Instrumental in God's Purpose.

“They in fact, blessed God for me, unworthy wretch though I was, and counted me as God's instrument who showed them the way of salvation.” John Bunyan 1628-1688.

John Bunyan is usually known for writing the Pilgrim’s Progress but this particular quote is from “Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners”. This was Bunyan’s first work also written in prison.

As I read this particular passage the concept of being an instrument for God’s purpose really struck me. It is not an isolated concept. It has brought out by a number of writers, including the Apostle Paul and St Francis of Assisi.

What might it look like to be God’ Instrument in the 21^st Century?

Would it look that much different form the call of Timothy who Paul was writing to in the first century or St Francis in the thirteenth century?

 I don’t think so, but it will never be easy.

There would seem to be some basic characteristics:

·         Holiness: cleansing ourselves so we can be used of God. (2 Timothy 2:21).

·         A commitment unselfishly to seek the salvation and interests of others.

·         Walking the talk, rather than just talking.

·         Put into practice whatever you know on a daily basis.

·         Go wherever God wants you to go.

These words are often attributed to St Francis although some would contest this. It is still a great sentiment.

“Preach the Gospel on all occasions and when necessary use words”

We all know people who are God’s instruments……………………………………….. Are you one of them?

 

A rare comodity ................Wisdom

How do we acquire wisdom?

Proverbs 2:6 says,
For the LORD gives wisdom;
From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

In the 21st century we are great chasers of knowledge. We live in the age of the"knowledge super highway".  Where everything you could ever want know is available at the push of a button, including this blog. It is said that knowledge is doubling every 5-10 years. Does this mean that God is speaking more than he has in the previous 20 centuries?

I would doubt that myself otherwise, I wouldn't have to look back to the 17th century to find this weeks author Isaac Penington (1617-1680). God is always speaking and always has been. So does that mean that Solomon got it wrong in proverbs, is it really all about Google?

I would suggest that there is a plethora of information available from a variety of sources. The trick becomes how we use the information we have access to. Information is not knowledge and it is certainly not wisdom. It is just what is says information or data! It is what you do with it the will either develop it into knowledge when referenced to other things or possibly understanding. Even more rarely it may become wisdom.

Isaac Penington would suggest wisdom comes from the witness of the Holy Spirit in our lives. He maintains that we need to wait diligently for the leadings of the Spirit in everything that we do. It prevents us form sliding backwards into the traps of the enemy, false dogma or the vain spirit of this age. If we have no witness to what we need to know, we should continue to wait until the Spirit enlightens us. This fits with the proverb above much better.

In an age where speed is of essence of everything, does that make this advice wrong?  I don't believe it does. I believe the need for speed is an illusion in most cases. We have a lot more time in decision making than we think!! Literally waiting on God. (Isaiah 40:31)

Until Next time
Paul

Living in the now..................... with God!

"God's order and his divine will, humbly obeyed by the faithful accomplishes his divine purpose in them.....
.........it is God's order and his will which sanctify and not the curious speculations about it's origins."

Jean-Pierre de Caussade 1675-1751

 

de Cuassade basically states we spend so much time with theology and theories that we actually miss the point of being in the will of God. We are vainly chasing and theorising about something we already have. If we chose to submit to the will and Spirit of God, we would not only be obedient we would be fulfilled, sanctified and justified. Not just talking about it!

 

The will of God is the presence, the reality and virtue of all things. Without Gods direction it is all meaningless. We are but walking in the dark, with superficiality vanity, words and death. God is our light, our salvation, our sanity and our life!

 

Our only question should be LORD what shall I do? The presence of God which sanctifies our souls is the Holy Trinity which dwells in our hearts when we surrender to the divine will.

 

God will treat us as an individual and may communicate with us anyway he chooses!!

 

This is very freeing and oh so simple, but not necessarily easy to do as it is quite counter cultural to modern church!!

 

 

Give it a go! Ask the question! LORD shall I do?. This is not the speculation of What Would Jesus Do, but a simple question as we go to the source. Do it now!

 

I love this........................... it is awesome!!

The Spiritual Gym

Ignatius of Loyola ( 1491-1556) is famous for his spiritual exercises and devotional practices such as Lectio Divina or Divine Reading. They have been standard practice for the Jesuit Movement and still are.

Ignatius rightly points out that they Devil will attack where we are most vulnerable and at our weakest moments. Does that mean we are helpless......we all have weaknesses that make us vulnerable to attack, our task is to develop resilience against that attack. To develop strategies that will enable us to resist the Devil as it says in scripture and he will flee.

 Our reflective practice of knowing ourselves is a great weapon at our disposal. If we are self aware we may be able to discern our weakness and makes efforts to strengthen ourselves in that area. 

The old saying goes "for warned is for armed" . If we are vigilant we can identify an issue or weakness before it become a major problem by acknowledging our risk and developing good strategy and support. One of the best strategies I know is to develop strong relationships with other believers especially if you are men. There are areas that men particularly are vulnerable, such as pornography. Acknowledging our weakness and having close male support and a strategy to deal with this which makes  us safer.

Ignatius writes the enemy is weak in the presence of strength. We need to practice our spiritual disciplines on a regular basis. Most times we don't succumb to temptation overnight it is a process that can be alleviated at any stage along the way. Although it does get more difficult the further into the temptation you move.
So what do we do:

1. Acknowledge our weaknesses.
2. Develop our spiritual disciplines.
3. Develop a strategy to deal with our weaknesses.
4. Involve your brother and sister Christians...... Do not try and fly solo! There is safety in numbers who move in transparent and authentic fellowship.

Practice these things, spiritual muscle is born through exercise just like going to the gym!

What are your weaknesses? If you don't know ask someone close to you......................... they can probably tell you.

 

Until next time.
Paul

Obedience such a loaded term in the 21st Century!

I looked up in the word obedience in the dictionary and it defines obedience as following the rules or those in authority. I believe that this provides only a partial story because it does not suggest why we might want to follow this process. As Christians I believe the "why" is almost as important as the action itself! This weeks author George Fox (1621-1691) a Puritan who founded the Quakers thinks along the same lines.

For George the first and most important reason for our obedience is that it glorifies our Heavenly Father. That our chosen lifestyle of obedience to the "Truth" brings glory to God through our actions rather than just our words....his renown may be seen in you and among you". He suggests that obedience brings guidance and nourishment to our souls. Our obedience to the word of Truth would govern our behaviour, how we do life as individuals, families and faith communities. As I look at some of the ways the wider body of Christ behaves in all its roles I don't always see that obedience being reflected. I can't always see the difference between us and the rest of the world. That saddens me and if it saddens me, it must make the Father weep! Looking at the way we behave sometimes, if Jesus came again "incognito", would he a want to be Christian? I am not so sure!!

I personally believe that our obedience is part of our worship.  By being obedient to the "logos" word and the "rhema" word we show honour and worship to our King, Our actions as well as our words. It is simply put in John 14:21  "If anyone loves Me, he will keep my word and my Father will love him , and we  will come to him and make Our home with him."



Deuteronomy 28  also covers Obedience

 Following along the statement from John, the next result I see is that of "blessing". We are blessed with HIS presence in our lives first and foremost.  Deuteronomy 30 suggests That we will also be blessed in other ways when we follow his commands and statutes. God will bless us in the land, we will live long and multiply. This passage suggests it is as cut and dried as Life and Death and implores us to chose Life.

Which will you chose!

For me I come back to Joshua 24:15
But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then chose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.

A choice I make every morning!