How Does God Lead You?

Close your eyes for a moment and think of God. When you think of God, what do you see?

Now, think of a current circumstance that you aren’t quite sure about, or you’re wrestling with, a decision that you’re not sure how to make, or a desire that you are submitting to the Lord. It has to be current—this is important. Now, thinking about that thing, close your eyes for a moment and think of God. Think of what He is thinking about you and how you are going through that circumstance or decision. When you think of God at those times, what do you see? What is God’s demeanor toward you in that situation? And lastly, how does God lead you?

That exercise is a little abstract and I am not an abstract individual, being an engineer that likes clear guidelines, simple rules, and logic. But I think it is an important exercise because it can be revealing of our mental constructs of God…God as we perceive Him, not necessary God as He is.

The reason for the exercise above is that I’m trying to share with you my recent experience and realization of my flawed perception of God. Specifically, concerning some things that I’ve been praying about recently. This is because my view of Him is too often as the tester and me the test taker. Granted, we do at times receive tests from God and you can see some examples in Scripture; however, I have a very incomplete view of God when I’m calling on His help and direction if I think He is looking at me merely as a tester, simply setting a standard that I cannot reach and can therefore never fully please Him or quite get it right without significant mistakes.

This may sound a little harsh, but I have found that it can be a common view of God. And I’m thankful for the self-realization that I have at times been viewing a perfect, loving, sovereign Father as simply a tester…at least in my mental image of Him in these specific situations. Here’s a fact for you and me: we will come across numerous decisions that are of very high importance and a very high degree of difficulty to discern what is best. There are many reasons for this: limited human knowledge and foresight, yet to be developed faith and relationship with God, temptations and spiritual warfare, and a general difficulty in sorting out the good from the best. God’s plans are always not only good, but the best. Additionally, even in less important decisions that aren’t the highest degree of difficulty, we can easily feel lost without a compass or map.

It can be difficult to separate the affinities of our human flesh from the desires of God. We need a mechanism to hear from Him. A mechanism to be led. Without that mechanism, no matter how wise we have been blessed to be, no matter how logical, no matter what our track record of good decisions, without His guidance we will make many terrible decisions and find ourselves far from His good and pleasing will.

This sounds a little scary and it should. We should be scared to death to walk out from the care and protection of our Father God. We stand in His protection even as we rebel against Him and only on rare occasion does He grace us with the experience of His hand removed from our lives. I say “grace us” with that because it is a supreme reality check that will drive the believer—one who knows a relationship with Jesus—to recognize the error of his ways and come running back to the open arms of our God. Rebellion has been exterminated in that moment. I know because I have experienced it, and I am thankful for God’s perfect way of chastening those whom He loves, including you and me (Heb 12:5-6).

Back to the principal question: How does God lead you? The fact of the matter is that He leads you as a Father. Think of your father or mother or whomever has held authority over you and loves you more than anyone else you know…it could be anyone, so long as they love you and have had an influential role in your life. Imagine wondering, “should I go left or should I go right?” when doing so will have a potentially major impact on your life and you literally have no information about either road. Now think about asking that loving person in your life which way you should go. Now imagine that they have perfect knowledge of each road and a perfect desire for your best well-being. Could you trust them with the direction they give you when you ask? Most certainly.

I have painted this picture of a perfect person in the attempt to display God’s character and relationship with each of us. But I believe this is a very good picture of our God. For me, I think of my Dad. I have full confidence that my Dad will lead me in the way that he thinks is best and that he will do just about anything within his power to enable me down the right road or prevent me from the wrong road. I have no doubt and full confidence in the love of my Dad and his intentions. However, my Dad is a man, just like you and me, with limited knowledge and foresight. So intention is not enough. My point is that I can see God a little more clearly with this example in mind, except with perfect knowledge and foresight. Can I trust Him to lead me? Absolutely! Is He sitting in Heaven with His arms crossed, wondering if I can pass the test? I don’t think so. You see, I think when we approach our Father in Heaven with a sincere plea for His hand and face to guide us unto His preferred will, I think He is bent forward, looking intently at us with joy, and doing His utmost to guide us on His path. This is not the picture of a simple “tester.” This is the picture of a loving Father. A most capable Father.

With this view, we can have every confidence that God will absolutely not lead us whatsoever into any bad paths and decisions. Unfortunately, just as with my earthly father, I do have the option of disobedience and ignoring him. God allows that. But He continues to speak right through it. And if we will turn our ear toward Him, we will hear a Father…a real Father, who is fighting for us with fierceness…who is absolutely doing everything we need to guide us unto the His preferred path. I hope that you can take confidence in that. You don’t have to wonder what God’s response is to your prayer—His response is to absolutely guide and direct you down the correct roads. Never stop listening.

You may rightly ask, “But I just don’t know how to listen. I just don’t hear anything. How would I even know His voice? I’m not sure I’ve ever heard it, and if I did, how would I know it was of Him and not of me?” I hypothesize that you have had these thoughts simply because these are my thoughts. Yet, when I look back, I see His hand clearly even when I didn’t perceive it in real time. One thing I’ve noticed: God sometimes speaks very boldly and loudly, but in my experience, He is usually soft spoken and subtle. I have heard it said that the loudest man in the room is the most insecure. I’ll give room for individual personalities and acknowledge that some people are just naturally loud and God uses that. However, the statement paints the picture that the volume of speech is not necessarily an indicator of the authority of the individual. Someone with authority will raise his voice and others are quieted and listen. Someone with even greater authority will simply talk in a low voice and others will be quieted and listen.

God needs only to whisper and matter can be arranged, created, or destroyed. He can literally breathe life into something or withdraw its life. This is a God that needs only to whisper His commands and we should be so intent on His voice that we respond. Nevertheless, this truth does not offer practical help to one asking the questions in the previous paragraph. A reasonable response might be, “I know what I should do and be, but that doesn’t help me do it.” Indeed. There are two principal means by which God will speak to you…personally. Through His Word and in prayer. Remember, we have this promise:

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30 I and My Father are one.” - John 10:27-30

How do we become good, attentive sheep who know the voice of Jesus, our Counselor? It takes some time and effort to grow in tune with our Shepherd’s voice. Think about training an untrained dog. The first time you ask your dog to sit, does he or she sit? Of course not. In time, if you are patient and persistent, and your dog continues to pay attention to you, respecting you and desiring to please you, your dog will learn to sit. In fact, you will both soon enjoy the exercise. Now, please don’t be insulted when I say that we are similar to dogs here. However, I think the gap between us as humans and Creator God is greater than the gap between dog and human. We didn’t create that dog. So the analogy holds, I believe. The point is that we turn toward our Father God with respect and a desire to please Him. God is in turn very patient and persistent. And though we struggle at the beginning, in time, if we will not give up, we will find ourselves learning His commands and obeying with mutual joy. This training is accomplished by time in the Word and prayer, which through the assurance of God's Holy Spirit, we can receive His perfect instruction.

"But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you." - John 14:26

Resolve to spend time in the Bible with sincere attention, and absolutely commit yourself to consistent time in prayer, and I can assure you that your Shepherd’s voice will become clearer than ever. Until then, while you’re gritting it out in the unknown, take a step forward in confidence, calling on your Father God. He will not let you go far down the wrong path before helping you toward the right direction. In fact, He is guiding you to His best right now.

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” -Jer 29:11

Amen.

Men: A Challenge and a Dare

I found out a couple hours ago that apparently today is National Man Day. I chuckle as I'm amused by that. However, what is interesting is that I was inspired to write the post below last night, before knowledge of Man Day, because I attended a prayer gathering to intercede for those captive in human trafficking in India and the multitude of lost souls in that country...and out of about 50 attendees, there were 5-7 men. Woman are welcomed and you represented so well! But men, we need to step up to the plate.

Men: A Challenge and a Dare

Men, I am challenging you personally. As one man to another, I am questioning your manhood. That’s right, feel that surge through your body as your manhood is questioned. Prove me wrong. I dare you.

Men: Stand up and take your place in God’s Kingdom as a man. It’s time we all manned-up and stopped making all of our cowardly excuses, but instead stepped forward with manly boldness, taking swift and powerful action for God’s Kingdom.

Men, there are helpless women and children all around this entire earth, all around this nation, all around your city…and even all around your neighborhood. They need our help. Men, they need your help.

When will we as men step up into our godly roles as leaders, providers, and protectors? Are you doing it now? I don’t believe either of us is taking the full responsibility God has envisioned for us…Men of God.

When it comes to leading, providing, and protecting, how far is your vision? Too many of us are so self-focused that we don’t care for anyone outside of our immediate families…if we even care for our own families. But for those who do lead, provide, and protect their families, why do you stop there? Why do you limit your usefulness in God’s hands? When will we realize that the world’s entire population has been entrusted to our hands as servants of the living God—our responsibilities are so much greater than we comprehend! If you have been blessed to have the means to provide for yourself and/or your family, then I would wager that you have been blessed to provide for others outside your family.

There are millions…millions!...of abused and dying widows and orphans, the oppressed and the fatherless who have no one to defend them. Who will defend them? I make a promise before you now—I will. Will you? Who will step up with me and fight the good fight for the vulnerable and hopeless? Who will dare to be a man to take on the entire world of evil through the power of Christ? Are we afraid of failure? Nonsense—we have Christ! (1) Are we afraid of looking foolish in the world’s eyes? Nonsense—this is the life of Christ! (2) The world is severely deficient of men who will spend themselves for others…we are so self-absorbed, and it even shows itself when we care for our own families but never reach beyond them. The world needs men to pack up and go where God needs them to go. The world needs men to ante up and give money to those in greatest need or those who are physically going to help those in need. The world needs men to gear up in prayer, fighting the tenuous, glorious and intense spiritual battle for billions of lost souls. Yes, billions. (Roughly 2 billion in India and China alone.)

I’m talking about engaging in real, fervent prayer for those captive in sex-slavery, those diseased with no hope, and those facing eternal damnation for lack of discipling from real men. I’m talking about the kind of prayer that rips your heart out of your chest because you are so burdened and passionate for the lost. I’m talking about the kind of prayer that drains you of all energy because you have utterly spent yourself on the behalf of the defenseless. I’m talking about the kind of prayer that uplifts, energizes, and fills you with joy because you have entered the presence of God and see the fruit of yours and His labor. I’m talking about fighting the real fight with all that we have, standing up as mighty men of valor!

Moses. Gideon. Jonah. These men resisted or ran from God when He called them. Gideon was called a "mighty man of valor" by God Himself and still was not confident that he had the strength to do what God called him to do! (3) Moses said, "Who am I, Lord" to bring a nation out of captivity.(4) But in every case, God made them into what He told them they were and they did amazing things for the Lord's people. Let's take a lesson here. Here is what God has said about you: you are his child (5), you are his friend (6), you are chosen by him (7), your purpose will be completed (8), you will face nothing you cannot withstand (9), and you are a mighty conqueror through Christ!(1) I pray that you remember these promises and truths and live them out.

There are two camps. The first camp is made of men who say, “Those guys are doing it. That’s enough, as long as someone is doing it. They’re doing it…so I don’t have to.” The second camp is made of men who can say, “I’m doing my small part, but if only everyone would just do their small part!” Are you in the camp that if the entire rest of the world looked like you and cared for their families but no one else, then not a single widow or orphan would be cared for? Or are you in the camp that if the entire rest of the world looked like you and did only their small part for the defenseless, then all would be exceedingly and abundantly cared for?

We don’t need to save every sex-slave ourselves, we don’t need to feed every homeless person through the church we attend, and we don’t need to save every soul through the missions organizations we have access to…in fact, we cannot achieve all of that as singular individuals. But what we do need to do is step up and allow God’s love to push us into being utterly spent on the behalf of the world. These are God’s creation—and they are suffering immediately and dying eternally for lack of real men who will stand up to our duty! Our country’s military goes out and fights for much more than their families. Yes, they certainly fight for their families and that is likely a predominant motivation…but in doing so, they fight for all our families…they fight for me…they fight for you. Who are you fighting for? Can you fight for more? Can you take the world under your wing in prayer? You cannot do it alone. You and I will first need Christ, and secondly we will need each other. But with Christ, and with each other, we can take responsibility to fight the good fight for every sex-slave, every disease-ridden orphan, and every lost soul on this earth. What would happen if we each just did our small part?

I thank those of you who are doing your part—please be encouraged to keep the faith and run the race well, for many run with you. But everyone should ask themselves these questions: "What if every person in the world cared for the defenseless and lost in the exact same way I care? What if every single person devoted the same amount of time to real, fervent prayer as I do? Would anything change or would the world continue to deteriorate?" Or what if we made the commitment to step up as real men, dare to take the seemingly insurmountable challenge in all boldness and courage through Christ, such that the entire world might be changed.

Take a moment and imagine if your daughter…or your wife…or your sister…or your mother…became a sex-slave tomorrow morning.

What would you do for them? Would you pray fervently and follow the Lord’s leading as He promised to rescue them? I pray that your eyes are opened to see with God’s eyes and come to the grim understanding that your daughters, your wife, your mother, and your sisters in India or other countries…these precious ones are already enslaved, diseased and dying, and facing eternal separation from God…simply because no one has come to their rescue.

Men, the time has come to stand up. Take your place as a mighty warrior. You have been called to the battlefield. Will you back down and run from the enemy, sacrificing billions of lives in your cowardice or laziness? Or will you dare to put on the full armor of God, to withstand all, and after withstanding all, to stand.(10) If so, you will not stand alone. I pray that you and I stand together with Christ in the gap for the precious lost. I pray that our prayers might be powerful and effective.(11) I pray that God will absolutely inhabit our prayers.(12) I pray for the power of Almighty God and the blood of Jesus Christ to cover billions more. I pray that we would be His vessels, His instruments, and His warriors that He would grace with the opportunity to be His hands and feet. Amen.

1 - Rom 8:37-39
2 - 1 Cor 1:18-25
3 - Judges 6:11-7:25
4 - Exodus 3:1-12 and the rest of the book
5 - John 1:12-13, Rom 8:13-18, 2 Cor 6:18, Gal 3:26-28, 1 John 3:1
6 - John 15:12-15
7 - John 15:16-17
8 - Phil 1:4-6
9 - 1 Cor 10:13
10 - Eph 6:10-18
11 - James 5:16
12 - Psalm 22:3-5 (KJV)

"My Work" vs. the Holy Spirit

About a month ago, I had the true privilege of giving the message at Church in the Park in Houston, TX, a ministry to the homeless every Saturday. I am not new to public speaking, but I am very new to preaching, as my first experience was only 6 months prior. As usual, in the days and weeks leading up to giving the message, I was giving a lot of thought and prayer to what message God might want to speak through me and how to deliver it.

The story I’m telling you today amazed me because it revealed something very simple about God, yet it was so profoundly communicated to me by Him through the experience.

In preparing for a sermon, you search for the most impactful illustrations and analogies, for the most insightful scriptural cross-references, and you pray that the Lord would not only give you the words to speak, but also, no matter what words leave your mouth, that they would be received by the ears of others with the Holy Spirit’s impactful guidance. And I even sometimes drive myself to the point of worry…something we are instructed by God not to do (1)…in this process. Isn’t it interesting how even good work on our Lord’s behalf, if we are not absolutely centered on Him, can be the things that drive us from Him? In my case, I’m thankful that He convicted me of my worry and replaced it with peace (mostly, anyway). But the lesson remains that “Christian work” can be the very thing that hinders our relationship with our Lord if our hearts are set on the work and not absolutely and simply set on Him alone.

On that Saturday morning, I felt well-prepared, and I thank the Lord for that. I delivered the sermon in a manner that I was pleased with…sometimes afterward you realize that, “oops, I forgot something!” Or, “That came out very awkwardly…I should reword all of that.” And your greatest fear is that you might lead someone astray through your own ignorance of God’s Word, combined with overzealousness. It is an amazing responsibility. But on this morning, I praised the Lord that it seemed to be very well received by those in attendance.

Afterwards, several people were standing up front to pray with anyone who desired it. As I stood at the front, I was the single person who no one approached to pray with. Others would actually stand in line to pray with another prayer partner, glancing briefly at me, making eye contact then looking away and waiting their turn. I thought, “Lord, why is no one praying with me? Please make me approachable! I enjoy this as much or more than the preaching. Please make me welcoming so that others will feel comfortable praying with me.”

No one prayed with me. That is, until near the end, a man walked up who looked a little disoriented. I spoke up and asked him how he was doing. He asked what was going on. I told him that we were praying with people at the end of the service and breakfast would be served soon. He walked over toward me, and this began a series of events that have remained burned in my memory.

He spoke, but I couldn’t quite make out every word. I thought, “Did he just say he wanted to give His life to Jesus?” I looked at him almost stunned for about 2 seconds, then I actually asked him, “What did you just say?” I laugh at myself now, firstly because I was so shocked that he was giving his life to Christ, and secondly that I actually asked him to repeat it. But I did want to be sure. He affirmed. He wanted to go right up front and be prayed over and to give his life to Christ!

After praying with him and doing some discipling on what it really means to be saved by Jesus Christ, he shared a little bit more. He said that he didn’t even come to the service. He was sitting on a bench several blocks away and knew that the service was going on. Then, in his words, “Something told me I needed to get up and go to the alter call.” When he arrived, he ran into me, and by the end of the morning, he had accepted salvation from our Lord Jesus Christ.

What a joy this was! The first time I had ever personally taken part in another’s declaration of belief in Jesus. What floored me even more was the fact that the one man who gave his life to Christ that morning—was the man who didn’t hear a word of my sermon. I absolutely love this because it is such a declaration of the power being of God and not of us!(2) After all of my toil and worry about having just the right words…it became apparent that all that mattered was that I and we were obediently in the appointed place at the appointed time…and the rest of the work—the real transforming work—would be accomplished by the Holy Spirit.

Brothers and sisters, the pressure is off. Do not feel that you need to have the right words or be further educated in scriptures. If you want to invest your time and energy to being more effective in spreading the Good News of Christ, spend your time and energy in simply being obedient to His call and giving yourself to prayer. In the middle, a diligent worker will certainly prepare to the best of his/her abilities—this is being a good steward—but do not fret over that! Simply go and be. Go where God leads and abide in Him, His word and prayer, and I can testify with confidence that the Holy Spirit will do wonders with your tiniest of offerings. Remember, not one person who heard my sermon came forward to receive Christ that day, but the one who didn’t hear a single word did. May you be blessed with the similar experiences, time and time again. I pray that we both are so blessed. Amen.

1 - Matt 6:25-34, 1 Cor 4:20

2 - 1 Cor 3:5-9, 2 Cor 4:1, 1 Cor 2:5

You can listen to the sermon from Church in the Park that morning by following this link to the blog post: Relationship with God - Church in the Park Message

The Distinguished Graduation – My Pappa

About a week ago, I received an inevitable phone call that you always hope is far into the future. My grandpa had died only minutes beforehand. After receiving the news, I decided to pray and open my Bible. What I read in 2 Corinthians inspired me to write the following eulogy for my grandpa to honor him and comfort my family:

The Distinguished Graduation – My Pappa

My Pappa. One of the things that we always enjoyed together—and many of you enjoyed with him, too—is baseball. In his younger days, Pappa could really play baseball, couldn’t he? I mean, how cool is it to be a pitcher and have a nickname like Cannonball? In fact, I would guess that there is a great number of people who never knew his real first name, but they knew Cannonball Walls…and they probably said it with much more affection if they were on his team and not trying to catch up to that inside fastball!

Last May I was fortunate to play catch with him one more time. I was fresh off of ACL surgery and his shoulder didn’t have much left…but we were able to play catch for 5 or 10 minutes, maybe 30 feet apart. I’m very glad that we took that opportunity and it’s something that I will remember for a long time.

Well, it is the month of June and graduation days are upon us. Many of you have probably attended a graduation recently. Large celebrations inside NFL-sized stadiums, as well as quaint country gatherings, mark the end of a season in life and the beginning of summer and whatever is next for each young honoree.

This is the time of year that we celebrate achievement and usher graduates onward to bigger and better things, whether it is into meticulous preparation for things much farther away or into immediate life practicing that which we spent our time, energy, and possessions to learn.

I say to you that we are gathered here today for a graduation. A much distinguished Graduation with a capital “G.” This is the Graduation of my Pappa, for he has learned, loved, and lived for this day, whether full-knowingly or unknowingly. He surely knows it now. And we praise our Father in Heaven and Savior Jesus Christ for my Pappa’s most distinguished Graduation. I would like to usher Pappa, our beloved graduate, into the bigger and better thing that awaits him with 2 Cor 4:16-5:8.

This passage was written to Christians with the promise of God’s grace to believers in Christ:

2 Cor 4:16 – 5:8 (emphasis added) -

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. ² For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, ³ if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. ⁴ For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

⁶ So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. ⁷For we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.”

Pappa is now absent from his body…but present with the Lord. He has walked by faith on this earth, and now he walks by sight, being further clothed with the righteousness of God, that his mortality and earthly life is not swallowed up by death…no, as 2 Cor 5:4 assures us, he has been swallowed up by Life eternal and abundant.

Thank you, Pappa, for walking by faith on this earth. Thank you for teaching me all about pitching and sharing great stories of baseball and your life. Thank you most for your love, which I felt to be unconditional, a glimmer of the love of our Father in Heaven, whom you now know better than ever.

In view of these truths, though we mourn his physical absence from our lives, I encourage you to celebrate a life well lived, a death that brings glory to God, and eternal life in the splendor of Heaven for our beloved Pappa, Cannonball Walls.

Year in Review: May

Continuing with the "Year In Review" posts, looking back to May of last year. Highlighted posts:

Prayer: The Heart, the Tongue, and the Spirit

SUNDAY, MAY 30, 2010

...When our words match our hearts, though they may be cumbersome, inadequate and slow, I believe this honesty, transparency and genuineness pleases Him. Perhaps as a

lead note is struck or sung with a perfect harmony... (read more)

Clearing the Temple

SUNDAY, MAY 30, 2010

...Here’s a relevant question: Would Jesus clear your temple today? Realize that our bodies are

the “temple of the Holy Spirit..."

(read more)

Are You Living the Dream?

FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2010

Think of a blind man. Think about how you can see. Realize that every day you’re living his dream.
We often say “I’d give up anything for that..." (read more)

The Faith to Persevere

SATURDAY, MAY 8, 2010

...In reaction to the thought that we might resist saying, "I cannot stand anymore," we might be inspired to hold on a little longer, to learn a deeper patience and faith in God. I hope that is your reaction! But within that, beware the part of your reaction that says... (read more)