Last year, my church produced a series called “Here I Am.” It was such a powerful message that it’s become the spiritual theme of the year for me. It’s amazing to consider the significance of those three tiny words. Here. I. Am. But if you do a quick search through the Bible, you’ll see this phrase play a critical role in some huge interactions.
Dear God,
Give me faith, but don’t put me in situations that require it.
Give me hope, but don’t disappoint me.
Give me contentment, but give me everything I want.
Give me grace, but don’t put me around people who need it.
Give me patience, but don’t make me wait.
I think God goes out of His way to speak our language.
In fact I know He does. At least I know He did. I’ve been reading Jason Clark’s book Surrendered and Untamed lately and thinking about Peter. Jason makes a great point that sometimes God’s favor means fishing all night without catching a thing to prepare you for the catch of a lifetime in the morning. That one stuck with me for a while. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that Jesus not only went out of His way to be dramatic, but He did it in the way Peter would have appreciated most as a fisherman. (more…)
I don’t know what your Thanksgiving traditions happen to be, but if it’s typical you probably get together with family, watch some football, eat yourself silly and generally try to have a good time. Maybe you take turns having each person tell one thing he or she is thankful for. Whatever it may be, I hope this note on gratitude can provide extra food for thought.
I’m afraid the first mistake we make when we think about gratitude is to assume that God owes it to us to accept our thanks. (more…)
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