Let God Be God...

We all have a pattern we follow. We all have a source we lean on. I want to encourage you to let God be your source and supply. You need to tell God that you’re going to look to Him alone to provide for your needs and that you won’t look anywhere else. We get ourselves in a mess when we confuse the channel with the source. God may use your paycheck from work as the channel to supply your needs, but your employer is just the channel for God’s provision—and God can shift to another channel anytime He wants. When you start to look to something or someone else to meet your needs – when you begin to confuse the channel with the source, a warning sign appears: Worry!

So when you look to your job as the source instead of the channel, you may start worrying, “What if I lose my job?” You know what? That channel may close, but the source of your every need is still active and providing for you. When God turns off one channel, He can turn on another one.

Once you know what you’re lacking, you need to give God the right to choose whatever channel He decides is best to fulfill the need. It may be a channel different from one you would choose; in fact, God may deliberately choose a different channel in order to teach you to keep looking to Him for all your needs.

Through following Christ for nearly thirty years, I have learned that it’s exciting to just let God be God. It’s exciting to watch God meet a need in a way that you never thought possible or could have never thought up on your own.

“Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.” 2 Corinthians 9:10

God alone is the source of your supply.

Growing Closer

Any successful relationship, whether it is at work or church, or with a neighbor, a parent, or a spouse, is built upon the biblical truth that God designed each of us with purpose -- the purpose to connect to Him, grow in Him, live in community, serve Him, and tell the world of Him.

We need to realize we were created and placed together for relationships and lifelong companionship. We sometimes find that some of our relationships are difficult, complicated, and exhausting, but once you understand God’s plan regarding your relationships (friend, boss, neighbor, spouse, etc.), it takes on new meaning. All of us were formed for God’s family. God made an incredible promise about the gathering of even just two believers: “For where two or three come together in My name, I am there with them.” (Matthew 18:20)

When we discover that God brings us together, whether in friendship or companionship, God is already in that friendship or marriage working to transform and direct the two of you into fulfilling His purpose. Your friendship, working relationship, neighborhood community, church, or marriage is a lab for learning how to love like Jesus loves. Within relationships, God has created an opportunity for us to develop a true genuine and authentic sharing of life with another human being.

If relationships are to move from a superficial level to a deeper level, it will require genuine, heart-to-heart, gut-level sharing where you get honest about who you are and what’s going on in your life. This happens when you can share your hurts, reveal your feelings, confess your failures, disclose your doubts, admit your fears, acknowledge your weaknesses, and ask each other for help.

Don’t forget one of those important relationships we will celebrate this weekend… our MOTHERS.

A Surrendered Life...

Surrender yourself to the Lord, and wait patiently for him. Psalm 37:7

What does a surrendered life look like? A surrendered life means:

• Following God's lead without knowing where he's sending you;
• Waiting for God's timing without knowing when it will come;
• Expecting a miracle without knowing how God will provide;
• Trusting God's purpose without understanding the circumstances.

You know you're surrendered to God when you rely on God to work things out instead of trying to manipulate the situation to your favor or forcing your agenda to the top. Surrender is letting go and letting God work. You don't have to always be in charge. Instead of trying harder, you just trust more.

You also know you're surrendered when you don't react to criticism and rush to defend yourself.
Surrendered hearts show up best in relationships. You are not self-serving, you don't edge others out, and you don't demand your rights.

The supreme example of a surrendered life is Jesus. The night before his crucifixion, Jesus surrendered himself to God's plan. He prayed, "Father, everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will, not mine." Mark 14:36.

Jesus surrendered himself to God's will. He prayed, "God, if it is in your best interest to remove this suffering, please do so. But if it fulfills your purpose, that's what I want, too." Genuine surrender says, "Father, regardless of the problem or circumstance, if it is needed to fulfill your purpose and glory in my life, please don't take it away!"

This level of maturity doesn't come easy. In Jesus' case, he agonized so much over God's plan that he sweated drops of blood. Surrender is hard work. In our case, it requires intense warfare against our self-centered nature.

You Are Free...

Jesus stated, “He who the Son sets free is free!” John 8:36

The world defines freedom as a life without any restraint—“Do anything I want to do; say anything I want to say, without anybody telling me ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’” The cultural mindset in America when it comes to freedom can best be seen in a song written some time ago that stated, “I did it my way…” Yet, the Bible says the only way to true freedom is through Jesus: When Jesus, God’s only Son, sets you free, then you will be really free.

Real freedom is freedom from fear; it’s where you’re truly free from guilt, from worry, from bitterness, and from death. You’re free to quit pretending because you’re free to be yourself. How do you get to that place in life? By letting God love you! The apostle John reminds us, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.” 1 John 4:18

When you realize how much God loves you, you’ll begin to live in true freedom. In fact, you worship God when you recognize that “God is love” and that you are the primary focus of His love.

LIFE MAP...

NOW FAITH is the confirmation of the things we hope for, being the proof of things we do not see and the firm conviction of their reality not revealed to our human senses [touch, taste, feel, hear and see]. Hebrews 11:1

Dictionaries usually define conviction as a fixed or strong belief. Conviction is really much more than that. Your convictions include your values, commitments, and motivations. I like the definition of conviction I read the other day: "A belief is something you will argue about. A conviction is something you will die for!"

Our convictions determine our conduct. They motivate us to act in certain ways. Do you remember when you first began to follow Christ? You found yourself following what other Christians were doing and role modeling. You may pray, read the Bible, and attend services because you see the examples of others. This is totally ok. It is what we call “learned behavior.” Our children learn the same way by watching us. However, as we grow, we are challenged to develop our own reasons for doing what we do. Those reasons become our convictions. Those convictions, values, and commitments become our LIFE MAP.

God convictions are essential for spiritual growth and maturity. Those convictions we discover from His Word -- from Scripture -- reveal to us what are major convictions and what are minor convictions. What is ironic today is that people often have strong convictions about weak issues (football, fashions, politics, etc.), while having weak convictions about major issues (what is right and what is wrong).

Think about your walk with Jesus and make a list of the convictions you now hold. Ask yourself, “Am I majoring on the minors, and have I allowed the minors to be major?”

Let God’s convictions become your LIFE MAP.

Your Genesis

“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10). God spoke the world into existence, and God spoke you into your mother’s womb. Even now, he can speak into the chaos and confusion of your life to bring it shape and form.

This is what a Genesis event is. It is where God speaks into the void and the darkness of your life creating for you a new beginning -- a fresh start. God can create something from nothing; he can take a heart that is broken, impure, or failed and create a heart that is whole, pure, and purposeful. God wants to see you pure, so he takes an active role in creating your new heart and bringing order to the chaos of your life. God gives us one responsibility in tough times… submit to his sovereignty, humble ourselves before Him, and ask for his help and trust that He has heard us and is in control. Let God speak a Genesis moment into your heart and into the circumstances of your life. Let me encourage you to acknowledge that “everything that you have--right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start--comes from God by way of Jesus Christ.”

Make this your prayer: “God renew in me a firm and focused spirit, no longer chaotic or moved by events, circumstances, or feelings. God shape my life by You and by your Spirit flowing through me.”

Give God your chaos. Let God speak into your life creating a new beginning, a new hope, and a new energy. Let God, make a fresh start in you, and shape a Genesis week from the chaos of life.

Fresh Start...

“Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life, and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven…” 1 Peter 1:3-4 (MSG).

Evidently, a lot of people would like to have a fresh start in life. If you type the phrase “fresh start” into Google on the Internet, it brings up about 485,000 links! A lot of people would like a fresh start. They think, “I’ve blown it; I’ve messed up; I’ve really made a mess of things in my life. I’d like a fresh start.” Jesus is in the business of giving people a fresh start. The apostle Peter says, “Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life, and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven” (1 Peter 1:3-4).

Several things happen once you give your life to Christ:

1. You open up your life to God and get to know Him.
2. You’re given a brand-new life, which gives you everything to live for.
3. You get a future in heaven.

Here is an encouraging way to see the benefits of Jesus resurrecting from the grave: You get your past forgiven; you get a purpose for living; and you get a home in heaven. What a deal! Your past, present, and future are taken care of as you put your trust in Jesus. A fresh start!

“Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ” 1 Corinthians 1:30-31 (MSG)

Invite someone with you this Easter weekend to hear this incredible news.