For the lessons behind the prayer go to http://www.hclive.org/sermon/transformers-prayer-part-one/
Tag Archives: restoration
Walking Together
Christ is the cure for loneliness. He connects us. He finds a place for us. That is the work of a church.
There is no reason to walk alone.
In discussion with a group of ministers, each decried working alone at their tasks. That is odd. Rarely do I work alone. Of course, I write alone. Yet, even in that I have people submit ideas and do research. Even if I don’t use it, the conversation is good and contributes.
None of us should walk alone. This morning I am reading responses from legislators across the United States to a quick blurb. We pray together. We walk together. Never alone. That is just not right.
Ephesians 4:16 NKJV from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love
Jonah’s Spit Up
The Prayer Has A Life: What Happened Next
One of the stops this week in my journey was the weekly breakfast of a county Chamber of Commerce in Texas. Community Transformation Initiative is active in the area doing Life Skills and Parenting and 1-1 counseling. Each person gets 2 minutes to speak. Lawyers, doctors, mechanics, marketers, resorts, bankers, the county attorney, and this community transformation/business/minister person share. I usually give a quick story and a smile and sit down. Something different happened this week.
Here’s the story I shared and what happened next:
In 2004, our Information Technology team was designated as number one best place to work in IT by Computerworld magazine. That is a Super Bowl moment. We out ranked Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and hundreds of thousands of other businesses.
As one of a handful of directors on that team, it was moment of personal pride and accomplishment. I keep telling myself I’m going to have a ring made. Every day and every year is not the same.
During an annual review with our CIO one year I felt defeated. That year was okay, but nothing outstanding. As I discussed my feelings of struggle with John, the number one CIO of the number one team, he looked at me and said, “Phil, you will find during your toughest times, you grow the most.” He was less concerned about the areas I directed and managed than he was about me. That attitude is part of what made us number one.
After the story was shared, the prayer was shared.
As I finished the prayer, the Chamber of Commerce breakfast group spontaneously and loudly said “Amen.”
More people on social media are responding to this prayer than anything I’ve every posted. I pray it over you. I pray it “Amens” in your life.
May the gentle breath of God’s Spirit lift you, friend, beyond your problems.
May the forceful shaking of His power break barriers that hinder.
May the excitement of His love impassion you, friend, with joy.
May you find Him waiting in your path with answers.
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Snow in the Shadows
Snow gets in the shadows.
Ecclesiastes 4:11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
In Oklahoma and Texas, snow is a sometimes and someyears thing. Not often. But often enough. It can linger for a few hours or a few days and in rare occasions for a few weeks. Ice lingers longer.
The shadows keep the snow longer. The sun doesn’t reach there.
Normal winter temperatures daily climb into the 40’s and 50’s and many times 60’s and 70’s. Snow doesn’t last long in that warmth. Except in the shadows.
In the shadows, the warmth needs to linger a little longer.
Relationships are like that. Some cold spots tend to linger. Each relationship finds bad spots and good spots. The daily good warmth takes longer to remove the memory and the touchiness. Sometimes it is an icy block that takes weeks of warmth to remove.
You can speed up the process when the snow is in your shadow by moving whatever is blocking the sun and giving yourself adequate good time. We can’t change the weather outside, but we can change the weather conditions of a relationship through investment in good moments.
You can speed up the process when you deposited snow into the shadow of a loved one by investing in warm moments with them. Leave it to linger at risk of damage that may not heal.
Think of a few easy moments of warmth you can bring to a relationship. The odd coincidence of snow in the shadows of a relationship is that neither of you may realize that it lingers. You look to the front yard and clean streets and are grateful. It is easy to leave the shadows alone, but lingering snow and ice comes up at the most inappropriate moments.
Do some good. Do some gentle. Do some soft.
The beauty of having the warm moments is you don’t have to talk about the snow, it just goes away.
Snow in the Shadows
Snow gets in the shadows.
Ecclesiastes 4:11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
In Oklahoma and Texas, snow is a sometimes and someyears thing. Not often. But often enough. It can linger for a few hours or a few days and in rare occasions for a few weeks. Ice lingers longer.
The shadows keep the snow longer. The sun doesn’t reach there.
Normal winter temperatures daily climb into the 40’s and 50’s and many times 60’s and 70’s. Snow doesn’t last long in that warmth. Except in the shadows.
In the shadows, the warmth needs to linger a little longer.
Relationships are like that. Some cold spots tend to linger. Each relationship finds bad spots and good spots. The daily good warmth takes longer to remove the memory and the touchiness. Sometimes it is an icy block that takes weeks of warmth to remove.
You can speed up the process when the snow is in your shadow by moving whatever is blocking the sun and giving yourself adequate good time. We can’t change the weather outside, but we can change the weather conditions of a relationship through investment in good moments.
You can speed up the process when you deposited snow into the shadow of a loved one by investing in warm moments with them. Leave it to linger at risk of damage that may not heal.
Think of a few easy moments of warmth you can bring to a relationship. The odd coincidence of snow in the shadows of a relationship is that neither of you may realize that it lingers. You look to the front yard and clean streets and are grateful. It is easy to leave the shadows alone, but lingering snow and ice comes up at the most inappropriate moments.
Do some good. Do some gentle. Do some soft.
The beauty of having the warm moments is you don’t have to talk about the snow, it just goes away.
Meet Jesus: Worth Following
Our leadership examples today are flawed and full of gaping holes
Matthew 8:1: When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.
“Make sure you are doing what God wants you to do–then do it with all your strength.” George Washington
Follow Me: Few people in life seem to be worth following. Honesty is out of style. Truth is irrelevant. Integrity wanes to the way of the world. Our leadership examples today are flawed and full of gaping holes. Jesus is worth following. Not only that, but He changes us to be worth following. His example and presence change us to be more like Him. Follow.
Follow Jesus: Jake was ready to follow this Jesus again. The morning back in the presence of God at church had impacted him. He wasn’t sure how to explain his feelings to his wife or to his old friend, Greg, or to Sally, who had invited him. He just knew he needed to get back in line and follow. Whatever that meant! He was going to find out…..
Act! Be worth following. It was his confidence, authority, and kindness that resulted in so many following. Find a place to be kind today and reach out to someone who can’t help themselves at the moment.
Pray! Father, help me to be a leader worth following. It is my example to which others look. Help me to be the Christian of integrity that You seek. Encourage my faith to be bold in those areas in which you have commissioned me. Empower me to continue to do good to those around me in You. Let people see Jesus and follow Him in me.
This devotion is #17 and final of a bigger storyline… Watch the category GSJ Story for miniseries.
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Meet Jesus – Authority … GSJ16
There is no doubting His positions.
Matthew 7:24: Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26: And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.28: And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: 29: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
“Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.” Marie Curie
The Author: Too often we hear varied opinions that sound right. The argument is logical. The reasoning seems to flow. Yet, there is no ring of truth to what we hear. Jesus has the ring of truth. There is no doubting His positions. There is no doubting His stance. There is no doubting whether living like Him will work. It will work. His life example is a solid rock on which we can stand. He has authority because He is the author.
Shaken To Rights: The morning message shook Jake out of his thoughts into a fresh world. Immediately, his attention went to the words being spoken. How could Jesus have authority over his life? Hadn’t he ignored his relationship with Christ for many years. Yet, somehow the message was challenging his thoughts and the most hidden secrets of his soul. He did not even know this preacher lady in the pulpit. Yet, the words had a ring of truth that took him back to his first days of commitment to Christ in college. It was unsettling and settling at once. He was discomforted and placed in a comfortable position. How could this be? How could Christ take him back so quickly after so many years? Yet, that is how he felt. He felt as if Christ were standing right in front of him and holding out the hand of an old friend.
Act! Think through some of your foundational thoughts. Do they match His?
Pray! Father, it is Your authoring in my life that makes such a wonderful difference. Let me move with You. You are in me and I am in You. Your life moves within me. Let me build on the example of the rock of Jesus Christ. He is the chief cornerstone. Let me built from the starting point of Jesus example each day. Let my thoughts find their origination in Him..
This devotion is #16 of a bigger storyline… Watch the category GSJ Story for miniseries.
Want the book, Meet Jesus In The Market? Fill out the information below and I’ll contact you.
Meet Jesus – Reality Based .. GSJ15
The mirror of His love reveals the truth of our pretense and provides opportunity to change.
Matthew 7:21: Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22: Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23: And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
“It takes generosity to discover the whole through others. If you realize you are only a violin, you can open yourself up to the world by playing your role in the concert.” Jacques Cousteau
Outside In: All of us have acquaintances that appear on the outside with one manner, yet inside are quite different. All of us have masks of pretense in some area ourselves. Jesus is interested in reality. Show, pretense, and explosive displays of seeming wonder are meaningless to Him. It is an inside job that is important to Him. When we connect with Him, we connect with reality. The mirror of His love reveals the truth of our pretense and provides opportunity to change. He looks for the change.
Quizzical Stick: Sally looked quizzically at Jake. All morning in Sunday School class he had appeared to be okay. He even knew the scripture which they were studying and the parable of the seed and the sower. Yet, she knew he was not in any Christian fellowship. They had talked about it. Who was this person? What was his real background? She thought she knew him. Now, she was not quite so sure.
Jake laughed on the inside. “If they only knew?” he thought to himself. It had been years since he had studied any scripture or allowed anyone to teach him. Even his wife was surprised at his knowledge of the scriptures. In college, when Greg had separated from his friends, Jake had been driven to find out why. All through the rest of his college years, he attended a small group at a local church. He had even made some commitments of his life to live for Christ. That was a long time ago. The group had blown up over petty arguments. He wasn’t impressed with the reality of this faith after that episode. He wasn’t ready to step into these waters again. Was Jesus really real?
Act! Strip off one mask. Where is pretense ruling in your life? Dig for the truth and let Jesus build His reality into you in that area.
Pray! Ouch! Father, I admit I have areas of pretense. Before You and You alone can they be revealed in an atmosphere of healing. Never are You interested in destruction. Never are You interested in my downfall. You are always on my side to become more like Jesus. Help me to undo the pretenses of my life. In all areas, I want You to be able to say, “Yes, I know that one. Let him enter in with my son, Jesus, into the everlasting kingdom of life.”
This devotion is #15 of a bigger storyline… Watch the category GSJ Story for miniseries.
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Meet Jesus : Fruit Inspector,,, GSJ14
Each of us has a flavor of which comes out
Matthew 7:16: Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17: Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18: A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19: Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20: Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Daily Produce
Ever thought about what it is you produce daily? Each of us has a flavor to what comes out. A friend of mine has a perfume she has worn for years. It is her trademark, her flavor. Whenever she is around, you know she has been there. Some years ago I worked with an individual that flavored the room. Upon entering the workplace the entire atmosphere would become sour. Each of us has a flavor of what comes out. Another friend is vivacious and sparks excitement in whatever he does. By our fruit are we known.
Pain Carry
For years, Greg had carried pains from his early years. Memories haunted him. At times he would accuse people of actions and motivations they never had. It was an unwelcome memory bursting out into distrust and accusation. It just wouldn’t shake. Now he was looking for forgiveness. He wanted to be free. He wanted to free himself from the flavor of the fruit of the past. So many times he had been betrayed. It had built a rage inside that needed to go away. It created a distance from others that needed healed. Greg was ready to change the flavor of his relationships and life. Maybe he could start with Jake. Maybe he could go back and start over.
ACT! Inspect your flavor. Are you goofy grape or excited orange? Are you passionate purple or negative needles? What is your flavor? Is it what Jesus wants your flavor to be?
PRAY! Father, help us flavor the day with Jesus. Grant us grace to give out Your sweet incense. Enable us to let others know that You have been in the place. Cause our fruit to come from the true vine, Jesus. Let only fruit from His life veins come out from us. Let our flavor be the scent of Your presence that men and women would come to You.
This devotion is #14 of a bigger storyline… Watch the category GSJ Story for miniseries.
Energy For Your Life and Health 