Living Water Church

I was praying for myself this week in my time with the Lord.  As I considered and prayed about my own weaknesses, I felt like the Lord gave me this prayer to pray for myself.  It so touched me that I wrote it down so that I could pray it over myself again.

Lord, give me gentleness beyond my personality;

give me wisdom beyond my years;

give me forgiveness beyond my strength;

give me loving-kindness beyond my emotions.

I find that it is so easy to react to “things” based on my personality.  So in essence, my prayer is asking God to help me go beyond that which is my natural inclination.  For example, I have a strong, lion-type personality.  So, it is easy for me to speak with authority but it’s not so natural for me to speak with gentleness.  In my prayer, I am asking God to help me “go beyond” that which is natural.

You are different from me.  You have a different personality with different strengths and weaknesses.  So this prayer might not work for you.  But consider putting in your own “go beyond” phrases.  I want to be a person that is not ruled by my personality.  Nor, do I want to be ruled by my strengths, my weaknesses, or my natural inclinations.  My cry is that the Holy Spirit will reign in me.

The last 2 Sundays I have given sermons on the topics of waiting and fear.  These are two areas that many of us, including myself, have to face and deal with frequently.  Why is waiting so hard?  Why do we easily become fearful?  Perhaps because we don’t feel like we are in control.  I love to feel in control… of my life, of my circumstances, of my feelings.  I hate it when things feel like they are spiraling out of control.

But you know what, God likes to be in control too.  In fact, for Him it isn’t just a feeling, it’s a reality.  He is in control.  Sometimes I think He sits up in heaven amused by our vain attempts to control our circumstances.  He seems to let us go on for awhile, feeling like we’re in control.  Then often (for our own good) he throws in a curve ball.  And the test is this – how do we react?   Do we get angry at life’s troubles?  Do we get fearful?  Do we just pull up our boot straps and try to regain control?  We all react differently to hard circumstances.

When God allows life to get rocky, He is after something in us.  When we are “in control” we tend to trust in ourselves.  But, when life gets difficult, and we feel things are out of control, God wants us to surrender and just trust in Him.  Ps. 138:8 comforts me.  It says, “The Lord will work out His plans for my life—for Your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.”

David McNabb’s message last week was amazing.  I was impacted by his thoughts on evangelism.  Sometimes I’m silent about my faith because I don’t want to offend someone.  So because I fear being pushy, I don’t say anything at all.  Can you relate?   Additionally, I have reacted to Christians who try to argue someone “into the kingdom.”  The problem is that if we can “argue someone in” the enemy will send someone behind us to “argue them back out.”

It seems like the enemy’s strategy is to attack us on both ends—on one hand, get us to remain silent.  Or on the opposite extreme, we can drown someone with the Gospel.  I have been guilty of both.

So what David said really impacted me.  He talked about how he simply lives his faith.  It’s the basis for everything He does.  For the customers he encounters on a daily basis, he prays for God to bring them to salvation.  He shows people kindness and mercy.  He acts justly.  He is a servant.  Ultimately, he just shows love and care for everyone he encounters.  He lives his faith by action and deed.

In a world dominated by self-love and selfishness, people are starving for love.  David’s life exudes joy and peace.  He is kind and considerate.  As he cares for those around him, people keep wondering what is different about him.  And ultimately, they want what he has—hope in a Savior.  “They will know that we are Christians by our love.”  Live your faith.

In the last few weeks I have found myself singing the same song over and over again.  Yes, it’s stuck in my mind.  But in all truth, I think it’s a song that the Lord has instilled within me.  He wants the truths declared in this song to penetrate my very being.  The song’s chorus declares,

“It’s all about You, Jesus.  And all this is for You,
for Your glory and Your fame.
It’s not about me, as if You should do things my way.
You alone are God and I surrender to Your ways.”

I feel like I have a new awareness in my life that everything I do needs to be centered around Jesus.  As I live this way, I find so much comfort.  Comfort because when I feel like my hard work and endeavors don’t quite meet the mark, I have comfort because all of this isn’t about me anyway.  I am not here to promote myself, my church, my ministry, my (fill in the blank).  I am here to bring glory and fame to my Lord.

And as I surrender to Him, He becomes in charge of everything.  He is in the driver’s seat; and though He uses me as a willing vessel, the results of my labor are ultimately His responsibility and not my own.  Colossians 1:16-17 says, “All things have been created through Him and for Him.  He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”   It’s all about Jesus.  I surrender to His ways.

Pride.  I think that pride is something we all struggle with from time to time.  Pride is so deceptive because it is so easy to see someone else’s pride and be blinded to my own.  God clearly states in scripture that He is “opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your cares upon Him, because He cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:5-7.

The last thing I want for my life is to live in such a way where God is opposed to me, against me.  So how do I humble myself before God’s mighty hand?  Rick Warren said this week that we don’t grow in humility by trying to be humble.  That statement struck me, because I have been guilty of that very thing.  And all it does is make me self-focused.  So how do we grow in humility?   Interestingly enough, Brady Boyd addressed this topic this week as well.  He said, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking about yourself less.”   Wow!

When we walk in humility we shift our focus off of ourselves and begin to focus on the greatness of our God.  We don’t focus on our inadequacies, but on God’s provision.  Then we can truly cast our cares upon Him, knowing that He cares for us.  And once this happens, then instead of being so concerned about ourselves, we can serve and be a blessing to others.  This is walking in humility.

Last week we got back from our trip to Oklahoma. We drove about 800 miles in one day and our boys did great. At one point, I watched Nate (my 5 year old) just sit there in the van, staring out the window. For about an hour and a half, he just watched the scenery. (Oh, and we were in Kansas, by the way, so the scenery was well…. you get the picture.)  That said, I was amazed at how well my boys handled the long car ride.

When we got home however, all their pent-up energy exploded and there were numerous fights, complaining, arguing, and any other related event. I found myself struggling with a bad attitude as my home erupted in general chaos and noise. And in the midst of that, a friend of mine called me to see how I was doing. In just that one phone call, my spirits were lifted.

The scripture tells us to “encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11. I looked up the word encourage in my Webster’s dictionary. It means “to inspire with hope; to stimulate; to give help.” Sometimes life gets tough, mundane, or just plain overwhelming. At times like this we need people in our lives who encourage us. The phone call from my friend offered me just what I needed. Let’s all learn to be encouragers. Let’s listen to the Holy Spirit and respond to His prompting to call someone, help someone one, and offer hope. Find someone to encourage today.

In my opinion, last week’s message by Pastor Paul, was the most significant sermon I have heard in many years. I realize that is a grandiose statement, but it adequately expresses how I feel. I urge you to download it, listen to it, and chew on it.

Though I can in no way duplicate what was said last Sunday in this small space, nevertheless I want to give a brief summary. Are you hungry for more of God? Do you want to see God’s power touch your loved ones? Do you desire healing? There is God’s part and our part. Last Sunday’s message clearly defined our part.

Like in the natural, where a critical mass of plutonium comes together to create an nuclear explosion, so it is true in the spiritual realm. When Christians come together, in a critical mass, purified and cleansed, praying together in one accord, there will be a spiritual explosion, with revival, healing, and restoration. This can’t be achieved by just one or two people. It requires many of us to be seeking God, walking in purity, praying and fasting.

Are you willing to be a part of that critical mass? Are you willing to sacrifice for it? I want us to create a spiritual atmosphere where God commands His blessing. Again I urge you to listen to the sermon entitled “Critical Mass.” Let it change how you think.

In my time with the Lord this morning I read this verse — “Praise the Lord!  Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!  His faithful love endures forever.  Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord?  Who can ever praise Him enough?” Psalm 106:1-2 NLT

Every Sunday, we gather together and give God praise.  But is that enough?  David wrote this in Psalm 34, “I will praise the Lord at all times.  I will constantly speak His praises.” If you think about it, if you are constantly praising the Lord throughout your day, you’re not complaining and grumbling.  If I’m praising the Lord at all times, I’m not criticizing my neighbor (or my husband, my children, or myself.)

So the question the psalmist asked is, “Who can ever praise Him enough?”  Is Sunday enough?  And though the psalmist’s question is probably of a rhetorical nature, I will, nevertheless answer it.  No one can ever praise the Lord enough.  He is far too worthy.  But, know that when life get tough, when worry, disappointment or fear threatens your peace, choose to praise the Lord.   God inhabits the praises of His people.  He might not take away all your problems, but He will come to you and be your very present help in times of trouble.

I’m not sure who wrote this, but it’s worth repeating…

Someone has said that if Christians really understood the full extent of the power we have available through prayer, we might be speechless.

Did you know that during World War II, there was an advisor to Churchill who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every day at a prescribed hour for one minute to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace?

There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America. If you would like to participate: Every evening at 9 pm Eastern time (7 pm Mountain time), stop whatever you are doing and spend one minute praying for the safety of the United States.  Pray for our troops, our citizens, and for a return to a Godly nation.  Stop and pray.  Can you give just a minute?

Some words of wisdom by Pastor Rick Warren:

Forgiveness is easy until you have something to forgive.

The more you know and understand about yourself, the less prideful you are.  The more you know and understand God, the more grateful you are.

When you expect others to meet needs in your life that only God  an meet, it’s unfair to them and insures disappointment in you.

God’s unconditional love for me doesn’t mean He approves of everything I think, do, or say.  Every parent knows the difference.

Like gum, never swallow flattery.  It’s a lie used to control you.  “They lie and deceive each other with flattery.”  Psalm 12:2

How you feel about you is determined by what you think the most important person in your life thinks about you.  Make that person Jesus.

Trust and obey.  Trust and obey.  Trust and obey.  Trust and obey.  Got it?