Rebuilding Preview

Day 6 ||Proverbs 15: 22 - 33

In the 1980’s a proposal was made to build the world’s tallest building in Newark, NJ a city that was desperate for a renaissance. Some saw this project as the key of rebirth for the blighted city. So what happened to the proposed 1,750 foot tall ‘Grant USA Tower’? The builder went bankrupt in the mid 1980’s. Essentially, there was no realistic plan for a company that was just about bankrupt to complete such a task in the struggling city. So what about us and what about Nehemiah? Do we have a realistic plan, and what can we learn from the story of Nehemiah?

…“If it please Your Majesty, give me letters to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, instructing them to let me travel safely through their territories on my way to Judah. Nehemiah 2: 7 (also read verses 8 & 9)

It’s clear that we are to be a people of solutions and action, but equally we must also have a plan; a God plan. We can see that Nehemiah thoroughly thought through his strategy in going to Judah. He first prayed (1: 4 – 6), he then asked for permission honoring his authority even though the authority would have been considered ‘unrighteous’ (2:4). The advice of others is more valuable than gold in some situations. Lastly, Nehemiah made provisions for the journey and the challenges that realistically lie ahead by asking for letters of approval for the task he set out to accomplish (2: 7 -10).

1. Pray – Search for God’s plan and desire for your life or situation.
2. Seek Permission – This may be a boss, a spouse, a ministry leader or for others it may mean filling out a job or school application.
3. Make Provisions – What education, skills, time frame is realistic to accomplishing the goals you have set out for?

Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many counselors bring success.
- Proverbs 15:22

Prayer Emphasis: Reveal God’s plan not just my ‘good plan’.

Unstoppable

So there I was again, stuck in traffic and late when I saw natural life pushing through the cold man made concrete of the street barriers. I realized that when life is destined emerge it finds a way, even when circumstances are not ideal. If there is a dream that God has placed in one's heart or a talent that has been given to an artist, it simply must emerge. Sure dreams and art take hard work, time, money and often many failed attempts leading to doubt, but nonetheless life emerges. I realized that the natural life was not suppressed by the man made materials. Often we can have the man made pressures of life weigh heavily on us and threaten the greatness that God has placed within us. Most people cave under this pressure and simply conclude that their aspirations are too grand and must be relinquished. Though times and trials may be difficult, that which is truly alive is unstoppable.

After the Rain

'So it's another rainy day here in Jersey.' It's truly amazing how after several weeks of little rain people begin to complain that 'we need rain.' However, when it does rains for a few days the sentiment changes to 'will the rain ever stop?' It's very interesting that we often say that we long for the rain, but really what we desire is the effects of the rain. We want our plants, our grass and our reservoirs to prosper, but this often happens a day or two after the rain has stopped.
Spiritually speaking we often say we want God to pour out His Spirit, but when we go through uncomfortable times our reaction is to complain. Could it be that God's rain inconveniences us like natural rain, but produces great benefits after we have endured? What we desire is the end product of God's process, but we'd rather skip the journey to the blessing and just receive the good things.
As the rain saturates the earth it is preparing to sustain and possibly even germinate life, and often this is the case with trials or difficulties that produce the nutrients of success or breakthrough. We essentially go through a preparation process that rids us of unnecessary baggage and produces the character essential for growth. So today, it may seem gloomy and like you trapped inside a limited space, but be confident that the rain will end, the sun will come out tomorrow and the rain of today can very well produce a greater life for tomorrow.

2 Timothy 2:12
"If we endure hardship,we will reign with him.If we deny him,he will deny us."

Greatness

What would happen if we truly believed we were bound for greatness. Of course I am not talking about the material assumptions that are often prescribed by pop culture when I speak of greatness. With this understanding of greatness we would see our diligent and often monotonous efforts in light of the big picture and not merely the 'here and now'. We would see that we are striving for a greater day and the fulfillment of all we have worked for. The desire to demand immediate results would fade because we would recognize the magnitude of what God has called us to. It has been said that when God creates a squash He takes two months, but when He creates a mighty oak tree God takes one hundred years. Truly there is a process to greatness.
In light of planting a church we can hope for instant growth and stability, but even when there are great numbers of people true greatness is still associated with a process. I have adopted the saying that 'failure is often the refinery of life.' When we fail it is an opportunity to grow and avoid future failures; to rid ourselves of destructive habits, ideals and misunderstood realities.
Since the inception of this church we have seen great growth both numerically and as a family that genuinely cares for one another. However, we must have the reality that understands we are part of a great vision. We are not merely attending a church, but we are building a great work for the Kingdom of God for future generations. We may not have the luxuries of a building, multiple ministries, a full worship band and fringe benefits like day care discounts, but our goals are greater than ourselves. Our dreams are for the purposes of eternity that many might come to know the hope, joy and freedom of knowing Christ which is far greater than our wants to be satisfied. So to each church planter, and member of church that is focused on an eternal reward may you continue strive for changed lives of all who will be recipients of the sacrifices made to establish a work of Christ in your communities.

"If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones..."
- Jesus (Luke 16: 10a)

Rain

Just this past week I was sharing how God has drawn people from many directions to our church, but it seems like we've had very few from our town in particular. It could be that it's a mere 1.2 sq miles surrounded by many other towns, yet I don't think that is the case. I realized yesterday as I was trying to anchor a sign in the ground that hard and dry land is very difficult to work in. For farmers parched lands are simply unusable unless they invest some time and effort.
Could it be that God would desire the church to not only established new church plants in lush lands where many are open to the call of Spirit? God has called some to till the hardened soil, enrich it with the nutrients of prayer and fasting and wait until the Holy Spirit rains down the waters of the presence of God which will ultimately prepare the soil for seed.
In Jesus' parable of the seed and sower there was no fault with the seed which was symbolic of the Word of God. The main factor was the soil and it's condition to receive the seed(For deeper insight to this passage I encourage you to read Matthew 13: 1 - 23). Again, in this passage Jesus declares that the seed of God's Word will produce 100, 60 or 30 times what was originally sown. In other words when God allows His truth to transform one person's life it can effect many others as well. So let us work diligently to till the grounds of our communities in prayer, fasting and sharing the hope of Jesus, but let us remember that it is the Holy Spirit who completes the work (1 Cor 2: 10 - 12). Even as it may become difficult in the heat of life we must remember the words of Scripture:

"Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy"
Psalm 126:5

Made for This

As you drive down the street in our community you'll spot a ton of churches and some could ask: "why plant another church?" Of course as a church planter this thought crossed my mind as well, so I set off on a little investigation. What I found is that many of these 'historical' churches are as little as 25% full on Sundays with very little support from any congregation. So how do they exist? Well, all of these churches have daycares that serve as an economic engine for the church. However, is this what we the church was made for?If the church were created to be a daycare, then why would there by martyrs and why did Jesus die? We were made for so much more. To serve, heal, and save communities, families and individuals. These building can sometimes be held hostage from smaller new churches that are growing and in need of space. If churches are allowed to continue to be daycares that happen to have a few people that show up on Sunday, then we should be gravely concerned for the spiritual condition of families, communities and our society as a whole.
We trust God for all things and that includes space to gather and be a lighthouse for generations to come. However, let us pray earnestly that God will open the right space at the right for new churches so that we can exist and serve our community knowing that we were 'made for this!'

Nourish

It's amazing how the rain, sun and nutrients which are essential for life are readily available to all plant life. It seems as though all man needs to provide is seed to the soil. However, we often toil to produce fruits, vegetables and the greenest grass on the block. It's like that in life. We run to people for advice, experiences to exhilarate us and mindless activities to fill our time when God desires to nourish our soul with the warmth of His presence, the showers of His blessings and the truth of His Word to strengthen our spirit.
We find more often that the innovations of humankind lead to destruction and we'd be better off allowing God to be God. For a church or our individual lives we must be careful to not manipulate the natural moving of the Spirit of God in our lives. We can invent programs and try lure in better days, but I'd rather trust God, the creator of all things. He nourishes us with all we need.