Most people hate math. Do you remember sitting in that math class when you were a kid and asking yourself, “how am I ever going to use this in my life?”  Maybe you were even bolder and you asked your teacher the same thing.  I only bring up math, because I want to ask you a question.  Have you ever sat down to take a math test, looked at a problem, and 10 minutes later realized that you had made that equation way more complicated than it really was?  I did that constantly.  I would begin throwing in tangents and powers of 22, and before I knew it, I was closer to charting the course of the planet Pluto than I was to solving that problem.  I tend to do that in life too.  I’ve realized that it’s not just me, and maybe you can relate too.

Often, we miss the most elementary truths as we complicate life’s issues.  We make our pursuit to become a great leader or to be successful and wealthy. We develop elaborate expectations and laws for ourselves that we feel God has of us.  We judge our standing with God by how we avoid sin and how much time we are spending in prayer and evangelism.  The apostle Paul, however, breaks it down for us in his letter to the Romans, “So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God – all because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us in making us friends of God” (5:1).

From the beginning, the point of life has been relationships.  When God created man, he created him for a relationship.  Because of that, we cannot find fulfillment in life unless we first are in an ever-deepening relationship with God: the entire reason why Jesus came and died for us. This means that the point of every day is not to build a better church or to make enough money to live a comfortable life.  It’s not even to avoid sin and become a better person. It’s even simpler than that.  The simple truth is that God just wants a relationship with us, a genuine, loving, deep relationship. It can’t get any more basic than that.  And it shouldn’t get much more complicated either.

Questions:
1.    What do you like/hate about math?
2.    What expectations weigh you down?  They might be expectations that others have of you, that you have of yourself, or that you feel God has of you.

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.