• Relax in God’s will – If you think discovering and following God’s will depends entirely on you, then you’ll probably start getting nervous, wondering, “Am I taking the right step here? Have I missed something?” God doesn’t need you to figure it all out; he’ll provide the answers as you need them.

Jon Walker is resident writer at www.GraceCreates.com, and the former writer/editor for the Purpose Driven Life On-Line Devotionals. This devotional is copyrighted 2008 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.

By Jon Walker

Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37 NIV)

We were singing praise choruses during a worship service when I noticed the typo.  The lyrics for the song were supposed to be, “I’m hopelessly in love with you.” 

But someone had accidentally typed: “I’m hopefully in love with you.”  It was just a one-word typo, but it carried a message equal in power to a sermon containing thousands of words.

Think about it: What’s the difference between being hopefully in love with God as opposed to being hopelessly in love with him? 

‘Hopefully’ suggests tentativeness:  “Gee, I hope I can love you, God.” 

On the other hand, ‘hopelessly’ suggests total abandonment, an ice-tea plunge into the pool:  “God, I’m in this relationship from the top of my head to the tips of my toes. No matter where it leads. No matter what it means.”

We express a desire to deepen our relationship with God – and all the while he’s already in the deep end, urging us to jump in and join him?

And there we stand, testing the Living Water with our toes, hesitant to take the flying leap into the deep that would fully immerse us into the life of Christ because it would require us to drown out so many pesky, little things that we think – that we imagine – give us life, when our real life is in Christ (Colossians 3:3). Our true life comes through the grace of God and our holy Spirit-connection with Jesus.

I know why I pause by the edge of the pool: It means I’ll have to put away childish things (1 Corinthians 13:11) and toddler-like attitudes (1 Corinthians 3:2). It means maturing when it’s easier to stay immature.

The thing is – and this is what deflates all my excuses and rationalizations – abandoning myself to God is a choice. The only thing hindering me from a deep, deep abiding relationship with God is – me. It is my unwillingness to give up those things that distract me from God and my stubborn refusal to make time with God a priority in my life are also choices I choose.

And, my friend, the only thing hindering you from a deep, deep, abiding relationship with God is – you.

In that sense, you choose to become hopelessly in love with God. It doesn’t take a saint or a special kind of person; it comes down to the simple, yet incredibly difficult choice to love God with “… all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”

You don’t fall into that kind of love; you purposely immerse yourself in it. God is in the deep end, calling out: “Come on in; the Living Water refreshes!”

What does this mean?

• Your choice – The only thing hindering you from a deep relationship with God is – you.
• What hinders? – Ask God to reveal anything that is hindering you from developing a deeper relationship with him. As he reveals the hindrances, face them honestly and talk to God about where to go from here.
• God guides the heart – Ask God to guide you deeper, bringing you to a place where you are hopelessly in love with him.
• How do you adjust? – What would it look like if you loved God “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind?” (Matthew 22:37 NIV) How would you adjust your behavior and your thoughts?

Jon Walker is the teaching pastor for “The Purpose Driven Life Daily Devotionals,” and resident writer at www.GraceCreates.com. This devotional is copyrighted 2008 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.

By Jon Walker

“This is what the LORD Almighty says: Judge fairly and honestly, and show mercy and kindness to one another. Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and poor people. And do not make evil plans to harm each other.” Zechariah 7:9-10 (NLT)

You have the power, by God’s Spirit within you, to help people rebuild their lives, to give hope to people in despair, to offer others a fresh start when it seems they have nothing left.

God empowers us to:

• Judge with an even-hand – We show compassion when we act as a voice for those who have no voice. Our compassion can help the powerless, the ignored, the forgotten, the defeated, and the falsely accused.
• Show mercy – When we show mercy to those in the wrong, it doesn’t mean we’re letting someone “off the hook”; rather, it means we recognize he/she is a flawed human, just like us, in need of salvation.
• Be kind – In the graceless age, we can show kindness, even to those with whom we disagree. We can model civility and respect.
• Use your advantages to help – Instead of focusing on getting the advantage, we can use what advantages and privileges we do have to help others. We can willingly put ourselves at a disadvantage in order to serve someone else, such as when Jesus, the leader and the Messiah, washed the feet of his disciples.
• Protect others – Our compassion compels us to look out for the interests of others, in particular, those in volatile or vulnerable situations.

God says when we do this, our light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around us will be as bright as day: “The LORD will guide you continually, watering your life when you are dry and keeping you healthy, too. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring. Your children will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities. Then you will be known as the people who rebuild their walls and cities.” (Isaiah 58:11-12 NLT)

Here we see the cycle of compassion: God gives compassion to us; we give compassion to others; then we receive compassion from God and others in our time of need. “The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped.” (Proverbs 11:25 MSG)

This is the essence of a Christ-community – living together, serving together, and loving together.

What does this mean?

• What would biblical compassion look like if you judged with an even hand in your home? At work? In the community? What can you do to be a voice for those who have no voice?
• What would biblical compassion look like if you showed mercy in your home? At work? In the community? What are ways you can express compassion and mercy to those who’ve failed, done things wrong, or simply disappointed you?
• What would biblical compassion look like if you exhibited civility and respect, even for those who show little civility or respect for you?
• What would biblical compassion look like if you used your advantages and privileges to help those who are disadvantaged or those who have no privileges?
• What would biblical compassion look like if you placed the interests of others above your own interests?

Jon Walker is the teaching pastor for “The Purpose Driven Life Daily Devotionals,” and resident writer at www.GraceCreates.com. This devotional is copyrighted 2008 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.

By Jon Walker

The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians 2:14 (NIV)

It’s a book I’d been searching to find, so when I located it on the library shelf, I was jazzed. But as I approached the front desk, I felt the Holy Spirit check me.

You know what I mean? That “Holy nudge” the Newsboys sing about: “It’s like a circuit judge in the brain … a Spirit thing … There to guard my heart but hard to explain ….”

We know the Spirit of Christ is working within us, teaching us to think and act like Jesus – and so this counselor from God nudges, prompts, rebukes, and protects us as God writes the law on our hearts instead of stone tablets.

Responding to the Spirit’s nudge, I looked at the book in my hand. The cover didn’t give a clue as to why the Spirit was prompting me. In fact, my motive for reading the book was a very good one related to ministry.

Yet, I was certain the Spirit thing meant I wasn’t supposed to read the book. And, admittedly, I thought a few seconds about ignoring the Spirit’s direction. I mean, I couldn’t see anything wrong with it.

Then, like a child after weighing the pros and cons of disobedience, I turned around and put the book back on the shelf. My hesitant obedience emerged, not so much from an attempt to be pious, but from my memory of standing too many times on the wrong side of God’s direction. This child has burned his fingers enough that an argument with God over how hot the stove really is seems futile.

Isn’t that what faith must be? Trusting God when he tells us the burner is hot enough to hurt us – even if we don’t agree; trusting God when he tells us that reading what appears to be a harmless book will take us somewhere he doesn’t want us to go.

Becoming like Jesus means we develop discernment in spiritual matters: “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14, NIV)

Spirit Warning — A Spirit nudge may be a warning against impending danger, a Holy Ghost flare to guard your heart. Once, a friend of mine was driving toward a GREEN light, but he sensed an extraordinarily strong prompting from the Spirit to hit his breaks. My friend did, just as a semi-truck ran a red light in the perpendicular lane. Had it not been for his instant obedience, my friend would have been killed.

Spirit Stop Sign — A Spirit nudge may be a red flag from God telling you not to go there. A dog I owned years ago helped me understand this: He was used to being on a leash, and when I would take him to a neighbor’s field to run, I would simply say ‘No’ when he approached a place where he shouldn’t go. The dog had done nothing wrong; my warning was not a rebuke – it was a caution for his own protection.

Spirit Shush — My experience is, if we listen, God will give similar warnings when we’re in conversations. He may prompt us when were stepping too close to a sinful topic, or an unfair comment, or gossip.

God’s Spirit timing — Sometimes the Holy Spirit may be telling you the timing isn’t right. When I was in graduate school, I planned to buy a computer through an educational discount offered by the university.

But when I turned in my paperwork, they told me the program had been discontinued for a few months. I can remember being so angry at God.

Perhaps you’ve prayed in a similar fashion: “God, you know I need this (insert your own item). How am I going to afford this now?”

Then, under your breath, “God, are you sure you know what you’re doing? I think I could handle this … well, a lot better.”

About two months later, the university re-opened the computer discount program and – should I have been surprised – the computers available for purchase were up-graded models, bundled with software that had to be paid for two months earlier, and priced cheaper than the previous packages.

Can you say, ‘Spiritual egg on my face? “Okay, God! Got it! Maybe you do know what you’re doing?”

We have this Spirit inside us, and God wants us to listen to it. When we ignore it, there’s little difference between us and non-believers who live their lives disconnected and independent from God: “But people who aren’t Christians can’t understand these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them because only those who have the Spirit can understand what the Spirit means.” (1 Corinthians 2:14, NLT)

What does this mean?

• Be sensitive to the Spirit – Ask God to teach you to hear his still small voice and to be sensitive to promptings from the Spirit. Then, believe he will guide you through the many decisions and details of your life.
• Start an Obedience List – For the next few weeks, keep a list of all the times you sense the Spirit prompting you. This will help you learn to be sensitive to the Spirit, but it will also strengthen your resolve to be obedient to God’s guidance.
• Align with God’s Word – As you learn to walk in the Spirit, God will never ask you to do anything that violates his Word. Prompting will always line up with the Bible; however, they may not line up with your traditions.
• Blow it? Remember Grace – If you miss the prompting or disobey it, confess it to God and he will be faithful to forgive. Fall upon his grace, and remember that you are in the school of Christ. He knows you’re learning, and he wants to teach you.

Jon Walker is the teaching pastor for “The Purpose Driven Life Daily Devotionals,” and resident writer at www.GraceCreates.com. This devotional is copyrighted 2008 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.