Devotional
One of the Twelve
I can only hope that on the day I meet our savior He will count me among the 12. If I was to evaluate my current place of service, I believe I’m following in the foot steps of the disciples. Not in the traditional sense as a pastor or minister in a church setting, or even as a missionary, but as a fulltime Christ following representative in the business world. The sacrifices and rewards are the same, it’s just a different environment.
I experienced this type of reward this past week. I was able to help a friend regain control of his ministry domain name that had been lost when it was not renewed. Those actions allowed us to bring his email back on line reconnecting him with his friends and church family. I was only able to do this through my knowledge and understanding of the how domains, hosting and email work. The only reason I understand any of this is because of my calling in the business world by our Father.
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
This an intriguing devotional from Os Hillman today. He asks us to look at our lives and compare them to one of the patriarchs to see which one we might compare ourselves to. I would have to say I have the characteristics of Abraham. The Lord asked me to step out in faith in February of 2001 as we birthed JAMA Racing Ministry. That single action has been foundational in shaping the rest of my life.
My faith journey has been ongoing for over 13 years. I do not see that changing. It has become easier as my relationship with Him has grown deeper. I see His hand and trust His plan. Sometimes it’s a bit scary and I’m not sure how it will all turn out, but none the less, I continue walking. I have learned He is faithful.
The Place of Nothingness
As I look back over the last 14 years of walking with the Lord, my life is filled with mountain top and valley experiences. The early days of ministry were new, exciting and a fresh experience for us and those we ministered to in the drag racing community. As the economy took it’s toll on the racing groups we worked with, it also prompted a change in our ministry. We went from hosting chapel services at nearly 70 events a year to just a handful.
At one point I thought the Lord was going to have us stop ministering at the track all together. That was not the case. Instead of the direct ministry of a pulpit, He has moved us to individual contact through our work. Will this be the final destination for the ministry, doubtful. The Lord is constantly molding our lives to meet His needs and to fulfill the work He has for us while we are in this world. We must embrace the journey, there is much to be learned along the road called life.
Working Versus Striving
Relationship, relationship, relationship. I know I write about this all the time, but it’s the only way to discern the will of God for our lives. If you are to know when to do something or when not to do something, the only way you will know is how the Lord speaks to you in a given situation.
Open or closed doors, finances, the right people, the right equipment are all ways the Lord speaks to us in how we operate our business. The best one is when something looks like it’s the perfect answer to a question or problem and yet it does not happen. We found what we thought was the perfect motorhome for the second unit. By the time we could talk to the people about buying it, it was sold. It was obviously not God’s will for that situation. We knew there must be something better…and there was. What we ended up buying filled the need, was affordable and yes…all white with no graphics just like the other motorhome.
Wrestling With God
Been there done that…how many times have you heard someone say that? I wrestled with our Lord on many issues over the years. Everything from how I wanted to live my life to my dependency on the world for all of my needs. While I’d like to say I was a quick study, that simply was not the case. Hard headedness seems to be in my nature…yep, rebellious plain and simple.
But the Lords grace is greater than my stupidity. It took many years, for me to released the future and overall outcome of my life to His will. I no longer concern myself with the ‘big picture’ like I use to. Yes, I still wonder how it will all work out, but I don’t fret over it. You still have to work, you still have to use your brains to figure things out, but the overall outcome is up to Him. My job is to listen and follow direction.
God’s Preparation for Moving Out
A friend of mine has a saying, ‘Not every good idea is a God idea’. She uses this thought in the context of work and ministry. We adopted this concept the instant we heard it. It has served us well as we walk through life. This is why we take all significant changes or ideas about our business or ministry or lives to the Lord. Once we know the idea comes from Him, then we can move forward with confidence that it will prosper.
This has been the case with our recent expansion. We took it before the Lord and He provided the resources, physical and financial, to move the program to the next level. Our Lord took people (us) who had no idea how to do something (live event streaming) and made it work and work well. We’ve had TV industry experts look at how we do things and they marvel at the simplicity. What we do with 2 or 3 people would take them 5 or 6.
A Conversation in Heaven
This goes hand in hand with yesterdays devotional. We also went through a period of 7 years where the Lord removed many things from our lives while He prepared us for the place He has us and our business. I can attest that the journey has been hard at times. However, the rewards are well worth it.
No, we haven’t arrived, but we are in a place with our relationship with Him that we can have impact in the lives of those around us. What is of significance is the impact those we meet have on us. It’s a great encouragement to see the Lord touch the lives of His people through our efforts. It makes the tough times worthwhile.
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