Allowing God to Direct Your Steps

Good morning. I hope you had a great Christmas weekend.

2 Chronicles 27:6 (NASB)
So Jotham became mighty because he ordered his ways before the LORD his God.

Traditionally for me, the week between Christmas and New Years Day is a time of reflection, a time of prayer, a time of course plotting and a time for setting goals. During this week, I spend a great deal of time alone with God, allowing Him to guide my thoughts.

It is during these times that the Lord shows me all that I have to be thankful for from the current year. He shows me places where He strengthened me, guided me and sustained me. He also uses this as a time to show me where I got off course and reminds me of how He guided me back to the right path.

From there I begin to seek the Lord’s heart for the coming year. This is a time of asking Him, what He would like to accomplish through me? I find that I often come away with major themes or points of emphasis for my life in the coming year. It is during these times that I clarify what the Lord is revealing to me, and I ask Him to determine the work of my hands. It is from this dialogue with the Lord that I set my goals for the coming year.

This week, I hope you will take a cue from Jotham, and order your ways before the LORD your God. He sees the greater picture, and His goals will always be in your best interest.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Change of Course

Good morning! I hope you had a wonderful weekend.

This past week I was invited by a friend to go out on the streets with him to share with those we encountered the life changing message of Christ. When we got together, we took a few minutes and prayed, asking the Lord to direct to the place where He could best use us. As we drove around listening for God’s prompting we came upon a small church not far from the Sunday meeting place of the church I pastor. Both of us felt the prompting of God to stop there and join those who had come together for Bible study.

Acts 13:4 (NASB)
So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia and from there they sailed to Cyprus.

The other night was a shining example of the mysterious ways of God. Our intention was to go and share our faith with people who were looking for true hope. Instead, God led us to a little church to watch and listen. In fact for me, the journey was not for what was said in the service, but instead for two brief statements the pastor made to me during a 10 minute conversation on the sidewalk afterwards.

Many times we set out in a course or direction at God’s leading, believing we are going for, what is in our minds, a clearly defined purpose. As we continue on this journey we realize that our intended purpose was not really the purpose at all, but was instead the means of positioning us for things that God wants us to experience. For example, when I left law enforcement in 1997, I went into banking thinking that this would be my profession for the remainder of my days. In reality, God used the bank to position me in the right place to be groomed for my call to the ministry that would come 2 years later.

Today, you may find yourself in a place where you are asking the question: “What am I doing here? This was not the purpose I came here for.” When you trust God’s prompting, you can always be assured that you are in the right place at the right time; even if you cannot readily see that truth from your current perspective. Realize that God may simply be using this time and place in your life to position you for the things to come.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Trusting Your Guide

Good morning! I hope you had a terrific weekend.

Last week I went on a deep sea fishing charter in the Gulf of Mexico with my wife. After 2 hours of travelling across the water, our captain brought the boat to a stop and told us to let our lines out 80-90 feet.

Within a matter of moments the words “fish on” were heard up and down the deck. Fishing rods were seen bending and bouncing as our enthusiastic group of amateur anglers began reeling in their catch. Before long large game fish were seen coming out of the water and onto the deck. Before the day was over we had reached our limit of King Mackerel and Atlantic Sharpnose Shark.

The success of the trip had nothing to do with our skill, ingenuity or hard work. The real determinant of our productivity was the wisdom of our charter captain. He was the one who knew the waters, the behavior of the fish and the right fishing techniques. Without his guidance the outcome of our journey would have been much different. Our day to day lives are really not that different either.

John 21:6 (NASB)
And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you will find a catch .” They cast therefore, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish.

In many ways our success in life is more about our dependency upon the Lord’s direction and less about our talents. When we trust His guidance to the right prospect, conversation or client, we see our efforts multiplied exponentially. Unfortunately, too many times we become overly confident in our own skills and abilities. We assume we have grown beyond the need for guidance, only to find in the lean times, that we need guidance more than ever.

Because God sees the past, present and future, he has perspective that you and I do not. He sees the storms, the mountains and valleys that affect our journey. He knows where the bounty is located and how to grab hold of it. Our only responsibility is to follow his lead. It is when we trust in him with all of our heart, leaning not on our own understanding, that we experience the limits of his abundance.

This week you may be wondering why the journey is taking so long. You may be unsure of why you have been given the tools that are currently in your hand. It is at these times that you rely upon the wisdom of God as your guide, knowing that he is leading you to the fullness of his blessing.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Availability

Good morning! I trust you had a very Merry Christmas and were blessed by your time with family and friends.

Each year in the days between Christmas and New Years, I take a prayer retreat. Some years I have been able to go deep in the woods to a secluded cabin, other years I stay close to home, but seclude myself. It is during these times that I reflect on the year past and listen for God’s direction for the year ahead.

One of the issues that surfaces often during these times is the issue of availability. It is so easy to become worried about my abilities and how God is going to use them, but what God is truly interested in is my availability. Take a look at this passage from Isaiah:

Isaiah 6:8 (NLT)

Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to my people? Who will go for us?”

And I said, “Lord, I’ll go! Send me.”

More than God cares about my leadership skills, my speaking ability or my people skills He most cares about my willingness to go. Many of us say that “Wherever He leads I’ll go.”, but would we really? In one of the books I read on a past retreat the author mused that for every person who says they will go “wherever”, how many of them have their passports stamped and active? Do their actions really bear out their words?

There are many reasons that we unfortunately say “no” to God. God leads in a certain direction and we begin to withdraw our commitment. “I can’t afford it!” “I don’t know enough!” “I couldn’t leave my friends and family!” Do any of these sound familiar?

To follow where God leads requires complete surrender and a sold out commitment. In the story of Jesus’ birth, the shepherds were compelled to see Jesus. Nothing else mattered at that point. Are you in that same place, where following Jesus is the greatest passion in your life. I sometimes wonder what blessings I have missed out on by not going where I have been led.

This week I want to challenge you to be available. Are you willing to truly say, “Wherever He leads I’ll go?” Make yourself available to God and His purposes. Ask Him to invite you into the midst of His activity.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Examining Your Foundation

Good morning! I hope you had a great weekend.

This past week I spent some time with a man who is both a friend and trusted advisor. He has taken a great interest in my work over the past 18 months, but has taken particular interest in the church planting ministry that I launched in November. As we were talking, he addressed with me his concern over my foundation. As I probed into his statement, he accurately assessed that I was beginning to rapidly put together a structure, but my foundation was not set. He further elaborated that I may even need to pull back the reigns on the ministry, because the monthly provisions for my family were not fully in place.

There was great wisdom in those words. A structure is only as good as the foundation it is built upon. The foundation determines to what degree and at what pace the structure can be erected. It also determines the longevity of what is built, and the types of adversity the structure can withstand.

This conversation has had me thinking about the following passage of Scripture:

Luke 6:47-49 (NASB)

47 "Everyone who comes to Me, and hears My words, and acts upon them, I will show you whom he is like:
48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation upon the rock; and when a flood rose, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.
49 "But the one who has heard, and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house upon the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great."

The greatest detriment to the lives we are building is the poor foundation work, we all too often settle for. We may hear the words of God, but how often do we fail to implement those very things into our lives. We know we are cutting corners, but we don’t think anyone will ever notice the shortcuts. Unfortunately turmoil has a way of exposing our frailties, shortcuts and shortcomings. The places we chose to hear, but not obey become glaringly obvious as we watch the structures of our lives come crashing down on the shifting foundations upon which they were built.

Today, I encourage you to evaluate your foundation. Have you taken the time to dig deep and lay your foundation on the bedrock principles of God? If you have, the storms may be fierce, but they will not topple the things God has directed you to build. In the end the structure will stand, unmoved by the tempest, because the foundation never shifted.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Living a Life of Honor

Good morning! I hope you had a great weekend and find yourself fully energized today.

One of the things my dad instilled in me growing up was the importance of a good name. I watched him over and over again make choices that were not always the easiest, but were the choices that were honorable. When opportunities were presented to compromise his principles, he always stood his ground on the convictions that were deep within him.

In one of our most memorable conversations before I left home my dad told me: “I may never leave you vast wealth, property or fortune, but I will leave you a good name.” Those words penetrated deep within me and have taken up residence. I have tried diligently to pass this same value of integrity on to my children.

Every day we are bombarded with opportunities to compromise our principles. People ask us to stretch the boundaries or turn the other way. At first glance it may seem harmless enough, but ultimately those compromises have a lingering effect on our character and reputation. The stench of compromise stays around long after the compromise has been made.

It is no wonder that God led the writer of Hebrews to pen these words:

HEBREWS 13:18 (NASB)
Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a good conscience, desiring to conduct ourselves honorably in all things.

One of the most valuable assets we have is our reputation. A reputation can open doors of opportunity or slam them just as quickly. A reputation may be the difference between advancement and resistance and our reputations move beyond us. Our spouses, children, co-workers, employers and even the God of our faith are labeled by our integrity or lack thereof. It is no wonder that the writer of this verse requested prayer over this issue of honorable conduct.

Today I encourage you to evaluate your own conduct. Would you be described as a man or woman who operates with honor and integrity? Perhaps you find yourself this morning being faced with an opportunity for compromise. Consider the cost, shore up your defenses and remember it is your reputation at stake. Ask God to direct your conduct that you may always be known as a person of honor.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Preparing for the Unseen

Good morning! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with friends and family.

The talk on the lips of the American public these days is the economy. I’ve been chuckling every weeknight during The Tonight Show as Jay Leno breaks into a short burst of one-liners that begin with “The economy’s getting bad I tell you…” The forecasts for the next 18-24 months do not look good for the American economy to say the least.

So the question becomes this, “what preparations have you been making with the resources God is making available to you?” This question got me reflecting upon the story of Joseph this morning. Joseph was sold into slavery, jailed under false accusation and generally mistreated, but Joseph never lost sight of God. Joseph’s faithful service to those who held him captive ultimately led to his rise to prominence in Egypt. It was through this rise to prominence that Joseph was able to provide for his people during 7 years of famine. Look at Joseph’s words as recorded in Genesis:

Genesis 45:5-7 (NASB)
5 “And now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life.
6 “For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting.
7 “And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance.

Sometimes in life we get so self-absorbed with what is wrong in our own piece of the picture that we fail to step back and look at the bigger picture. Joseph heeded the warnings of famine and made adjustments in the land of Egypt that ended up being the provision for the inhabitants of the land when food was scarce. He got beyond the “wrongs” of the past and turned a negative into a positive.

So what has God been doing to prepare you and your family for the things that lie ahead? Perhaps it is time to step back and look at the greater picture. God may have allowed you to go through a job change you didn’t want, because your industry was getting ready to fold. He may have moved you to another part of the country, where the provisions of life are not as difficult to come by. He may have denied you the loan, so you wouldn’t be weighed down by a debt you couldn’t maintain. Of course the preparations are not all negative. Perhaps the bonus or raise you received was given so you could build a cash reserve if things get lean. Maybe that same windfall was given so you could provide more fully for those in need.

Whether the worst fears of the economic forecasters come to pass remains to be seen, but no matter what the outcomes may be, God is already putting the resources and people in place to see His people through the lean times. Today, I encourage you to evaluate the tools that God has given you for provision and care. Thank Him for already making the adjustments in your life that are needed to whether the storms of the future.

Until next Monday may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Under Your Nose

Good morning! I hope that you had a refreshing weekend.

I meet with a friend of mine every Thursday for lunch. During our time we talk about life and he allows me to challenge him in his Christian walk. Often times I am the one getting challenged as we dialogue back and forth. This week was no exception, as our dialogue helped me to see an opportunity right in front of my nose.

Two weeks I ago I began a new ministry called Simplicity. The basic concept of Simplicity is to develop a network of groups that meet in homes, offices, coffee shops, etc… as macro level church bodies. As my friend and I were talking I was discussing the groups that we have already established and the opportunities we had on the horizon. As part of that conversation I mentioned that I would like to have a group going in the downtown area for business people by January of 2009. That’s when I had my “duh” moment. My friend said, “Why don’t we make our meeting that group?” My friend was seeing the obvious that for some reason wasn’t even crossing my mind.

Numbers 22:31 (NASB)
Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed all the way to the ground.

There are times in our life, when we simply don’t see the opportunities right in front of us. I find that the reasons for this come in a variety of forms. At times it is my preoccupation, tunnel vision or lack of awareness of my surroundings that is the issues. Other times it is not the right time for God to reveal those opportunities, or, as in the case of my friend, God wants to use someone else to speak into my life.

The truth of the matter is that we are surrounded by opportunities every day. These opportunities have the potential for lasting impact on our lives and the lives of others. The only barrier is our ability to recognize them. Unfortunately we miss some of our best opportunities, simply because we are not looking for them.

This week ask the Lord to open your eyes, so that you see the landscape of your life and surroundings as God sees them. Listen carefully to the conversations that you find yourself involved in and listen for the open doors of opportunity. You will be amazed at the opportunities you have been missing that have been in front of you all along.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl

Reliable Directions

Good morning! I hope you had a fantastic weekend.

This morning I had the privilege of praying with a group of girls who were getting ready to leave for a week of camp. The leader was a little nervous about the trip, because she had never been to this camp before. I reminded her that she could rely on her map and that she could always call if she found herself off course somewhere.

Life is no different than the trek these young ladies are taking. We know that God’s best lies ahead, but we also know that there are many potential detours and hazards along the path as well. Our unfamiliarity with route at times causes great amounts of discomfort and anxiety. At times like these we need to return to some simple truths:

Psalm 32:8 (NLT)
The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
I will advise you and watch over you.

God knows every twist and turn that awaits you on your journey. He knows every mountain pass and valley along the way. He knows the stormy days and the cloudless stretches you will encounter. You can take confidence in His ability to guide you, because He knows the course.

To help you along, God has also given you a “roadmap” through scripture. This map not only helps you plot your course, but it also guides you through those roadside emergencies of life (conflict, guilt, sadness, worry, doubt, etc….).

There will be times on your journey where you just need to talk to someone. You may be experiencing difficulty in applying the direction of scripture to your particular situation or just completely turned around and confused. God is ready to assist you. You can call on Him at anytime for guidance and clarification and He will freely give it.

Today you may be experiencing a difficult stretch of road. Your surroundings may be very unfamiliar to you. Take heart, God has plotted your course and given you a guidebook to see you through. He is always available to hear your concerns, fears, doubts and worries. All you have to do is call on Him.

Until next Monday may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl