What do you believe?

Today’s thoughts come from a series of verses. They repeat, not as a “Groundhog Day” kind of replay, but to emphasize the weight of the promise!


Matthew 18:19 "Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.
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Matthew 21:22 "And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."
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Mark 11:24 "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.
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Luke 11:9 "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
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John 14:13 "Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
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John 15:7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
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John 15:16 "You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.


What is it that you believe? How you live your life will give you an answer to that question. Itis possible that when you get to heaven God is not going to ask you why you weren’t more like Mother Teresa, Billy Graham or Bono. Perhaps He will more likely ask us, “Why you weren’t more like you?” Your source of real freedom and success is in discovering who you are underneath all the superficial stuff and living from that place. Every problem teaches us who we are. Every success teaches us who we are.

Remember the movie, Forrest Gump? At one part, Tom Hanks character is asked, “What are you gonna be when you grow up?” and Forrest says, “Why can’t I be me?”


Lead with your own unique talents and personality. Be authentically you and you will discover how much you have to give to the world. Great thought, isn’t it?


I believe that the more authentic we are, the more awareness we have of our true self, the more we reflect the character and quality of God. After all, He is truly authentic, infinitely creative and powerfully able. Imagine if every person in the world combined our part of the mind-power, creative thinking and shared personal expression, wouldn’t that make for a nearly flawless world.


What if the energy that millions of people expend inward in self-recrimination, fearful judgments of others, and setting up the selfish hoarding of world resources could be transformed outward, that would send out a wave of ample supply and light across the globe that would change humanity’s reality forever. Would this not be closer to God’s vision of reality for us?


There was a piece on the web about the Chilean magnitude 8.8 earthquake changing the earth’s rotation a few weeks ago. Imagine if one pinpoint spot can change the rotation of the earth with a few seconds of shaking, what could be accomplished by everyone’s good will. Why is it that people are unwilling to let go of the hurtful stuff in order to find something better? I think it is because to do so we have to be willing to let go of what we believe.


A college instructor once told a graduating class: “The voice we should listen to most as we choose a vocation is the voice that we might think we should listen to the least, and that is the voice of our own gladness. What can we do that makes us the gladdest, what can we do that leaves us with the strongest sense of sailing true north…? Is it making things with our hands out of wood or stone or paint or canvas?” Or is it making something we hope is truth out of words” Or is it making people laugh or weep in a way that cleanses their spirit? I believe that if what we do is a thing that makes us truly glad, then it is a good thing and it is our thing and it is the calling voice that we were made to answer with our lives.”


Can you trust what makes you “glad?” Could that really be the voice of your “calling?” Can we dare to let lose our imagination enough to listen to that voice within?


Theologian Thomas Merton said, “A tree gives glory to God by being a tree. For in being what God means it to be it is obeying Him…. The more a tree is like itself, the more it is like Him….”


Far too often, as we move from adolescence into adulthood, who we really are seems to be hidden behind a foggy mirror. But, in fact, who we are can only be found deep within, not in outward events or the reflection we see in the mirror. Those outward reflections only serve to direct us inward. In order to get to that real person inside, we must be willing to do the work of removing the false beliefs and superficial distortions hindering us from seeing ourselves as we really are. And since we are made in the image and likeness of God, what is ultimately to be found is something, well…. glorious!


As we uncover what lies at our core, this raw stuff is what anchors us and keeps us grounded, much like the roots of a tree which often reach as far deep and wide underneath as what we can see stretching out above the ground. Without coming to an understanding about what we believe and why we believe it, we are like towering trees with a shallow root structure, when they encounter strong winds, they topple easily. Often people who encounter difficult situations then question what they believe, or worse, allow false beliefs to dictate how disempowered they feel. Beliefs topple and fall as we face our greatest challenges without conviction.


As we continue to hear depressing economic news, many people in many churches have bought into it. I have found myself telling my father to quit sending donations to every charitable organization asking for money because he is going to need his resources to take care of his and my mother’s increasing needs. This is such limited thinking.


Are you wondering where the money will come to pay your bills? Don’t set limits on the avenues through which God wishes to provide? Or do you think he has become far sighted and cannot see your need up close and personal? Let go of your limited thinking.

We have forgotten that life is magical. We think, sometimes, there’s not a dragon left. Not one brave knight, not a single princess gliding through secret forests ... What a pleasure to be wrong. Princesses, knights, enchantments and dragons, mystery and adventure ... not only are they here-and-now, they’re all that ever lived on earth! Masters of reality still meet us in dreams to tell us that we’ve never lost the shield we need against dragons, that blue-fire voltage arcs through us now to change our world as we wish. Intuition whispers true: We’re not dust, we’re magic!" -- Richard Bach


I am not suggesting that we forsake responsibility for fantasy. But too often we forget how fantastical life is when we release our grip just a little and allow bliss to enter for awhile. What do you need: strength, health, insight, peace, a better job, more money? Why can’t this be black or white- either you believe God provides or he doesn’t and you let it rest instead of rehashing the problem. Rehashing is lack of trust. Asking over and over indicates that either you think God is hard of hearing or that he hasn’t heard you because you have not gotten an immediate answer.

Our spiritual life should mirror Jesus’ teaching. It is simple. It is uncomplicated. It is non-repetitive. Matthew 7:7 teaches us: “Ask, and you will receive. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened for you.” Nothing here indicates the need to keep banging until your knuckles bleed.

I can’t tell you how easily I find things I need, and my husband is the same way. If we think about something we want, we expect that it will arrive into our lives at the assigned hour, and at a great price. The chandeliers are a case in point. I admit that I have been thinking about their need to be replaced for some time, but I also knew that when the time was right we would find an amazing deal on the perfect chandeliers for this space. And we did. I would say that $150 light fixtures for $25 each are a great deal!


I have read a lot about how the economic crisis is affecting the way people are giving to the church and consequently the way churches are allocating funds. I've heard several conversations where people are scared that their ministry would fall victim to the hard times we appear to be deep into. Something doesn't add up here!


I want us to be sure we believe what we say we believe. I want to know that we are practicing what we say we believe. This is authentic living. It is sad to see churches fold under the economic realities of the day! I don’t think it is as much a reflection of God’s failure as it is an indication that they didn’t get their spending and giving in line. I view this as an opportune time to offer an alternate model for how to live in the face of such economic realities.


This building and the people in it have survived two world wars, several good blizzards, a near closure and a fire. We have learned how to survive, and I would like to see us now reach the time when we thrive.


Let me find --God’s light in my darkness


Let me find -- God’s life in my death


Let me find -- God’s joy in my sorrow


Let me find -- God’s grace in my sin


Let me find -- God’s riches in my poverty


Let me find -- God’s glory in my valley


If God is our Source - and He is - and if God is leading us to do something, then we need to know that He will provide for it and not hold back. We need to practice what we preach!


"... no matter what our difficulties may be, we recognize that there is a deep untroubled stream flowing below all surface troubles and that we are of one substance with that stream. The soul knows no difficulties." -- James Thornton