From a Phase to a Lifestyle

Last night I was sharing with some of our student leaders about this “phase” I go through a couple of times of year.  I also told them that I wish that I did not have to repeat the phase but just live it all the time. So I want to encourage you to think about this “phase” for you and challenge you to make it a lifestyle of your heart.  That is what I am praying for me.

So what am I talking about?  Thanks for asking.

I am in a place or phase, spiritually where I feel an overwhelming sense that I can do nothing without God.  I know that sounds so basic, but honestly, it is easy for me not to live that way.  It is easy for me to “do stuff” and even do some of it well in the eyes of the world.  The problem is that going through the motions and doing something well does not mean that there will be any spiritual power in it.

Here is a reality: You and I need the Kingdom of God to come in our lives all the time.   I am NOT talking about experiencing the saving grace of Jesus over and over.  I believe He redeems/saves us once for eternity.  But, I also believe that in our broken world we are prone to get off track from living for the glory of Jesus.  We waste time.  We waste money. We have wrong thoughts.  We hold grudges. We act selfishly. We say stupid things. We make bad decisions. We sin.  So, we need the Kingdom (the rule of Jesus over everything and our submission to Him in everything) to come in all of those areas.

Here is another reality:  There is one way for the Kingdom to come in our lives.  We don’t work it up or manipulate it.  We don’t program it or do impressive things to get the Kingdom.  We beg for it.  We cry for it.  We put the brokenness of our lives on the table and from the depths of who we are ask God to take it over.  When Jesus’ disciples asked Him to teach them to pray, one of the first things He said was “say this…Your Kingdom come.” (Luke 11:2).  In Matthew 5:3 Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in Spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”   The Kingdom comes when our broken, bankrupt, surrendered, needy hearts, understand that there is nothing of any spiritual value possible with out Jesus and in genuine humility, we get down and BEG God for the Kingdom to come.

I really love that sense of neediness before God.  I don’t want it to be a phase I go through for a week or two.  I want to live like that all the time.  So I am inviting you to join me in becoming a life-long beggar for the Kingdom.   Don’t let it be phase.  Make it a lifestyle of your heart.

Desperate,

Doug

Some Random or Not So Random Things I want to Share with Clemson BCM

Been having some random thoughts about Clemson BCM during fall break and thought I would sharing them with you. 1) In case you did not know, Clemson BCM exist to cooperate with God in making multiplying disciples of Jesus Christ. We believe that God is always moving and that our response is to follow Him. We desire to be a ministry that simply follows what Scripture commands, make disciples in the way Jesus made them. 2) You have what it takes to “do” the above. With the Spirit of God in you, you have everything you need to be a disciple maker, a world changer. Don’t ever let anyone try to convince you otherwise. If you know Jesus and can love people, then you can make disciples of Jesus. 3) I want to see God move in your life and in the life of our ministry. I am not interested in going through the motions of doing stuff. I long to see the evidence of the grace of God (Acts 11). I believe we have all the ingredients but there is so much room for HIM to move. We need to Believe, Pray, Surrender, Obey! 4) Everyone of you should seriously consider spending part or all of a summer serving in missions. There just aren’t very many good excuses not to. There are a bunch of great opportunities at www.goandsend.org 5) Never underestimate spiritual warfare. It is very real and will be disguised in many ways as things like: an argument with a friend, a temptation to a particular sin, choosing to be focused on yourself rather than others, not believing you can effectively tell someone about Jesus…You need to proactively fight (Eph. 6) 6) You are an amazing group of people. I love ya’ll and really do believe in you. You are a gift to Clemson. 2. Timothy 2:2 Doug

Worship in 2012

Worship of Jesus/God is by far the highest and most important thing that we do. By that I do not just mean singing songs or attending services. That is really just a small part of it. As a matter of fact "singing" is not mentioned very often in the New Testament. What I mean by worship is orienting all of life towards glorifying Jesus Christ. His fame should be the motivating factor in our lives (family, work, church, leisure etc). Several years ago I wrote this definition of worship:

Valuing God above all things with all that we are by responding to all that He is in all that we do.

We value what what we love. We love what we hold dear. What we hold dear we deeply know and trust. So the question for us as followers of Jesus is what are we doing to make sure we are valuing, holding dear, deeply knowing and trusting Jesus? What I have learned about me is that the more I learn about Jesus the more I realize I don't know much at all about truly worshiping Him. He is so vast. So Big. So beautiful. So glorious. So mysterious. So much more than me.

I always need to grow in loving and worshipping Jesus.

Several years ago I started a new years tradition that helps me in my worship. It is called the 31 Day Journey. I learned this at a conference I was attending in 1997 and have done it every year since then. I have adjusted it a little over the years but the purpose remains, worship. Here it is: Set aside the month of January as a month to grow in your intimacy and worship of God. Here is what I do each day in the month in January.

1. Pray: Father teach me something new about You or remind me of something that You need me to remember.

2. Read and Listen: Begin reading in Psalm 1 and read slowly listening for God to say something about Him that you need to hear. You may read 2 verses or 5 chapters. It doesn't matter. But as soon as something stands out to you about God (ie. that He is strong, faithful, providing etc) stop.

3. Worship: Spend some time in prayer worshipping God for that part of Him. Take your time. Tell Him you love Him for that. Tell Him how you have seen that part of Him or how you need to see that part of Him.

4. Write: I know that not everyone journals but I recommend it. Take a moment to record what you saw in God's Word.

5. Remember: Think about this part of God during your day.


It is that simple. Do this every day for 31 days. It is quite probable that you will not get all the way through Psalms and that is ok. It is about God and knowing Him and worshipping Him.

The important thing to remember is that the worship of God is the most important thing you can do in 2012.