In a recent message about finding God’s will, Steven Furtick made what I thought was a very insightful statement. He said that, “God’s will is more about the present than the future.” We often take the long view in trying to determine what God wants us to do with our lives while neglecting what we should be doing in this moment. Being in God’s will is all about obeying Him in our daily lives. When we are living our lives in the ways He modeled for us, we are in His will. When we care for others and think less of ourselves, we are doing God’s will.
mission
Hands and Feet
A reader asked if I could give some examples of ministries I’ve seen honoring God. Since I spend a lot of time encouraging us to engage in following Christ with all of our hearts, I thought it was an excellent suggestion and an opportunity to highlight some people and ministries of which I have become aware. I have added a new section on the “Resources” tab of this site that lists several ministries I support and endorse. But I wanted to highlight a few people and organizations that I have personally witnessed being the hands and feet of Jesus, walking in His footsteps and reaching out to people in need.
Lead Me to Calvary
Tomorrow is Good Friday, the day we remember the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf. We’ve talked a lot in recent days about surrendering everything to Jesus and truly making Him the Lord of our lives. Everything we do should be to glorify Him because of what He did for us. In thinking about this post, the old hymn, “Lead Me to Calvary”, kept repeating in my head. As we prepare our hearts for solemn remembrance tomorrow, it seemed good to reflect on the words of this powerful song.
Glorify God
In 2 Timothy 2:4, Paul tells us that “No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the recruiter.” Each of us has been recruited by Jesus Himself to serve as soldiers in His army. Our orders are to further His mission and bring about the Kingdom of God here on earth. When we said yes to Jesus, we enlisted in His service for the remainder of our lives. We surrendered our individual wills and desires in deference to the plans and purposes of God. We are no longer our own, for we were bought at a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
I Surrender All
There’s a certain appeal to abandoning everything for Christ. We’re compelled by the sheer enormity of the task. It can be alluring to so radically go against the flow of society. We will indeed stand out as a very peculiar people. That’s the vision many have when they embark on total surrender. The act is noteworthy and pleasing to God. Our deepest desire is to live our lives in a way that glorifies Jesus. So why do so many who choose to surrender all wind up going back to recover some of it for themselves?