A few thoughts about prayer

Upon reflecting on a story from the 1 Kings 18, God showed me some lessons about prayer.  You may know the story, it's the story about Elijah and his standoff with the prophets of Baal and Asherah, two gods that the people of Israel were worshiping instead of God.  You can read about it here.

Quick synopsis:  King Ahab and his piece of work Queen Jezebel are leading the people away from God and the people were kind of flip-flopping back and forth between worshiping Baal & Asherah and then worshiping God.  They have persecuted and killed all the prophets of God except Elijah, and Elijah, who is now the last prophet alive, comes out of hiding and just shows up right in the middle of God and everyone in Jerusalem (when he does Ahab calls him the "trouble maker of Israel").  Elijah sets up this showdown on Mount Carmel with the prophets of Baal and Asherah to end the doubt about who should be worshiped.

There's 850 prophets on one side and then there's Elijah on the other.  The contest:  Set up an altar with a sacrifice on it and see which God can bring fire down to burn it up.

The 850 prophets of Baal and Aherah go all day.  They are dancing around, cutting themselves and calling out to their gods.  Elijah starts talking trash to them about noon...love that...nothing happens.  About the time of the evening sacrifice, Elijah goes "that's enough" and he sets up his altar with the bull on it and digs a trench around it.  He has people take 8 giant water jars and dump them on his sacrifice, so that it drenches the altar and fills the trench around the altar with water.

Elijah prays:

...“O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all this at your command. 37 O Lord, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that you, O Lord, are God and that you have brought them back to yourself.”


38 Immediately the fire of the Lord flashed down from heaven and burned up the young bull, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up all the water in the trench! 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell face down on the ground and cried out, “The Lord—he is God! Yes, the Lord is God!”

Here are some things about prayer that I learned from this passage.

1)  Pray big.  Elijah prayed big, this wasn't small...he really laid himself out there.  A great book that unpacks this idea is The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson.

2)  Pray specific.  Don't pray nebulous prayers.  Make them specific, don't just always pray in a way that is not measurable.

3)  Pray to leave no doubt.  Too often we just pray about things that would happen anyway...that's not bad, but our prayers don't need to be limited to that.  The reason we don't see God do things that only God can do more, is because we don't pray for things to happen that only God could do.  Pray in such a way that you leave no doubt who did it...this was a moment for Elijah, it was God doing it or nobody...leave no doubt.

3)  Pray for the glory of God.  That was Elijah's prayer, that God would show Himself to be who He is, that God show His glory, which is the evidence that God is working and is who He says He is.  Do you just pray for things that would make your life easier, get you something cool or do you pray purposefully for ways for God to glorify Himself?  Do you pray for what would be most in line with God's mission or yours?

I tell the story of how Bay West got land all the time, because it's a meaningful story that only God could have done.  Scott and I were looking with Jeff Robison and his co-worker, Brandon...after looking we had lunch at Sonny's BBQ, and when we left, we drove off saying, "Well that's great and all, but we don't have any money to buy it."  We delayed staff meeting because of the task, and when we got there, we told everyone that we had found a place, but we didn't have any money.  Our Minister of Administration pipes up with "Well, you aren't gonna believe this, but..." and he proceeds to tell us that he just finished lunch with a guy who, completely unprompted, asked what we were doing for the Bay West campus to get them land to build and that he wanted to buy us some land, if that was cool.  Zero in here...we weren't telling everyone we were even looking...our Administrator didn't even know we were looking, yet at the exact moment we were looking in faith, God had already prepared the answer.

It gets even better, because the land we were looking at was a great price, but in the process, we got outbid...I was crushed, because I was SURE that was what God had for us, because even the location was right in the middle of a map we'd plotted with the addresses of our attenders...but it wasn't.  I thought the story was over, but what ended up happening was that God's plan was for us to buy the land immediately next door...which was TWICE THE SIZE of the original plot...and THAT story is still being written and it is my hope that parts of the story will be us being the building on Easter 2016 with 800 disciple makers ready on our way with the rest of the body of Christ in Palm Bay to take the city and that it would be known as a "place where God moves" when we are done....every night, that's my prayer...and that this would not be the end of the story.

I say that to say this...Degree of difficulty is irrelevant.  God is not bound by amount of ability or resource, so for God, there is no challenge to the task, whatever it is, there is only purpose for doing it, so pray for His glory...He tends to show up, and most of the time, it's bigger and better than you thought.

4)  Be faithful to tell the story.  

I say this for two reasons...one, because I'm keeping my end of the bargain to point to the immense power of God to get that done and praise Him for it.  

Two, it's an example of a big part of our prayer life that we don't fulfill.  The purpose for Bay West is to ultimately be an example of God working in the world, so if he works, and I don't tell, I'm not doing my job.  Isaiah 43:10, Isaiah tells us that God has called us to be God's "witnesses"...witnesses just tell what they saw.  If they don't tell it, then they aren't doing their part.  A big part of being a Christian is being the person who points out to everyone.."Hey, see what God did there..."  

One time in prayer with my wife's family, her older sister Daphne prayed about God answering what we were praying for, "God, we will be faithful to tell the story."  Be faithful to tell the story.

We put God on the spot, so to speak, not in making Him do something, but in putting the spotlight on what He does, and through doing so, people, like the nation of Israel, hear the story and are shown that "The Lord, He is God...yes, the Lord -- He is God!"

Don't miss out...this is the stuff of legend and adventure (and Bible stories) are made of...if you want to have the story to tell your grandkids, then pray big, pray specific, pray to leave no doubt, pray for God's glory, and be faithful to tell the story.

How did this happen?

Here we go again.  I let myself get fat….again.  I know you’ve never done that.  A few years ago, I lost a lot of weight, got back down to high school weight, ran some 5ks (set personal bests) and all that.   Then, I started to let the workouts slip, and began to eat a little more.  I’d get on the scale the next day and I really didn’t gain anything, so I let it go a little more.  I mean, I worked out all the time, so I should be good, right?  Well, 3 years later, here I am...almost back where I started. How did that happen?  Maybe if my belly had just bulged out when I ate the first Krispy Kreme, I would have stuck it out, but the effects of weight gain aren’t that user friendly...they sneak up on you.

Spiritual consequences are like the effects of weight gain.  God created the physical world to reflect what He’s trying to tell us spiritually.  We fool ourselves into believing that spiritual consequences don't exist.  When we “commit” a sin and the boulder doesn’t drop from the sky or there are no explosions, we think we got away with it or God wasn’t watching or maybe even, all this Christian stuff is a bunch of junk.  It could go on this way for years.  Then, one day, we look at our lives and go, “How did this happen?”  It might even be after we made some good changes in our life.  Sometimes, the greatest collapses in someone’s life happen immediately after a resurgence of good behavior.

Jesus even tells a story about a guy who was possessed by an unclean spirit.  The spirit leaves, and the guy takes the opportunity to sort of “clean up his life”.  Later, the unclean spirit comes back only to find everything all fixed.  The spirit gets 7 of his buddies, all worse than him, and they gang up to wreak havoc on the guy’s life.  Jesus closes the story by saying that “the last state of that person is worse than the first.”

Sometimes, we might think, like that guy, that we can just make some lifestyle changes...start going to church, maybe learn a Bible verse or two, by heart even.  We volunteer at a charity, get clean off the “hard” drugs, and we feel pretty good about ourselves, thinking we’ve done enough.  Then the slide begins and before we know it, we are worse off than we were before.  It’s like we painted the living room of the house to hide the cracks in the walls, but never addressed the foundation problems that caused them to begin with..

The reality is we can’t clean our lives up on our own...only God can do that.  Without turning our lives over to Him once and for all, we don’t begin to really see the long-lasting results we dream of and we just gain “the weight” all back.  It might show in different places, but the reality is when we get on the scale, we’ll see that it’s worse than when we started.  Then we are just left to look around and wonder “How did this happen?”

Scriptures from this morning's service on the Word

Here you go...as promised, the Scriptures from the sermon this morning.

Remember the challenge...read Psalm 119 and see what God's Word is meant to be for you...what are you not USING it for and how is that hurting you?

9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NIV)
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“Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,”
1 Peter 2:2 (NIV)
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11 We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand.
12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!
13 Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.
14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
Hebrews 5:11-14 (NIV)
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Direction
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1 Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord.
2 Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—
3 they do no wrong but follow his ways.
Psalm 119:1-3 (NIV)
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9 He shows how to distinguish right from wrong, how to find the right decision every time.
Proverbs 2:9 (TLB)
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91 Your laws endure to this day, for all things serve you.
Psalm 119:91 (NIV)
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65 You have dealt well with your servant, O Lord, according to your word.
Psalm 119:65 (ESV)
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35 Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight.
36 Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.
37 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways.
Psalm 119:35-37 (NIV)
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11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
Psalm 119:11 (ESV)
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15 I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways.
16 I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.
Psalm 119:15-16 (ESV)
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42 then shall I have an answer for him who taunts me, for I trust in your word.
Psalm 119:42 (ESV)
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Protection
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92 If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life.
Psalm 119:92-93 (ESV)
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97 Oh, how I love your law!  I meditate on it all day long.
98 Your commands are always with me and make me wiser than my enemies.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes.
100 I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts.
Psalm 119:97-100 (NIV)
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22 Take away from me scorn and contempt, for I have kept your testimonies.
Psalm 119:22 (ESV)
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50 This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.
Psalm 119:50 (ESV)
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Salvation
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25 My soul clings to the dust; give me life according to your word!
Psalm 119: 25 (ESV)
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43 And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for my hope is in your rules.
Psalm 119:43 (ESV)
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74 Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice, because I have hoped in your word.
Psalm 119:74 (ESV)

Scripture references from the sermon this morning...

Here's the Scripture I used in the service this morning.  My daughter told me that I blew past some of the references, so I thought I'd just post a blog with all the Scripture and references I used if anyone missed anything. 

67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
   for he has visited and redeemed his people
69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
   in the house of his servant David,
70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71 that we should be saved from our enemies
   and from the hand of all who hate us;
72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers
   and to remember his holy covenant,
73 the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
74     that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
75     in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

Luke 1:67-75 (ESV)
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18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 1 John 4:18 (NIV)
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10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
Proverbs 9:10 (NIV)____________________

8 I keep the Lord in mind always.  Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my spirit rejoices; my body also rests securely.

Psalm 16:8-9 (HCSB)
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31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31 (ESV)____________________

The story of Jesus (and Peter) walking on the water
22 Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.
23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,
24 but the boat by this time was a long way from the land,beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them.
25 And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.
26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear.
27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”
28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”
29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.
30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.”
31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.
33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Matthew 14:22-33 (ESV)
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19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;
20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
James 1:19-20 (NIV)

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29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)

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Examples of Israel forgetting God and it leading them into sin...
7 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD; they forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs.
Judges 3:7 (NIV)

33 No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god
34 and did not remember the LORD their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side.
Judges 8:33-34 (NIV)

14 Israel has forgotten their Maker and built palaces; Judah has fortified many towns. But I will send fire on their cities that will consume their fortresses."
Hosea 8:14 (NIV)

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23 23 Then you will walk safely in your way,
And your foot will not stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.
25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror,
Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;
26 For the Lord will be your confidence,
And will keep your foot from being caught.
Proverbs 3:23-26 (NIV)

Hope that helps and I apologize if I blew past some of that too quickly.

The Unused Potential of Receiving Gifts

I happened across an amazing stat the other day that is pretty relevant for this time of year.  Ten billion of gift card money goes unused every year...$10,000,000,000 unused every year...wow.  I think there’s a lot of things I could get done with $10 billion every year, if no one really wants that.  We think that’s kind of crazy to just leave money laying there, but the reality is as Christians, we do this all the time.

All the time, God is giving us gifts of blessings.  Maybe, we’ve been praying for something to happen in our career or a situation to be resolved in a relationship or a financial situation, and then God comes through.  Sometimes, it’s more behind the scenes, and we just pass by it almost obliviously because we thought we got lucky or fortunate and don’t even consider that God did it at all.  Even at the times we completely realize the gift that God has given us at the moment, we can leave a big part of the gift unclaimed.  How?  In taking the time to reflect on it and give thanks to Him for it.

When we take time to thank God for things, it causes us to analyze all that it took to make that particular thing happen.  It reminds us that God can do things in situations that we can’t do and although, we are not in control, He is and is Someone that we can go through.  As Christians, it increases our faith in multiple ways.  Since God came through all those barriers, we can trust Him to come through on bigger things.  It increases our “faith stamina” to wait on God next time, when the answer seems longer than usual.  

So many times, the reason that we give up on God is because we’ve left millions of “gift card” dollars in blessings unrealized is because we haven’t thanked God and created a mental history list of all the things He has done.  1 Thessalonians 5:18 says “in all things, give thanks” and that’s not just to recognize God, but God has made it so that it builds us up in doing so.  When you have that history, it reinforces you in tough times, when the answers take longer to come, and it keeps your mind at ease, because you know, that God has a plan...just like He had a plan since the beginning of time to send His Son as His gift to the world and that’s why we are giving each other gifts at this time of year.

The next time you get a blessing from God, or a gift card, make sure you take the time to get all the dollars out of that “gift” and don’t let your blessing be a crazy statistic that goes unclaimed and unused.

A Sabbatical

Next week, many of you have heard and I've talked with you about my taking a sabbatical during the month of June.  I just wanted to explain a few things, so you can know what's up.

What is a sabbatical?
If you aren't familiar with the concept of a sabbatical, usually it's termed most often in the case of a professor or teacher in college for them to take time to have some professional development, to write or do intensive study and recharge.  It's a time of improving themselves to come back as a better teacher.

While it's known in the US more in those secular circles, it is actually derived from the Biblical term "sabbath", which is a time of "religious observance, abstaining from work".  We are to practice this weekly habit of spending devoted time centering on Christ away from our work.  

Why do you need a sabbatical?
If we look a the life of Christ, there were times when he withdrew for extended periods to recharge and be ready for the next season of his ministry.  This is a practice I try to repeat regularly in short stints, because, as you may know or not know, as a pastor, I'm really never off the job.

How long is a sabbatical and when do you take it?
In many churches and religious organizations, they have started giving their ministers and leaders sabbaticals after certain periods of service in current roles.  It can range from a month to 3 months to 6 months or in some extreme cases, a year.

At First Baptist, after every 7 years of service, you are given a month of paid sabbatical leave, usually encouraged to be taken all at once, to recharge, develop, learn and rest.  This year is my 7th year and next week, I'll be taking one month off of my duties as campus pastor at Bay West Church.  

Will you be attending Bay West while you are on sabbatical?
No.  During that time, I won't be attending Bay West Church, but I will be attending and worshiping elsewhere (I don't a break from following Christ.)  I will be observing other churches, meeting with other church staffs, and if I was at Bay West, I couldn't be off anyway.

Do you just vacation or hang out at your house?
No, but I have presented a plan to our Personnel Team and they have approved my itinerary and plan to make the best of this time away.

Over this time, I will be unavailable.  I'll be spending some concentrated time with my family.  I'll be seeking wisdom from concentrated time alone with God most of all.  I'll learning from other staff members/pastors from some different churches, conducting interviews on the subject of church growth, multisite work and other leadership subjects trying to better myself as a leader as we look to the future of Bay West.  I have been working on writing a book, as well, and will be devoting some time to that, as well as some time to reading and learning myself.

Is there something wrong?
Nope.  We do things like this as a preventative measure, so everything stays right.

Who will be preaching?
Bob Lorenzo, who has taught us several times before, and who you hear indirectly through me a lot because of his influence in my life, will be preaching.  The rest of the staff will be operating as normal.

Will things fall apart?
No.  I've tried very hard to make Bay West not about my presence on a Sunday, but the presence of God and in doing so, you are surrounded every week/Sunday with capable leadership and a sound structure, so things should run like a top.

Can I still be baptized in our services?
Absolutely, but the process is the same.  You'll need to call our offices, we'll schedule a time to meet with one of our ministers to make sure you are ready spiritually, and then we will coordinate the baptism in our services.

What if I have an emergency and/or need a pastor?
Please contact Mandy at  our offices at (321) 723-0561 and Nate, Randy or Raul will help you or if they are unavailable, one of the pastors from the Melbourne Campus will contact you. 

Can I just call you and chat?
Normally, I'm up for that, but since I'm trying to spend time away, that probably wouldn't be best. I'll be back to see you soon.

How long will you be gone?
I'll be back in services at Bay West Church on Sunday, July 6th.

I would like to thank you all for allowing me to do this and it is my hope that I will return as a better Christ follower, husband, father and pastor as we continue together into the future.

Please be faithful, come prepared to worship and learn because as I am listening to the Lord during this time, I expect him to be faithfully teaching you special things through the normal activity at Bay West, that if you were to take a break from, you would miss, so please continue attending, serving, loving, worshiping, giving, cultivating, giving, communicating and being the church.  I'll be there this Sunday, then I'll see you in July.

In Christ,
Jim

Quick recap of Sunday's sermon Week 2 of SIGNS - Yield

Bad news...no podcast this week, because we had some difficulty last Sunday.  Put down some rough thoughts from my sermon notes..

Yielding to God is essential to following God.

The concept of yielding in driving is giving someone else the right of way, letting them go first before you.  The concept of yielding to God is similar, it's giving someone else the priority or the right of way in your life...setting aside your schedule or goals in deference to theirs.

How do we do that?  Enter Jonah...specifically Jonah 2, his prayer in the belly of the fish.

4 stops in the process of yielding.
1)  Understand reality.  Jonah 2:1-6

• God is in control of and owns everything.  All kinds of "your" language in these verses.  It is clear that Jonah is coming to grips with the fact that all this is God's and he'd better get with the program of reality.
  We operate in our own little fake reality so often, where we are in control and God is living to serve us...untrue and just like simply denying that a brick wall is there and trying to run head first through it is painful, damaging and impossible...so is not grasping that all this, including me, was created for God, not the other way around.
• We are hopeless and helpless without God.
  We can't even see what God has given us without Him
  12 What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.
  1 Corinthians 2:12 (NIV)

There are 4 sources of authority in everyone’s life and everyone's decisions are made under one of these authority structures. 1)  Scripture  2)  Experience 3)  Tradition 4)  Reason -

At some point, if you are going to follow Christ, Scripture has to become the authority structure that trumps everything.

2) A recognition of our personal situation. Jonah 2:7

• Jonah realized that his life was ebbing away...he had forgotten God, he had not prayed to God (only guy on the ship that DIDN'T pray, fyi), and he had turned away from God's presence (the Holy Temple is symbolic of God's presence in Scripture).
• BUT here's the biggest recognition personally for him...vs. 8

“Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them."

He was clinging to an idol of his standards and prejudices against the Ninevites for their reputation in cruelty...He was clinging to his own idols instead of God.

3)  Jonah’s response to his situation Jonah 2:9

But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you.
What I have vowed I will make good.  I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”

• Praise right where he is...don't wait to get out of the fish.
• Sacrifice his standards to God's...God first
• Act on his commitment to God.  In the dark, act on what God has told you in the light.
• Become a verbal and life example of God's salvation.

4)  God's restoration of Jonah.  Jonah 2:10

God spoke to the fish (still in control of his fish) and it spit Jonah out.

Couple of things:

1)  When you come out of the storm of life or the belly of your fish, you won't be where you were when you came in...no going back to what it used to be.

2)  You'll be prepared for what God has for you next.  Some say that even Jonah's "bleached" appearance from the gastric juices inside the fish, may have "augmented" his appearance to make his message to Nineveh more noticeable when he got there.

While many say that Jonah 2 is a prayer of repentance, and inside the fish IS where Jonah turned it around with hints of repentance in vs.7 and 9, the overall theme isn't repentance...it's a prayer of thanksgiving.  The fish saved him physically from drowning in the storm and it also saved him emotionally by forcing him to realize where he was and to respond.

Imagine the worst thing, the most traumatic thing in your life, at some point, God having healed that to such a degree that you thank Him for it...in all things give thanks...28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28 (NIV)