Love You With My Life
by Tracy Reynolds
Worship is my response, individually and corporately, to who God is and what He has done. God initiates. We respond. It begins and ends with Him. He is literally the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. We are His, and as His, we respond to His holy stimuli. Because we are not our own, but are bought at the price of the precious blood of Jesus, the ultimate extent of our worship is a life of abandon to His will and His way. When our lives are lost in His and our identity is found in Him, our very lives become an expression of worship. We love Him with our life.
We sing, clap our hands, and shout our praise to Him because it is all we know to do. But, worship is far more than these activities. Worship is responding to God’s love and grace for us by surrendering all we are to His purposes. Any activity, if offered unto the Lord, becomes an act of worship. Worship becomes more than just an activity; it becomes a way of living our lives before an audience of the King. Our household chores become sanctified work as we offer them as unto the Lord. Our interactions with everyone we meet during the course of a given day become holy encounters as we offer them for His glory. When any part of our lives is offered to God it becomes an act of worship and an opportunity for the Lord to receive glory and honor.
A few years ago, I heard a song that really caught my attention with the simple phrase, “I Love You with My Life.” While it is a great song, its lyrics are excellent theology! The songwriter, Bryan Duncan, seems to define worship as a way of life. Worship is more than a part of our congregational gatherings on Sundays. While the songs we sing and the outward expressions of praise and worship important, the fundamental issue is the ultimate desire of our hearts. True worship is a heart condition. It is a heart response to the nature, character, and presence of God in our life and culture. Loving God becomes a way of living as we seek to honor Him in all we do, all we say, and all we are. The longer I serve the Lord, the more I want to give Jesus more than my songs and corporate expressions of public worship. I want all of my life to be a grateful response to the Lord for all He is and all He has done. I want to love Him with my life.
Don’t Just Do It
by Apples Knapp
When I was in college, I enjoyed my Food Service Management classes. So, it wasn’t long before I applied to be a manager of a fast-food chain in Manila. I remember enjoying the interaction with the customers (except when they were complaining) and the managerial responsibilities of handling people and products. When I was transferred to a different branch in my 2nd year, though, I hated my first few months at the store. I had a boss who was demanding and was used to degrading her people publicly. There were days that I would cry and complain. I dreaded going back to work after my days off. I persevered, though.
When I went into full time ministry in 2004, my first project was to open a café in Thailand. It scared me and made me nervous. Soon, however, I realized that all the things I had learned working under that hard boss at the fast food chain had equipped me more than I knew. Now that I look back, I see that the experience not only gave me the skills I needed to start the café, but it also developed my character, especially in relating to people.
Whatever you are doing right now, whether you are in school or at work in a secular job or in full-time ministry, keep in mind that it has a bearing on what the Father has in store for you tomorrow. Maybe it is time to stop grumbling and start appreciating what you are doing and learn from it. Don’t just do it to get by. Do it with excellence and passion. Remember, whatever you are doing is for God and not for your human bosses or family. It may be a small or big responsibility. Give it your best shot. This time may be difficult and challenging, but God is teaching you and developing you through these circumstances. He’s preparing you for the big things that he has in store for you in the future!
Question:
What difficulty are you facing right now?
Action Step:
Take ten minutes right now to pray about it and think about how you are growing from it and what you are learning. Write that down and put it in your wallet/purse/mirror and look at it whenever you need to remind yourself why you are going through this.
The Divine Flow
by Chuck Quinley
In my short life I have had many adventures. I’ve traveled through Siberia in the dead of winter, studied film making in South Africa and sat for hours with worshippers in a Tibetan holy place. I’ve had a hand in planting two megachurches, establishing a graduate school and lately, launching an FM radio network. None of this was in my advanced planning for my life. I just followed the flow–the divine flow, and reaped the amazing benefits.
It’s simple. Everything in life works through relationships. All the pain and all the joy flows from people. You need to know the right people, those who will help you on your destined journey and those you need to help on theirs. The “jerks,” you need to stay away from as much as possible. How to know the difference? The divine flow. God has a plan for your life and that plan flows through the people He has ordained to be your covenant partners. He will cause your path to intersect these incredible, honorable people. And when you meet one you will feel the flow.
Spiritual fathers in the early church said that the most important quality to strive for as a spirit-filled disciple of Jesus the Christ was discernment. By quieting your spirit each day through time alone with God you can learn to feel the gentle leadings of the Holy Spirit about a number of things related to your daily mission, but most importantly of all, you can learn to feel the “click” of connecting with a person who has a matching heart and vision of life.
I have been able to succeed in most of the things I have felt led to attempt because of the partnership of these special people in my life. They have opened doors of understanding and opportunity for me and have been my partners in everything I have undertaken. I chart out the direction of my life according to the people God leads me to partner with in each chapter. After a while, you just learn to spot them as the gift from God that they are and you cherish that friendship and never let it go. Sometimes years later you see why it was important for the two of you to connect. So my advice to you as emerging leaders is to consciously make an effort go with the flow.
Discussion Questions: Have you ever had a conversation with a new person and felt an immediate kinship with them despite your cultural differences? How can you learn to distinguish the difference between being impressed with someone’s initial charisma and really seeing the unity of someone’s heart with your heart?
Act it Out: Make a list of the people for whom you feel a divine flow. Write and thank them for what their friendship brings into your life. Then, for the rest of this week try to discern a feeling about everyone with whom you interact. Mostly, you will just feel neutral because this is a normal human interaction. Sometimes you will feel repelled and warned. Politely back off. At a few special moments you may feel that connect we are talking about. It’s rare, but important. Give that person the opportunity to speak out what is inside of them so you can know what’s in their heart. Then walk by faith and do the things God shows you through this relationship.
The Absolom Test
Every young leader must pass the Absolom test (by Chuck Quinley).
Baggage
A short video by Andrew Quinley on the correlation between momentum and baggage, both literal and metaphorical.