On Campus with Christ

Answer this multiple choice question:
“What is the quickest way to gain your attention?”
            a. Someone softly speaking.
            b. A hand on the shoulder.
            c. Someone waving.
            d. A punch in the arm.

I would argue that a punch in the arm will gain our attention the quickest.  Often times we are in our own little world, headphones in our ears, or cell phone consuming our attention that none of the first three choices affect us or gain our attention, like a punch in the arm!

C.S. Lewis wrote, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains- it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

As I’m preaching through the book of Job, I’m realizing the validity and truth behind this quote in an ever-increasing way.  We all face hurts, sorrow and suffering in this world.  Where do we turn for answers?  Where do we turn for comfort?

As I read about these huge disasters that have rocked our world these past couple years, there are some amazing God-stories that rise from the ashes.  As I talk with people who went through serious heartaches and deep sorrow, God emerges as the hero.  As I experience trauma in my own life, I see the fingerprints of God as He is at work through the trials and suffering in my life.

Psalm 76:23 says “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Perhaps you just experienced a punch in the arm.  Maybe your arm is bruised from all the punches!  The question for you today is “Do you trust God?”  “Is God your strength and your portion?”

The longer I live, the more I see God using the megaphone of pain to get my attention.  In each and every ‘disaster’, God is at work.  Do you see Him? 

Just a thought for this morning.

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

If you’ve ever received an e-mail from you, you would know that I close the e-mail by writing “Blessings” before my signature.  Many pay little attention to this…perhaps as much as one does to any closure to an e-mail.  Yet I do it not for closure sake, but purposefully as I desire to be a person that is a blessing in the life of others and speaks blessings over people around me.

According to our English Dictionary, the word blessing means “favored by God.”  If one says “Have a blessed Christmas”, it means “May you experience the favor of God this Christmas season.”

Once a month, I pray the “Seven Blessings Prayer” over my family [see below].  This prayer reminds me that “Every good and perfect gift is from above…” –James 1:17.  When praying for these blessings over my family, I am asking requesting the presence of God into each area that greatly influences my family, and each member in my family.  To me, there is nothing greater than requesting God’s presence be infiltrated in and through one’s family and each family member.

I had the great privilege to share with my church family in Appleton yesterday.  While speaking mainly on being a person of vision, I felt the Holy Spirit prompting me to remind them of the Colossians 1:24-29 passage.  Paul relates that he has been commissioned by God to “present the word of God in its fullness”.  Just as he was commissioned, so are we, Christ-followers…commissioned to make known the mystery revealed – “…Christ in you, the hope of glory.” 

Blessings.

It’s a simple word…yet carries great meaning and implication.  Chapter one of Colossians ends this way: “He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ.  To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.” 

An e-mail closing or closure to a letter may be simple…but if I can speak a word of blessing over each person I communicate with, to me that is fulfilling a portion of what I am commissioned by God to do. 

As you move on this day, may you be a blessing to those around you.

Blessings,
Jeremy

Seven Blessings for Families

 “Come, Holy Spirit, into our greatest needs and give us a revelation of Jesus.”

I pray a Spiritual blessing.  Come, Holy Spirit, give our family a revelation of God as Abba, Father.  Give us a love relationship with Jesus so strong that we cannot resist Him.  Give us sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and hunger and thirst for righteousness that conforms our conscience to the Word of God.   Create in us the fear of the Lord in relation to sin and genuine repentance.  Give us holy joy in abiding in You.

I pray an Emotional blessing.  Come, give our family a revelation of Jesus as healer of emotions.  Release healing to remove the ground for bondages (rejection, failure, resentment, jealousy, shame, etc.).  Let us choose forgiveness for ourselves and others.  Give us freedom from fear because God never fails us.  Grant us a strong sense of hope to believe God for His promises.

I pray a Mental blessing.  Come, Spirit of truth, and remove blinders of deception from our minds, so that we may know the truth and have godly wisdom and discernment.

I pray a Personal blessing.  Come, give us a sense of our personal value in Christ.  Plant in us God-given vision for Your calling on our lives.  Give us favor with God and with man.

I pray the blessing of right relationship with authority.  Come, teach us submission to God-given authority and counsel.  Direct us toward right loyalties, godly soul ties, and healthy friendships that encourage us in our walk with You.

I pray a Physical blessing.  Come, cover us with Your protective hedge of safety, strength, and good health.  We plead Psalm 91.

I pray a Financial blessing.  Come, give us Your provision and right relationship to what You give.  Let us acknowledge You as our Source and Provider. 

I pray blessings.  I speak blessings.  I choose to be a blessing.

For the past week, I have been listening to Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. speech,  “I have a dream.”  This fifteen minute speech is brilliantly crafted, spoken with passion, powerful words, and the persuasive call that sparked a revolution in America.  I have a great respect and appreciation for men and women who are great visionaries; who use the power of words to inspire, bring hope and lead a revolution.

God used Rev. Martin Luther King to change a nation.

August 28^th, 1963.  Less than fifty years ago these words rang from our nation’s capital.  It was a demonstration march for freedom.  A demonstration that changed the fabric of our nation and a culture that was removed from it’s founding truths. 

Rev. King used a humble approach in this infamous speech.  He speaks words of encouragement: “Let us not wallow in the valley of despair…”  Calling those affected by hurts and injustice to not hold onto bitterness or live in despair.  Turn to God in your time of need.  He tells those who were there for the demonstration to “go back” to your state and your position in society…not with despair, but with hope that things will change for the better.

He calls America back to its roots:  “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up, and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal…’”  Powerful.  Persuasive.

One line that stands out to me the most is during the “I have a dream” part where he says: “I have a dream, that one day my four little children will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”

Character is word in this society that has very little value.  We use it in the sense of a TV show, or cartoon character.  But what about the moral and ethical quality of an individual?  Qualities of honesty, courage, or integrity…these are words of character that should be frontrunners when we look at an individual.  Rev. King is correct that we should not judge someone because of their skin color, but are we judging people on character…or other shallow values?  Wealth.  Status in society.  Clothing they wear.  Car they drive.  House they live in.  Character ought to be a high value in our assessment of an individual.

Today, I am thankful for Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.  God used him to spark a revolution, to change the fabric of society. 

To listen/watch the entire fifteen minutes of this speech, go to:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smEqnnklfYs