About a year ago I wrote a blog about the cool play on words with "PTL". The Lord had challenged me to Praise him in the times that I wanted to bathe in self-pitty; or dwell on the things that didn't look the way I thought they should. While sitting at a cute wooden table outside of starbucks with two of my friends, I glanced down at my plastic cup that was marked with the letters "P.T.L." We were discussing the heartbreak of investing so much in a relationship and walking away with very little to show for it, and in the midst of tears the sweet Lord said, "Kirby... pay attention. It's a season of singing."
Boom. Where I had begun to open a door for Satan to come in and twist my knowledge of the truth, Jesus quickly brought me back to reality. Don't misunderstand me, it is completely natural to have feelings of sadness or anger when we experience change in our lives... but I was at a crossroad: I could choose to drown in that broken heart, or I could choose to walk through the fire, singing and learning.
I do not believe that this is a lesson that we learn one time in life... I can speak only on behalf of myself, but this is one thing that I keep learning, day after day.
This semester began with a similar situation. An unexpected change came about in a close relationship of mine, and again I was at that same crossroad. This time the Lord wanted to teach me about contentment.
I think it's important to learn from the people in our lives; afterall, they have been placed there for a reason. I also believe this is why it is vital that we are vulnerable and transparent with each other, because we were all created with a desire in the depth of our souls to be known. If we don't meet that for others, we are missing out on abundant opportunity.
With that being said, I love the life of Paul in the new testiment. He was a mass murderer of Christians; didn't like them, didn't want anything to do with them... He did everything in his power to get rid of them. Then God wanted to use him, got a hold of his heart and literally transformed him. God took a murderer, dead in his sin, and made him alive in Christ; a man who became the greatest missionary to walk the face of the earth. Paul ended up writing most of the new testiment, allthewhile he was in jail, encouraging the church to live a life worthy of their calling. He had very little to live off of; he was beaten, and mistreated but he knew that he was only a servant of the gospel by the grace of God. He knew that it was his responsibility to get the message of Jesus to the gentiles. He lead by example, and he taught his fellow believers to always be ready for the time that Jesus comes back.
Philippians 4:11 says, "...for I have LEARNED to be content with whatever I have..."
Contentment is not when everything is perfect, and our lives are smoothe sailing. Contentment means that in the midst of chaos, and heartbreak and confusion, we have a peace and a joy that surpasses all understanding. It means that we Praise the Lord when it seems acceptable for our heads to hang low.
It means that we quit "waiting" for peace, and choose it. It means we walk in the will of the Lord.
"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." - 1 Thes 5:12
"Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again - rejoice!" Phil 4:4
"Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all that He has done. Then the peace that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds..." - Phil 4:7
I'm tired of this American Christianity. If you're comfortable, you're wrong. We spend our time asking God for opportunity, and when He brings it to us, we are too busy. We have comfortable jobs, a nice pay check, a pretty family and a big house; yet, we hold onto our posessions, because we worked hard for them so we "deserve" them. We spend billions of dollars on building churches around the globe, and invest in the "doctine" of multiple denominations, and forget about the people half way across the world that are hiding in an underground church, risking their lives to hear about the hope of God... We preach on the "hole" in our gospel, and at the same time we let Satan use us to dig the hole a little deeper. We use our dreams to create great things- from technology to non-profit organizations - but we leave the name of God out of it. We are obsessed with being "politically correct" and we don't want to "push" our beliefs or "convictions" on other people, so we refrain from voicing our opinions in our liberal classes and professional work places. We allow theology to make itself a wedge in our relationships with people, yet we call ourselves one body. Have we forgotten that there is only one way to God? Have we forgotten that we are the ones held accountable for the opportunities that He has put before us? We are foolish to believe that we are planted in certain places to go to school, or work from 8-5, or whatever else. We serve a God who perfectly orchestrates our steps, yet we are afraid to take them because we aren't "sure" if thats what He wants for us. We've gone from good intentions to laziness, and it isn't getting the good news to anyone.
Paul knew that He didn't have all the time in the world; He knew that Jesus was coming back, and he was going to be held accountable for the responsibilities the Lord had given him. He wasn't messing around. In fact, He was ready at any point.
Lord, forgive of us of our pasts. We are so unworthy of your grace, yet you lavish it on us each and every morning. Transform us the way you did Paul, and use us to make you famous. Teach us to be content, even in the hardest times. Teach us to be bold in our actions; remind us that you make all things good, and you place dreams and desires in our hearts for a reason. Create enough opportunity only for today, and open our eyes for only that much. Light only a little bit of our path, so we don't get ahead of ourselves and trip over our own feet. Convict us of the things that you don't love, and remind us to sing to you in every circumstance. Reveal to us your mysteries and shine your light through us. Light us on fire.
It's way past time, people. It's time to learn to be content, and to freely give what has been given to us. We don't deserve any of what we "own". We have one responsibility. It's time for the church to wake up; it's time for a revival. We can sing and dance and clap our hands in Heaven.
The only thing we can't do in Heaven is reach the lost.
