Spiritual Maturity

So this week for Home Team I really wanted to do something from 2 Kings or Acts just because it's been really fun (and bloody) to read. So while preparing for Home Team, I threw out the quick, "Lord, should we do 2 Kings or Acts?" Quite clearly I heard, "Neither". Now this is pretty big since I really wanted to at least touch on Acts. But obviously God had other plans.

I opened up the reading for Psalms this week and came to this:

Psalm 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends You, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

This is what spiritual maturity looks like. It's no longer a negotiation of "Well, God it's not really sinning is it? I mean, it's not like I killed someone or anything like that." There are no more excuses about so and so or your church not meeting your needs, etc. You step up and say, "Okay God, search me, test me, show me the crap I'm still clinging to and lead me toward freedom."

Randomly today I decided to listen to an older Perry Noble sermon. I never do that. It's just not something that ever crosses my mind, but today I did. What was it on? The title, "Me or Jesus?" intrigued me so I downloaded it. What did it end up being on? Spiritual maturity. Specifically asking God,

"What do I still lack?"
"What am I resisting that you still want to do in me?"

These are scary questions just like David's requests in Psalm 139. Why? Because the answers just may change your life forever. It may turn what you now know as normal upside-down.

So we have a choice. We can stay spiritually stunted, just hanging out, going through the motions and feeling empty. Or we can step out and say, "Search me, test me, show me, lead me" and find out that God has so much more in store for us than we could have ever imagined if we'll just let Him work through us.

Twitter

It's official.
I'm on Twitter for real.
Shout out to Derrick for being my first follower. But seriously, I've only been on Twitter for 6 minutes and got this:

Friends

Growing up I had a problem with friends. I never did seem to keep them. Junior high hit and all you know what broke lose. My best friend from high school made a succession of poor relationship decisions and I just couldn't keep up. Friends from college are friends on facebook and you keep up with short messages and pictures, but not much else.

So imagine my surprise when I went back to Minnesota for a friend's wedding this past weekend and stayed with a former college roommate and her husband.

Naomi (otherwise known as Nomie) and I had been roommates traveling abroad as well as our sophmore year. Our junior year, she married Alan, one of the nicest guys on the planet.

I don't know what I was expecting staying with them, but needless to say I was overwhelmed. I felt valued. I felt cherished. I had a really great time and never felt as if I were a burden.

Some people say that seeing certain friends after a long time you can just pick up where you left off. It wasn't like that with Nomie and Alan. It was ten times better. We had both matured and changed, but we understood that. We discovered new interests, new talents and new perspectives about each other.

They even took time during their scouting session for their photography business to take pictures of me which they didn't have to, but made my day.

It was a good reminder of what friendship should be. So I'm making sure it won't be another 3 years before I visit them again. It's too easy to get bogged down with life and forget what's most important.

PS: If you're wondering, yes Nomie and Alan were the photographers who took my new profile picture. Seriously, they are some of the best photographers I've seen. If you're planning a wedding or family event in Minnesota, look them up at http://www.pricelessphotomemories.com/

How will you live?

I was out of town this past Sunday so I missed hearing Perry Noble's sermon in person. I listened to it on the Palm Valley web site and then the "unedited" version he did for NewSpring.

Here's the thought that stuck with me:

"Are you walking in anticipation or frustration?"

I have a choice. Live in anticipation or live in frustration.

I know I'm making a change.

How will you live?

One Prayer Resources

If you have not yet checked out the One Prayer website, it's amazing.


Tuesdays are set aside for fasting and prayer. This week's focus is on miracles. Just reading through others' prayer requests you get an overwhelming sense that we truly are One Body of Christ. Take the time to check out the daily devotional as well as the prayer requests. It has encouraged me greatly.

http://www.oneprayer.com/blog

Where does your hope lie?

With all the hoopla of political candidates and economic uncertainties, can you sing this with confidence?

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus' Name.

On Christ, the Solid Rock, I stand
All other ground is sinking sand
All other ground is sinking sand.

A Godly Heritage

My apartment feels very empty right now. My mom is at the airport after spending almost a week visiting me. It was the first time she visited me in over 2 years since usually I'm the one visiting her.

I think the thing that blew me away was how utterly blessed I am to have a mother who is so passionately in love with Jesus Christ and earnestly wants to follow his voice.

Granted, we had some fun, bizzare and hilarious times this past week, but what I remember most are our times of prayer, her laying of hands on me, our talks about our struggles and sharing what the Lord had spoken to us through our daily Bible reading.

God, thank You for blessing me with a godly heritage. Thank you for my mom who seeks Your face daily and wants so desperately to hear Your voice. I don't deserve this favor, Lord, but I praise You all the same for giving me my mother. Bless her in ways she can't even imagine.