Our first ministry out of seminary was in Montana. We were church planters. I struggled with going from a large church where you could minister to people through a large selection of ministries to starting a church with 10 people present the first service. After a year, God sent me a woman that encouraged me because she made me feel like I was in Montana for a purpose, that God was using me to make a difference in someone’s life. (I had many special people in Montana that God brought our way but this relationship came at a needed time). It is always a blessing to minister to people but not all people really respond to you ministering to them. Besides the encouragement and blessing of letting God use me in her life, she taught me what it really means to have a teachable spirit. I had never seen someone so dedicated to growing in the Lord and applying his ways in her life and marriage. The first time we met she took notes. She kept those notes in her Bible to pray over them daily and to keep focused on what she needed to do. When she needed to respond in a Godly manner when things got a little tense between her and her husband, she would lock herself in the bathroom and call me until she could get control of her emotions. She grew so much in her spiritual walk during that time. I learned from her that when I really want to grow in the Lord it takes a complete dedication to the process. I need to write out my goals, I need to pray over them and I need to seek help when I am off track.
The blessing and lessons did not stop with her. Soon, her husband followed her with the same passion to grow in his walk. He took his passion to prayer. We started a prayer time at the new church but it was not your typical prayer time. I have not experienced a prayer time like we continually had since then. I have never been an elegant in my prayers. I am pretty straight to the point with God and it is usually does not last long. This prayer time usually was a small group of people that were on their face literally before the Lord. There was no time frame. Every week I would see this man’s heart break in prayer. He was completely open and emotional. One of the most precious gifts we received when we left Montana was the towel that he would always bring to prayer time to wipe all of his tears. Each tear that was cried during these prayer times are precious to me but they are even more special to the Lord
So let me ask you the same questions I have to ask myself. When was the last time you made a dedicated effort to grow in your spiritual walk? When was the last time that you sat down and had a good cry with God? Are you seeking God
If you seek God, your God, you’ll be able to find him if you’re serious, looking for him with your whole heart and soul.
Deuteronomy 4:29 (The Message)
2 comments:
crying. honored. humbled. challenged to walk that way again.
Still have the notes. Still know them from memory. Still use them.
God is Good. All the time.
Miss you. All the time.
Ron here. Seek first the kingdom... Indeed those were special times. God desires us to be transparent. We think we can hide stuff - all kinds of stuff - from him, but the reality is we can't. There is an absolute in our post modern world. That absolute is Christ and his sacrifice for us. The gauntlet has been thrown down. Who among you is willing to be real? To be transparent? Do you dare to walk beside your God? He already knows everything about you that no one else does....Just a thought.
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