Just One Person

The prayer of one person can change the course of a family's history or the destiny of a nation. God does not rule by consensus. He is sovereign above all things, even our determined, yet short-sighted understanding of His ways. A single prayer uttered at a strategic moment can alter the course of human history to align with the heart of God. Stop wringing your hands in fear and despair at the things you see and hear, and the hopeless future those reports project. Listen to the Spirit and follow His leading. Your obedience will lead you to an altar of prayer where God will pray through you His heart for the future. Place your hope in the words you hear and pray at that altar. They will be your place of confidence when life is unstable the future seems insecure.

Soon To Savor God's Goodness

Tonight, I did a bit of dinner prep for tomorrow. I prepared chicken and coated it in kale pesto and garlic. Then cut a bed of scallions and thin-sliced potatoes. The ingredients are resting overnight, blending their goodness in olive oil. When I finished the dinner preparation and cleaned, the kitchen the Lord spoke a word. Some of you are going to bed tonight, not knowing what tomorrow will bring. There are some significant issues you are processing. You don't have a precise word or direction. As you prayed and pondered, God was preparing a meal of revelation for you. He has formed that word and the place in your life for it to reside and prosper once delivered. Go to sleep tonight and choose not to worry. The Lord has prepared a meal of His goodness that you will soon savor with joy.

When Corny is Good

Last night, Jan and I watched a movie that was different from our typical fare of drama, action, and intrigue. It was a western. At first, I thought it might be too corny to endure, but it grew on us as the minutes rolled on. The theme of the movie was redemption, honor, and integrity. After the movie was over, I turned to Jan and said, “That was refreshing. I’m glad we watched it.” Jan agreed. Perhaps we are all at that place emotionally when filling our eyes with simplicity, authenticity and a bit of corny emotional input is just what we need. A detour into the simple and pure things of life in these complicated times will offer us an intermission of peace and a moment of rest when life becomes heavy and dark, polluted with a never-ending broadcast of evil and wrongdoing. 

In Flew a Ladybug

This is a photo of two of my favorite females. Jan is holding our new puppy named Ladybug. The pup is the result of a romantic encounter between a Labradoodle mom and an Australian Shepherd father. This photo was taken a couple of weeks ago. I like it because Jan and Ladybug had just finished taking a nap together, and all was all quiet on the puppy dog front – for a moment.

The name Ladybug came after wanting to name her Lady but felt she was something more. My daughter Anna commented one day as we entertained our new puppy’s name, “She reminds me of a little ladybug.” An hour after Anna made that comment, the yet-to-be-officially-named puppy and I were sitting outside in her kennel enjoying the sunshine when a real ladybug flew out of nowhere and landed on my right arm. Once the ladybug had my attention, it flew up and off my arm and made a few orbits above my head, making sure I got the message and then flew away.

God likes to confirm the little things in life, like the naming of a puppy. For those whose image of God is of a distant and distracted father who cares little about such things, I pray those dear souls could see Him in a different light. 

Today, look for the ladybug kind of confirmations that visit our lives on a daily basis. They are messages from a loving Father who wants His children to know that His eye is on the sparrow, little puppies and anything His children love.

God is Reframing Our Future

Many times, I will see something just before I begin to write. This morning, I saw frames like the kind of frames that surround a photo or work of art. The frames were approaching a date shortly when we will emerge from this time of isolation. Each frame has a life it will encompass and a date when the reframing will take place.

Most of us have written something in the margin of a book or a Bible. As we read along, we jot down thoughts and observations in the margins of the text. There is actually a term for this: “marginalia.” 

Marginalia originally described the intentional designs in the margins of Medieval illuminated manuscripts. The margins of these manuscripts were filled with beautiful patterns and images in gold and silver that helped “illuminate” the text. 

God will be reframing many of our lives in the coming days. He has written on these new frames – the marginalia - His desire for the next season of our life. The new frame will make our lives come alive with fresh clarity revealing the original intent of the Artist. 

This season has not been a wasted or lost time. Each painful loss and disappointment will be captured by God and transformed into a hope-filled marginalia text that will reveal the creativity of His redeeming power. When you emerge from this time, and your new frame is placed over the image of your life, you will become a masterpiece of God fit for a place of honor in the most prestigious gallery.

A Father's Blessing

I've held off releasing this blessing written by Jan for a few days waiting for the right time. I sense today is the right time. Some have had challenging relationships with their earthly father or a father figure. Others are trying to help someone get healed from the wounds of a broken father relationship. I believe hearing the words of this blessing will become a healing salve of the Spirit. These words of blessing will confront the lies embedded in the painful wounds of neglect and abuse. Knowing and receiving God's love is the first step toward healing and restoration of any broken relationship. 

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A Father’s Blessing - Genesis 28:3-4 & Psalm 139

David the Psalmist has a clear picture of the Father’s heart and I turned his words into a Father’s blessing. I also included God’s blessing we inherit through Abraham to Jacob and to all His people of faith (Galatians 3:5-9).

In the Name of Jesus Christ,

may your spirit and soul and body

believe the value your Father

places on you; may His understanding

of you bring you wonder and strength.

Listen to His heart for you—

receive the Father’s blessing:

My hand of love is upon you, imparting

a Father’s blessing to you.

I cherish you constantly;

every single moment I’m thinking of you!

I created you in love, by Love, for love:

I formed your innermost being—

carefully and skillfully shaping you.

My desires for you and your destiny

are more than the grains of sand

on every shore!

I saw who you were created to be

before you became you;

the number of days I planned for you

were already recorded in my book.

I thoroughly know you—

I understand your thoughts

and perceive every movement

of your heart and soul;

I read your heart like an open book.

I know the words you are about to speak

before you form a sentence;

I know every step you will take

before your journey even begins.

When you arrive at your destination,

I am there waiting for you.

I’ve gone into your future to prepare your way;

I follow behind you to spare you

any harm from your past.

I bring light into your night—

there is no such thing as “darkness” with me;

the night is bright as day,

with no difference between the two.

My presence is everywhere.

Never imagine that you could be here

and I somewhere else;

it is impossible to be separated from me.

Wherever you go my hand will guide you,

and my strength will empower you.

May you multiply and be fruitful

and your descendants with you.

May you inherit the land I give you.

May all the generations after you,

and all the families of the earth

be blessed through you.

No Longer

A significant transition takes place in our relationship with God when we longer see ourselves as working FOR God, but WITH God.

That transition takes place when we no longer see ourselves a - 

sinners, but as saints fully redeemed

servants, but as friends of God

orphans, but as sons and daughters

This change of insight into our true identity will radically upset the spirit of religion that desires to control us with a lesser image of ourselves than how God sees us. It will also challenge our understanding of God's love and require that we step out of the cell of a broken identity into the freedom of a new creation.

The Checkmate of God

This morning in prayer, I saw an image of the Lord seated at a chessboard. The chess pieces were ornate and represented the nations of the earth. I looked to see who His opponent was and realized he was so insignificant in comparison to God that I could not even see his head above the tabletop. It appeared as if no one was seated across from the Lord. The enemy’s lack of significance did not allow him to play the game with any hope of final victory.  Each move he made could not stand up against the wisdom and power of God’s strategy. Patiently and peacefully, the Lord continued to move each chess piece around the chessboard, according to a plan none of us can fully understand or comprehend the complexity of its design.

This life and the affairs of humanity are being orchestrated by the hand of God, not by evil. None of what we see taking place on the world stage is without a righteous and merciful outcome. When things make no sense or people issue warnings that the sky is falling, wait in expectation for the next move of God. His hand is always making a strategic play at just the right time that will checkmate the most elaborate plan of hell.

The Safety of Deacceleration

Some of the imbalance you are feeling could be God applying the brakes on your self-effort and worry. It's like sitting in a car when someone uses the brakes to avoid a crash, and you are thrown forward under the force of deacceleration. Not everything in God’s Kingdom is about acceleration. There are times when God will slow us down to protect us, so we don’t collide with things in our lane of travel that are not God's best for our life.

It's Not About Salvaging Our Ministry

I am in debt to anointed pastors who nurtured me at the beginning of my walk of faith. I remember listening to a conversation where a leader had fallen into serious sin. The leader met with my pastor, Roy Hicks, Jr., to begin a process of healing and restoration. When the fallen leader entered my pastor’s study for their first counseling session, Roy raised his hand before a single word was spoken and said, “This is not about restoring you to ministry. It is about getting healthy spiritually and restoring you to God.” 

Too often, we over-value personal ministry at the expense of wisdom and integrity. God is not impressed with our ministry no matter how large and expansive it might appear. He is concerned about the integrity of our hearts. If we forget about integrity, we will enter a place of spiritual peril and end up wounding and confusing those who have entrusted themselves to our leadership.

Spiritual Parenting

Spiritual fathers and mothers get angered by the same things that incense a young believer. What a spiritual parent has learned to do with the help of God is to temper their initial angry response. This is done to offer their spiritual offspring the time needed to process their decision, not having the added weight of stumbling over a parent's undisciplined knee-jerk response. Spiritual maturity is a process for both parents and children. The mature love of a spiritual parent is longsuffering and able to endure the most foolish of responses patiently waiting for their children to come back to their senses and make the right choice

The Peaceful Touch of the Father

Life with a new puppy is a unique experience. We have been here before, so it’s no surprise. It is a constant vigil for accidental piddles and making sure our little Boone boy knows how to fit into his new pack.  By the way, he is such a good pup. He is a quick learner. Already on day two, he knows how to go in and out of the doggie door to relieve himself. Whew!

We crate Boone at night. For those who wonder what a crate might be, it is a wire cage only large enough for a dog to lie down. It’s like a personal cave where a dog can feel secure. 

The first night home, we put the crate across our bedroom, and Boone howled and howled. After about 30 minutes of this dog-chorus, I had an idea. I slid the crate alongside our bed on my side. I could put my hand down and touch his noisy little nose that was poking up through the wire as he cried. As soon as he felt my touch, he stopped crying, settled down, and fell asleep. He slept through the first night, and now the second. All is well in Elkinsville.

Calming Boone in the middle of the night when he was thrust into a new and unfamiliar environment was a milestone in puppy training. It is also a milestone in our spiritual lives. Every new season will have a night experience when so much is unfamiliar and unknown that we will cry out in some form of anguish not knowing what is taking place. These strange circumstances may not change overnight, and that can be unsettling. The only thing that can calm us is a touch from God. 

Just as Boone raised his nose and poked it upward looking for comfort so it should be with us. The circumstance of our lives may be unchangeable and uncomfortable. In those times, we have control over only one thing.  We can decide where we will reach out for peace and security. Only God can provide those two things. If you are in a new and unfamiliar place, turn your attention heavenward, and you will feel the peaceful touch of God’s hand. His touch is the only thing that can calm the anxiety of life.

Proving Our Worth

Bondage is anything we do to prove our worth. We have nothing to prove. We have been placed in Jesus at the right hand of the Father in eternity. In that place, we are full and complete in Christ. We live this current life from the reality of that present eternal position. This life will eventually be no more. Our position in Christ will remain unchanged throughout all eternity. 

We have gained all the worth we will ever possess. Our worth was given to us the day we received the gift of forgiveness through Jesus Christ. In Him, we were made fully worthy. 

Because we have already been placed in the final destination of our life journey, we never have to struggle to gain worth. Trying to prove our worth in any way is bondage. Bondage is a self-inflicted wound. 

We pick up bondage whenever we try to prove our worth to God by doing anything to validate that worth. If at any point in your journey of life you begin to feel unworthy, stop. Stop and deal with that lie before you do anything else. God wants you to experience life and freedom. That is why he set you free before the journey began. 

(An excerpt from the book, A Good Place)

The Return to Glory

When Tiger Woods won the 2019 Masters golf tournament this weekend, CBS headlined his victory with the words, “The Return to Glory.” At age 43 and 11 years since his last major victory, along with a life filled with disappointment and injury, some sports announcers are calling Tiger’s comeback one of the greatest in golfing history.

As an 11-year old boy, I remember walking the 18^th hole at Pebble Beach with my father when he won the California State Championship for his handicap division. I still have the trophy handed to my father in front of the clubhouse on that day 58 years ago. What was unique about my father’s win was the fact that 9 months prior to his victory was the first time he ever held a golf club. He won the championship with a cheap set of ancient clubs he bought at a pawnshop. He was a natural.

Both Tiger and my father did something the doubters would say was not possible. I have come to realize, having walked with God for so many years, that He loves to do what seems impossible. For Tiger, he returned to former glory. For my father, he experienced golfing glory for the first time. 

The glory of God is different. It is available to all believers, not just those who stand in the winner’s circle. We carry the glory of God and in some instances of life that glory will become what has been termed the manifest glory of God. This is when the glory of God is released in a tangible way during worship or in the midst of human conflict and it becomes obvious that God is present and working beyond our natural ability or our wildest imagination. 

As I read the caption from CBS news about Tiger's return to glory, I sensed the Lord speaking to me about something more than a sporting victory. We are in a moment of history when God is calling, and in some cases calling back, believers who have been written off as too failed or too fragile to be trusted with a shot at victory. While the world, and unfortunately some in the Church look only at the rising stars, God has not forgotten those who failed or were never even considered as candidates for something new. 

When the glory returns, those who step forward in obedience to the call will experience unusual demonstrations of God’s presence. When this happens it will be obvious to all the glory has indeed returned. 

I See You

I remember reading about a young woman who was part of a team of noted researchers who accomplished a major scientific breakthrough. Her research produced the amazing results being celebrated by others yet her name remained hidden and unrecognized. Everything changed when another young woman who had risen to public notoriety from a place of personal obscurity noted her valuable contribution and made her name known on social media. The young woman was finally honored because someone noticed her.

We need to ask God to help us see the unnoticed ones who work behind the scenes. We live in a culture where those already standing on the public platform receive most of the praise and acclamation. Without the pivotal contribution of these unnoticed ones, the great accomplishments being celebrated would never have taken place.  

When you see these hidden gifts let them know you see them. They may be that one person who is the glue that holds an entire family together. They can be someone who introduced two people who formed a critical relationship that led to a powerful alliance or someone who gave of their limited finances to help an entrepreneur get started. They might lead a Sunday School class in a small church out in the middle of nowhere who led a great revivalist to the Lord. These people are all around us faithfully fulfilling their calling in life.

Noticing the unnoticed is something Jesus did very well and it is a skill all of us need to develop. Jesus saw apostles in fisherman and a future disciple in a tree. He saw an undiscovered evangelist in a Samaritan woman drawing water at a well. Destiny is discovered when someone is noticed. Seeing someone values them as a human being created in the image of God and that is the most beautiful thing to notice. 

God is Watching Over You

This morning, my daughter, Anna, returns home after three weeks away. Anna and a friend led teams of writers in Spain and Morocco. She flies home today from Paris. In the image of my computer screen you can see the flight-tracking program I use that lets me watch the progress of Anna’s flight. Her aircraft is the little airplane icon depicted on the right side of the dotted flight path. Jan and I have always prayed our kids home whenever they are away.

As I watch Anna’s return flight progress, I thought of Jacob and the dream he had at Bethel about a stairway to heaven. During the dream, the Lord spoke to Jacob and said, "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you" (Genesis 28:15).

There are times we can feel alone in this life like someone flying in an aluminum cylinder 30,000 feet above the Earth through a dark night sky over a vast ocean. We are never alone in these alone times. God is watching over us no matter where we may travel in this life. He will stay with us on the journey and bring us back home because He is faithful to accomplish what He promised. 

My New Best Friend

On November 27, 2017, a best friend of mine died. Abby was my Australian Shepherd. She lived just a few days shy of 15 years. To say I was devastated at her passing would be an understatement. I cannot remember grieving like that in all my life. A few weeks ago, the same breeder from whom we purchased Abby let me know a new litter would be coming this month. We will bring our new puppy home around the first of June. 

Loss is like a dull ache without borders. It bleeds over into all areas of our lives and sets off tearful emotions at the oddest of times.  Loss needs time to heal and process. I am ready. The healing of Abby's loss is taking place with the thought of a new Aussie. I want a girl. Unless something changes her name will be Lady.

Our new dog won’t be Abby, but she will be what I need in this season of my life, just like Abby was for all those years when she was part of our lives. With God, He knows just the right time to fill a strangely quiet home with the sounds of a new life. God is good and so are the creatures He gives to us who become our faithful companions walking with us along the path of life.

Finding Purpose in the Last Lap of Life

I have the privilege and the honor of speaking in a variety of churches and conference settings. While I value those public venues what I enjoy the most is getting to sit in a living room or on a stool and speak as a spiritual father to a team who carry a shared mission. These settings are where Q&A takes place and prophetic insight freely flows revealing doorways into the future of a personal life, the mission of a faith community or the development of a product. 

At my stage in life, I have come to realize a spiritual father or mother does not need to know all the technical specifics of a product launch or each detail of a ministry vision in order to be a voice of value. What is needed in these more intimate settings is the revelation of the heart of God. That revelation has the power to transform a life, a product launch or a ministry vision into something more where people are able to discover the fullness of their calling.

Becoming older in the Spirit is a good and hopefully anticipated experience. Steward your maturing journey well and you will be surprised how God will use you when you become an elder in His Kingdom. We are part of an ever-expanding mission. Believing that an inevitable decline is our lot in life is an alignment with a deceiving spirit. Turn away from that lie and ask God to reveal to you the good things He has planned for your life as you enter the last lap of your life-race. That revelation will change everything.

A Loving Touch

I'm guessing I kiss or hug Jan at least 10 times a day. Our love involves a continuous intimate physical encounter. Jesus did not come as a vaporous spirit. He came to incarnate a physical representation of God's love. Don't settle for a stale and unfeeling form of love. Tomorrow may never come. Today, touch the ones you love. Express to them what you feel and do it with a touch. A  loving touch will continue to be felt long after you are gone.

A Perfect Fit

Like most people, I buy my shoes at a department store. I know my size so I pick from what is available on the shelves. I did the same with a pair of western boots I own. Some people call them “cowboy boots.” Like any shoe, it takes a while for boots to mold to your foot. That is the problem with off the shelf boots or shoes. They are not an exact fit – ever.

There is another kind of western boot that is a dream of serious boot wearers. These boots are handmade. To produce this level of craftsmanship the bootmaker doesn’t work from your known size. He actually measures your foot – every square inch of it. Not just the length and width, but every imaginable curve, bump, circumference and unique dimension particular to your two feet. When he is finished the boots become like a pair of leather socks perfectly fitting over your feet. Add to that some beautiful design on the boot shafts along with a preferred toe style and you have a custom creation. Some of these boots cost thousands of dollars and the waiting list to take a pair home can be a year or two or more. No wonder these beauties cost a lot of money.

God loves to create a perfect fit for us whether it is a spouse, a ministry assignment or a place within a team working on a project. He knows our spiritual and emotional dimensions. The best part is that He does it all for free. Our only commitment to ensure this perfect fit is that we allow Him to assume the position of Lord in all the affairs of our lives and take His measurements, not work off our assumptions. 

Today, take inventory of your spiritual and relational footwear. The best fitting marriages, friendships, and Kingdom assignments are those where the Lord was allowed to take our measurements and design what we wear. If He was given permission to construct our relationships they will always work out in the end because they were created with all the uniqueness of our spiritual footprint in mind. Once the Lord is done creating these works of Heaven art, He will surround our lives with His creation and ask us to walk around and tell Him how it feels. That kind of creative love will always produce a perfect fit.