Do We Learn from our Mistakes?

When I was a young man working as a Material Manager/Purchasing Agent for a Furniture manufacturer I made a horrible blunder by forgetting to order some material for a job we were to run.  I just totally overlooked the job.  Hence I didn’t order any of the plywood for an order of 1,000 bunk beds that we were to produce.  I also was in charge of scheduling the plant and while updating the schedule I discovered my error.  Immediately I called the Vice-President of Manufacturing and told him that I had blown it.  He gave me instructions on reworking the schedule while he called the Plant Managers to inform them of our change in plans.

Later that day when he was at the plant were I was headquartered I again apologized for my mistake.  He looked me straight in the eye and said this (which I have never forgotten though that was approximately thirty eight years ago), “everyone makes mistakes, but it would be to your advantage not to make the same mistake twice”.

I’ve been reading through Kings and Chronicles that last few weeks and continue to see a recurring theme.  The children of Israel would be living in faithfulness to God and then slowly begin to drift into idolatry and all sorts of sinfulness.  God would give them the space to repent, but when they would not He would bring judgment upon them. 

Sometimes it would be through a famine (drought), a pestilence (disease), or maybe by the sword (an invading army).  God would bring them to their knees, they would repent, and God would deliver them.  His blessings would flow and everyone would be at peace for a time and then the cycle would start to repeat itself.  The Book of Judges is a continual saga of the same issue.

One thing I have tried to remember from the admonishment of our Vice-President that day is that if I had been a little more diligent to review my work I could have avoided the mistake that so embarrassed me, and cost my company a great deal of money.  From that point on I made very sure that I didn’t repeat that blunder.  Because of that I never had to face the result of making that mistake again and seeing how my boss would deal with me. 

I’ll never know how he would have handled that, but I am so thankful that my Heavenly Father forgives my sin the first, and second, and third, and fourth, and you get the picture, every time I cry out to Him for His forgiveness.  You see, the penalty was paid for my errors in life when God sent His Son to pay the price for my past sin.  And not only for my past sin, but every mistake I have made, and ever will make.  Not because of anything I have done, can do, or will do, but because of the Cross my sin is already paid for!  There are already covered by the blood of His Son.  Makes me mighty grateful, aren’t you thankful too?

What does Living a Revived Life Look Like?

We have just finished a series of Revival Meetings in our church.  As I write this I do not know how our Revival concluded or all that God did in our hearts, but I do know what Revival should look like.  If you follow the birth of the church in the Book of Acts, and other instances of God reviving and refreshing His people you will see several common denominators.  One, revival always begins with God’s people being broken over their sin.  Then there is abundant joy is His people when they realize and understand that God can and will forgive their sin.  The third thing they experience is a oneness with each other.  They are in one accord as a family of believers.  The last thing that marks true, heartfelt revival is a boldness to go and declare His salvation to all those around them.  The end result of all this is that Jesus is honored and others come to know His grace and love.

Have we experienced true revival?  I hope so, I pray so.  Life is too short to waste on frivolous things.  There are too many lives being spent on things that have no eternal significance.  I want to share a true story I read a few years ago from the book ‘Crazy Love’ by Francis Chan.  Francis is the narrator of the story.  Read his words and let them sink in.

Brooke Bronkowski was a beautiful fourteen-year old girl who was in love with Jesus.  When she was in junior high, she started a Bible study on her campus.  She spent her babysitting money on Bibles so she could give them out to her unsaved friends.  Youth pastors who heard about this brought her boxes of Bibles to give away.

Brooke wrote the following essay when she was about twelve; it will give you an idea of the kind of girl she was.

I'll live my lift to the fullest. I'll be happy. I'll brighten up. 1 will be more joyful than 1 have ever been. 1 will be kind to oth­ers. 1 will loosen up. 1 will tell others about Christ. 1 will go on adventures and change the world. 1 will be bold and not change who 1 really am. 1 will have no troubles but instead help others with their troubles.

You see, I'll be one of those people who live to be history makers at a young age. Oh, I'll have moments, good and bad, but 1 will wipe away the bad and only remember the good. In fact that's all 1 will remember, just good moments, nothing in between, just living my life to the fullest. I'll be one of those people who go somewhere with a mission, an awesome plan, a world-changing plan, and nothing will hold me back. I'll set an example for others, 1 will pray for direction.

1 have my life before me. 1 will give others the joy 1 have and God will give me more joy. 1 will do everything God tells me to do. 1 will follow the footsteps of God. 1 will do my best!!!

During her freshman year in high school, Brooke was in a car acci­dent while driving to the movies. Her life on earth ended when she was just fourteen, but her impact didn't. Nearly fifteen hundred people attended Brooke's memorial service. People from her public high school read poems she had written about her love for God. Everyone spoke of her example and her joy.

I shared the gospel and invited those who wanted to know Jesus to come up and give their lives to Him. There must have been at least two hundred students on their knees at the front of the church praying for salvation. Ushers gave a Bible to each of them. They were Bibles that Brooke had kept in her garage, hoping to give out to all of her unsaved friends. In one day, Brooke led more people to the Lord than most ever will.

In her brief fourteen years on earth, Brooke was faithful to Christ.  Her short life was not wasted. The words from her essay seem prophetic: “You see, I'll be one of those people who live to be history makers at a young age.”

That’s what a revived life looks like.  I pray we all have one.

Do We Have a Heart to Pray?

In the book of Matthew (Matthew 21:13) Jesus says that it is written that His house shall be called a House of Prayer referring to Isaiah 56:7.  Prayer and praying is referenced seventy-one times in the Gospels and most of those instances are referring to Jesus and His ministry.  It is very evident that prayer was very dear to the heart of the Son of God.  He prayed as He began His day, He prayed at the end of the day, He prayed all during the day to know the Father’s will, to give Him thanks, and to give Him the glory for what He (Jesus) was about to do (John 11:40-42). 

He taught His Disciples to pray, He told them to pray before beginning their ministry of sharing the Gospel with the world.  In the sermon on the Mount He said, “when you pray”.  It was not a suggestion, or a recommendation, but a statement alluding not only to the Jews practice of daily prayer, but to His instruction to make prayer a priority.  In Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians he tells them to ‘pray without ceasing’ (1 Thessalonians 5:17). 

His prayer was always directed to the Father and He instructed us to pray likewise (Matthew 6:9).  He prayed to always be found in the Father’s will (not my will, but yours be done – Luke 22:42).  He prayed that He would glorify the Father in all that He did (see John 17).

He told us to pray with confidence (John 14:13-14) and the Apostle John wrote to us to pray with assurance (1 John 5:14).  I could go on and on, but the point I think is clear, Jesus wants us to pray and when we do He will do great and mighty things (Jeremiah 33:3). 

Do you have a heart to pray?  We are going to begin a Prayer Ministry on Sunday mornings from 11:00 am until 12 noon.  We need a Prayer Coordinator to schedule teams of three people each week to pray for our worship services as they are being held.  We need at least four teams that will commit to pray one morning a month during our services for God to speak to our hearts.  That He would anoint the singing and the preaching of His word that Jesus might be glorified in our services.  He told us to ‘watch and pray’.  Can you do that?  Can we do that?

There will be a sign up sheet on the bulletin board in the hallway or you can call the church office to volunteer to be on a team.  God needs a couple of His children to step up and step out for Him to be Coordinators of this Ministry.  Has He given you a heart to pray? 

Jesus said in Matthew 7:7-8 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened.  The ball is in our court, will we pray?  I’m already looking forward to what He will accomplish as we pray.

Any Old Rod Will Do!

In the book of Exodus (4:1-5) Moses is arguing with God over God’s instructions (Exodus 3) to lead the children out of Egypt.  He makes all the usual excuses that we use when God calls us to do something for Him.  Moses said, “Who I am” (verse 11), then paraphrased, “who’s telling me to do this?” (verse 13).  It sounds a lot like some of our excuses for not obeying Him.  I can’t do that, I’m just not qualified or able.  I certainly can’t speak very well so how can I accomplish anything for God.  I have no authority to do that either, after all, people will say I just want to be seen by others.  Amazing isn’t it how we can find all sorts of reasons for not doing what Jesus has called us to do.

Notice what God does in reaction to this.  “Moses, what is that you have in your hand?”  Moses says, “A rod.”  It was an ordinary shepherd’s rod, nothing fancy, or extravagant, just a simple wooden rod.  Moses followed God’s instruction to throw down his rod and it became a snake.  He told Moses to pick it back up by the tail and it reverted back to a rod.  God gives Moses this sign that the people may believe (verse 5).  If you follow that rod and Aaron’s rod through the book of Exodus you will find that God used those simple rods to turn water into blood, to bring frogs up into the land of Egypt, to cause lice to invade the land, to bring thunder and hail upon the Egyptians, to cause locusts to swarm and devastate the country.  That rod was lifted up and God divided the waters at the Red Sea.  When Moses raised that rod as the children of Israel were battling Amalek the battle went in their favor.  When it was lowered they lost ground. 

What are the lessons we can learn from all of this?  What does God want us to understand today in our walk with Him?

1.     God took what Moses already possessed to accomplish His will.  Moses already had everything God needed to get the job done.  Do you and I realize that God and already given us everything we need to accomplish His will?  Your personality, your gifts, and talents, are all that Jesus needs to change our world for His glory!  Will we lay down what we have as Moses did and surrender it to Him?

2.     God supernaturally empowered Moses’ rod to do great and mighty things.  God took his ordinary and made it extraordinary.  Would to God we could surrender to God everything we are and all we possess to Him.  He can take what we have and do incredible things.

3.     Moses’ rod was used to bring glory to God.  It was not the rod, but God’s power through the rod that brought the miracles.  God had Moses strike the rock at Horeb (Exodus 17:6) and it brought forth water for them, but at Meribah (Numbers 20:8-13) God commanded Moses to speak to the rock to bring forth water.  Moses disobeyed God and struck the rock twice instead of speaking to it.  God was not hallowed (glorified) because the children of Israel needed to know that it was not the rod and Moses that had the power, but God.  We have to be careful and remember it is not our abilities or gifts that get things done for His Kingdom, but God working through those things for His Glory.

Thinking you can’t do anything for God?  Jesus is saying, “Give me what you have and I will do great and mighty things through you”.  Will we give it all?  Throw it down before Him and watch what He does!