Devotional
The Work of God
The church is a local body of believers, not a building, a denomination or movement. The pastor and staff are responsible to teach, to equip the saints for service inside and out of the local body, not to take the Gospel to the streets. This is what we have missed as followers of Christ.
Feed the poor, touch the lost, missions to foreign nations, helping your fellow man when he’s down and out are all admirable ventures. What about that guy or gal at work who you sit next to all day every day? Do they see the risen Christ in you?
We have opportunities every day to be Jesus to those around us just by allowing the one who saved us to shine through our daily activities. This is not about being one of those obnoxious bible thumping Christians, yes I did just say that and go there, that don’t practice what they preach, this is about being Jesus to people.
The Purpose of Elevation
Sometimes I feel like God is taking forever to move me from one place to the next in my walk with Him and in our business. I get anxious when it seems like we should be moving faster than we are. I’ve always been in a hurry in my life. A hurry to grow up when I was a kid, a hurry to be the boss when I worked as a teenager, a hurry to make the next stripe when I was in the military and hurry to get to the next race to win my championship.
When the Lord finally got hold of me, the first thing He did was slow me down….way down…I’m talking S L O W M O T I O N slow me down. When I finally realized how much I was missing, I started to walk through life instead of running. I notice the shapes of the clouds, or the beauty of the sunset, the color of fall or the life of spring. There is so much around us each day that we simply miss because we are running through life.
Acceptance Precedes Performance
God loves us for who we are, not for what we do for Him. It took me many years to fully understand that my relationship with our Lord was based on love and nothing more.
JAMA has seen many changes over the years the Lord has used us to minister to folks in and around the motorsports world. That ministry has taken numerous forms which include food, fellowship, song and the spoken word. Through the internet, the Lord has used our skills to reach many parts of the globe.
Unfortunately, everything I did was always based on my need to perform for Him. We did an online chapel service for a year. And as quickly as we started the messages, the Lord asked us to stop. As I prayed for what He would have me do to ‘replace’ that work, He spoke softly to me and said I want you to do nothing. It really was odd at first, but I got use to it as the business grew and required more and more of my attention.
Seeking God for His Presence vs. His Blessings
I use to see God as a cosmic vending machine. I figured I could bargain with Him to get the things I wanted in this life. You know, the old I’ll do this for you if you’ll get me out of this jam or provide me with that house or car or whatever. There was no relationship, just my wants.
When I returned to the Fathers house, I brought a lot of baggage with me as a result of my sin. I was still trying to bargain my way through life. This time it was to deal with my actions and their consequences. I was trying to get God to wipe away the issues I caused so I did not have to deal with them. The law of sewing and reaping, for the most part, can not be undone.
Yes, God can perform the miraculous in anything, but if He did we’d never learn a thing. Plus, there would be no need for us to deal with the sin in our lives.
It took a while for me to realized that I needed to seek Him first. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matt 6:33 NIV Before He can pour out His blessings on you, He has to prepare your heart to receive them.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
