Fav 5

I think you most of you have seen those “FAV 5″ phone commercials. Do your remember the question they ask at the tail end?  ”Who is in your FAV 5?”

Two weeks ago I underwent a three day fast specifically to grow my prayer life.  I chose five specific people (FAV 5) that I would pray for every time that hunger pang hit. This experience changed my prayer life. 

My transformation began when…

…I was reminded of the immediate access to my Father in heaven. I take His availability and accessibility for granted way too much.

…I evaluated how many times I missed connecting with the Lord. Didn’t God know I was busy?

 …I was convicted to let my “yes” be “yes” when people asked me to pray for them. I recognized how inconsistent I was in this area. I was also convicted of my lack of commitment to those I SAID I would pray for. This conviction was sobering on many levels.

…I took my eyes off me and focused on others. I started listing my FAV 5 with my wife only to realize that all five had to do with me. My selfishness hit me in the face.  I was deeply humbled in this process.

… My FAV 5 grew into FAV 10. It was as if my heart broke out of the box containing it (like the Grinch Who Store Christmas). I didn’t want to rattle my list of prayers off to God and then move onto my daily routine. I wanted to offer a heartfelt prayer to the Lord because I love those God has entrusted me to pray for.

… Prayer become a joy for me instead of a task.

May I leave you with a couple questions? You don’t have a choice.

1. What spiritual discipline will you do so God can transform you? Better yet, what spiritual discipline should you be doing so that transformation can occur?

2. Who is in your FAV 5? Are you diligently praying for them? 

I know what you’re thinking? “So… Andy hasn’t been praying for me eh? That man is lazy! Isn’t that his job? I’m never going to ask him to pray for me!” Friends… I’m working on it. God is continuing to transform me into a man of prayer.  Will you allow Him to do the same?

 

Andy

 

Encouraging Words

Proverbs 16:24 says:
Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

I got a taste of honeycomb words just now, when someone emailed me with this:
“We really enjoyed the sermon yesterday. [A first time guest] told us that it was the first time he ever got anything out of going to church. I just wanted to pass that along to you to give you some encouragement!”

Thank you, Lord. That always helps – especially on a Monday!
-Dale

Is religion evil?

This morning I just read a disturbing poll result that claims that most people now think that the new social evil of the 21st century is religion. There is a widespread belief that faith  of any kind is intolerant, irrational, is used to justify persecution. People think it divides society by fueling intolerance and spawning “irrational” educational policies (no doubt, those striving for a format for intelligent design). People think that religion inspires hatred and prejudice throughout the world, and is commonly used as justification for persecution of women, gays and people who do not have faith.

 

This is sad. Very sad. By simplistically lumping “all religion” into one camp, all these people who have no hope beyond this life have become absolutely closed-minded and vitriolic in their atheism. They mock the “God of love” because they see so little fruit in the lives of those who claim to follow God. No transformation, no converts. 

 

On one hand, I’d like to point out the vast social benefits that have come from the Christian faith and worldview – schools, orphanages, hospitals, ending slavery, etc. But these folks would reply by claiming that its the Christians, those “republicans”, who want to destroy the environment and rape the planet for a profit, and deprive gays their civil right of marriage, so “they” hold the higher moral ground. 

 

On the other hand, perhaps we should simply agree with charge against “religion” and join our voices to the chorus — then lovingly point out that true followers of Jesus do not have religion; they have a relationship with the most amazing man who ever lived. We follow a Person, not a prejudicial plan to show our superiority. We are here to serve, to love, to lift up, and to suffer for being misunderstood. 

 

Jesus said, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:11-12). 

 

We live in a time when these words are being fulfilled. It’s time to rejoice in how blessed we are as followers of Jesus.