D-Day

In 1942 a group of young men came together and became one of the greatest fighting units the world has ever seen.  They volunteered from farms and city streets and some straight out of high school to become paratroopers during WW II.  This group was known as Easy Company 501^st inside the 101^st Airborne.  They trained for 5 months and then boarded their planes on that chilly June morning for the invasion of Europe. 

When they stepped aboard they were given everything they would need for this battle.  Food, ammo, weapons, protection, not to mention the largest, most powerful army the world had every seen coming behind them.

Yet, if any one of them would have sat down on the tarmac and refused to board that plane all of their training would have been useless.  All of the gear given to them would now be nothing more than dead weight.

They were called, trained and outfitted for a purpose. They boarded those planes weak-kneed and frightened but they all knew one thing:  If we don’t go who will? If we don’t stand and fight who will?

Those of us who believe Jesus is the Savior of the world have been given everything we need to live a godly life and the power to tell others of Him. Yet if we refuse to get involved and sit down with all of these gifts beside us, our faith becomes dead and useless. That’s what it says in the book of James.  Dead and useless.

The greatest need the world has ever known is here today.  This very morning.  And we have been equipped to go and share.  Yes, we all are weak-kneed and unsure about what lay around the corner as we get involved.  But remember:  If we don’t go, who will?  If we don’t stand and fight, who will?

And we don’t go alone; we go with the strongest, most powerful army the universe has ever seen beside us.

“Greater is He that is inside us, than he that is in the world.”  1John 4:4

Brian

Captivating

This is an excerpt from John and Stasi Eldredge’s book “Captivating”.   It is a perfect picture of His extravagant love and His wild pursuit of us.

“A few years ago John was on a business trip to Oregon.  He snuck away for some time alone with God, down to the beach where he walked and prayed and finally sat in the sand to watch the waves upon the sea.  Then he saw it.  A huge plume of water shot up into the sky, and a massive humpback whale appeared right before him, impossibly close to shore.  No one else was near.  The time of the whale’s migration had long passed.  John knew immediately that this was a gift from God to his heart alone, a gift from the Lover of his heart.

John told me (his wife) this story and, as happy as I was for him, I was hungrier for such a kiss for myself.  I wanted a whale too.  I wanted to experience God’s love for me, personally.  It wasn’t long after this that John and I were in N. CA speaking at a couple’s retreat.  I, too, snuck away one morning for some much needed time on the beach with God.  I sat on the sand, looked out to the sea, and asked God for a whale.  “I know you love John, Jesus, but do you love me too?  That much?  If you do, may I have a whale too?”I felt a little silly in asking, for I knew the truth; that God had already proven His love for me.  He had sent His only Son, Jesus, to die for me.  He had rescued me. He had paid the highest price imaginable for me.  He had given me all of creation to speak of His great glory and love, and He had given me the Word of God in all its depth and beauty, and here I was, asking for more. And God loved it. God delights I revealing Himself to those who will seek Him with all their hearts.  He is an extravagant, abundant Lover, and He loves to reveal His heart to us again and again.After awhile, with no whale in sight, I got up off the sand and continued to walk.  It was early spring, waves crashing, seagulls crying.  The northern coast of CA is rocky, and as I picked my way through, I rounded the corner and came upon a starfish, a beautiful orange starfish.  And I knew at once it was God’s gift to me, His kiss.  He didn’t give me a whale; no, that was for John alone.  For me, unique to me, he gave a stunning starfish.  He answered my question.  Yes.  He loved me.  I thanked Him for it, then rounded the next bend and came upon a sight I will never forget.  There before me, behind me, surrounding me, were hundreds of starfish.  Zillions of them.  There were purple ones and orange ones and blue ones, all sizes.  I burst into joyful laughter, my heart exploding inside me.  God didn’t just love me.  He LOOOOOVED me!  Intimately, personally, completely.” Captivating   John and Stasi Eldredge

Sing

There is a moment, in every song, when the singer must come in.  A bit of preamble, a few measures to get us there; then comes the moment where the music hands it to the singer, like a gift, an open hand extended saying: ‘its time.’  Or more succinctly:  ‘Now.’

The singer waits for his moment.  He cannot enter until it is time.  To enter early throws the whole piece into disarray and what was once a well choreographed dance of notes now becomes a disjointed jumble of clashing wills. 

So he patiently waits…..

But when the moment comes he must enter.  It is now time to sing.

As important as it is to be patient and wait for His timing in a situation; it is just as important to act when it is time to act.  To move when it is time to move.  To open your mouth and sing when He brings the music of your life to you as a gift.

“When the time had fully come…” Gal 4:4

There is a window of opportunity that we must step through in our moment and it stays open for only so long.  To allow fear to dissuade us or a reticence to move forward because we can not see around the next corner causes us to miss many of God’s amazing opportunities for our life.

If you have asking God for an open window, praying for His wisdom in a situation and you feel, even if ever so slightly, that He telling to you go…….go. 

Jump.

Sing.

Leave the ‘what ifs’ and doubts to another.  He is big enough to catch you.  Go.

 

Brian