Falling Short in the Call

There are times when the Lord calls a Christian to a specific purpose, but it never comes to fruition. Why is that?

Let’s first look at a few Bible verses. John 21:19 & 22 is where Jesus tells Peter not to watch or worry about anyone else and reminds him, “You follow me.” Then Jesus tells the rich young ruler in Luke 18:22, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” The Angel of the Lord told Samson’s mother in Judges 13:7, “Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. Now drink no wine or similar drink, nor eat anything unclean, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb to the day of his death.”

Had the Lord called you to a specific ministry where your bones burned inside, but it never came to pass? Could it be that along with the calling, you were asked to give up certain things, but you never did? I am not necessarily talking about ‘sin’ here. Let me explain. I had a friend who was called to a specific ministry. Before starting the ministry he occasionally enjoyed a glass of fine wine with a good meal. He did it with a clear conscience. The Holy Spirit convicted him to give up the wine for the sake of the ministry. He did give it up and the ministry flourished.

Seek the Lord’s face if you have fallen short in a former calling. See if there is anything that can be reconciled in order to re-establish that burning in your bones and to fulfill that calling. It would be a shame to stand before the Lord when your works will be judged and have Him say, “I had so much more planned for your life!”

My Dog’s Better Than Yours!

A popular 1960′s advertising jingle for Ken-L Ration dog food went like this:
My dog’s faster than your dog,
My dog’s bigger than yours.
My dog’s better ’cause he gets Ken-L Ration,
My dog’s better than yours.

It is a shame that some Christians feel that way about the purpose the Lord has called them to do. I have a good Christian friend who is at the forefront of abortion demonstrations and exalts it above all other ministries and will make you feel guilty if you are not doing the same.

I am extremely fortunate to have a job that not only supports my family but I also treat it as a ministry. I work for a company that is the largest producer of Bibles in the world. If you open any Hotel room nightstand you will find a Bible that was produced in the plant I work at. We ship Bibles throughout the world in their native languages. We literally do our best to fill the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. My job is to repair all of the machinery. When a machine breaks and I fix it, I have the pleasure of watching it start back up and produce the Word of God once again. Two of my favorite verses relating to my job are Romans 10:17 which says,”So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” And Mark 13:10 which goes on to say,”And the gospel must first be published among all nations (before Jesus returns).” I believe my job helps fulfill both of these Scriptures. But to say that my purpose is any greater than anyone else’s is wrong.

My friend told me,”It doesn’t do much good to flood the world with Bibles if people don’t read it and stop killing babies.” At first it knocked me back a bit with his statement. Then the Word of God came to me,”It’s a heart problem and only the Word of God can change hearts.”

Whatever you do, don’t stay idle. If you feel the Lord has a specific purpose for you, but the doors are not open yet, look around you for a need. Then minister to that need until the next door opens in your life. Remember ‘The Need is the Call’. Keep your spiritual eyes open and never miss what the Lord has called you to do!

Let the Church be the Church!

On this site you will find a post from 2/9/11 entitled ‘Proper Authority in the NT Church’ where I deal mainly with the misuse of power in the Church. But in order to put things into proper perspective I must now deal with the other end of the problem and that is those Christians who condemn the organized Church and denominations.

I will pick no bones about it and get right to the heart of the matter. I have read, listened, and watched countless presentations of how people try their best to justify biblically how Jesus is their leader and where 2 or 3 are gathered in His name there He is and that is all that is needed.

It is true that the Church is not a building, but it is sure nice to be protected when there is harsh weather outside. It is also sure nice to know that when the storms of life hit your family that the assembly of prayer warriors you worship with will be at your side.

I will make a bold statement and say that at the heart of the matter with those Christians that are against the organized church is that they have a disdain for authority in their lives. Laced throughout the NT and especially in the Book of Acts is the setting up of authority in the Church. Acts 14:23 clearly says,”So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.” 2 Peter 2:10 associates those that despise authority with walking in the flesh.

The organized Church is not perfect just like it was not perfect in the first century. Paul addressed all kinds of abuses in his epistles. Responsibility comes down to the believer to test everything. We have organized churches that are full of abuses to this very day, but there are also churches in every area that are spirit-filled dynamic churches. No organized church is perfect, but the Lord works through the organized church.

There are many wounded sheep out there, but throwing away the baby with the dirty bath water is not the solution. We are warned that offenses will come, even from fellow Christians. We are instructed in both Matthew 5:39 and Matthew 18:15-22 on how to handle it. For those that have abandoned the organized church and try to justify that getting together with a few Christian friends constitutes having ‘Church’, the Lord has other to say about it within Matthew 18:16-17. Jesus clearly makes a distinction between two or three gathered together and the organized church.

One of the highlights of the organized Church is Proverbs 24:6 which says, “In the multitude of counsellors there is safety.” 1 Peter 5:8 goes on to warn,”Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” Please don’t be a statistic!

Are You Being Hidden?

Will there be one more great revival in America before the Tribulation? Are you being hidden from the Devil and secretly being prepared for it? Do you feel frustrated at times because you are passed up and not utilized? Do not let it bother you! The Lord is preparing you and keeping you hidden for this final purpose before the time of His wrath is unleashed.

Just like He will prepare 12,000 from each tribe for the Tribulation, He is preparing an army of witnesses to be commissioned very shortly.

The Bible gives us examples of where the Lord has hidden and prepared His servants.
Moses was preserved and raised as Pharaoh’s Daughter’s son then later hidden in the desert before the Lord called him (Exodus 2 & 3).
There were 100 Prophets (1 Kings 18:4 & 13) and 7000 Israelites (1 Kings 19:18) who did not bow to Baal during the reign of Ahab & Jezebel.
Paul was set aside for 3 years (Galatians 1:15-20) before he began his ministry, being taught by the Lord to be an Apostle born out of due time (1 Corinthians 15:8-10).
Before David slew Goliath, he had already killed the bear and the lion protecting the sheep (1 Samuel 17:33-37). Even though he was anointed to be king, he had to be hidden from Saul until the time had come for him to take the throne.
Even Jesus Himself was protected in Egypt as a toddler (Matthew 2:13-14) and then increased in wisdom, stature, and favor (Luke 2:52) up to the time he began His public ministry about the age of 30.

So let the Lord continue to work in your life and prepare you for the days ahead. Do not allow the fire in your bones to be quenched!

Removal of Fear

I have found that at times I must keep things simple. Hebrews 6:18 tells me it is impossible for God to lie. Then Isaiah 26:3 says that God will keep me in perfect peace if my mind is fixed on Him. Finally in 2 Timothy 1:7 I am assured that God does not want me to have a spirit of fear, but of a sound mind.

Fear is at the heart of anxiety and despair. If I have fear, I want my fear to be conquered, not subdued by drugs. Also, I would rather have God deny my prayer requests because what I want may not be best for me, not because there is something in my walk not quite right.

Let’s not rob ourselves of peace or hinder ourselves from having our prayers answered. It is not always to be blamed on Satan, who is the great thief. Undealt with sin in our life can be so much more the culprit. We would much rather take our drugs to temporarily lift us out of our despair than to deal with the heart of the matter to permanently restore us.

With a quick to blame the Devil attitude, and a pocket book of Bible promises we want to hold God to, we sometimes forget that the Lord has set standards for us to live by.

I came across a recent blog taken from David Wilkerson’s archives. It is as follows:
Just then a hand touched me and lifted me, still trembling, to my hands and knees. And the man said to me, “Daniel, you are very precious to God, so listen carefully to what I have to say to you. Stand up, for I have been sent to you.” When he said this to me, I stood up, still trembling. Then he said, “Don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer.” (Daniel 10:10-12).
Show me a Christian who refuses to acknowledge his sin—who says, “My hands are clean”—and I will show you someone with a false piety. Such a person puts on a big smile, has a confident walk and boasts that all is well. But it’s all a facade! The Bible makes it clear that if anyone hides his sin, he will not prosper. God lifts His Spirit from him and his unrepentant heart is full of fear and restlessness!
But show me a repentant Christian—one who is sensitive to sin, willing to be searched, crying out, “I’m guilty, God!”—and I will show you one who soon will walk without any trace of fear. God will reach His mighty hand into that believer’s heart and pluck out all roots of fear so that he will know the immeasurable favor and blessing of God! Beloved, let God examine your heart; ask the Holy Spirit to reveal everything you have said or done that is grievous to Him. Think of anyone you have slandered or gossiped about, and admit how sinful it was. Go to that person and seek forgiveness. I promise that if you make things right, you will release in your life favor from God as you have never known before! The Lord will open your eyes, ears and understanding and you will be given a revelation of things to come: “[You will] understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days” (Daniel 10:14).

I Follow Jesus

I have been quite grieved by what I have witnessed taking place with some who claim to follow Jesus. No, it is not what you may think it is, like sexual sins or hatred. Actually, it is something you may not have thought much about. It is simply giving glory to men rather than the Lord alone.

Yes we are to love and respect our leaders and our fellow man for Romans 13:7-8 says, “Fulfill your obligations as a citizen. Pay your taxes, pay your bills, respect your leaders. Don’t run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other. When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along.”

But, there is a fine line which we should never cross and infringe on what is only reserved for our Lord and Master. 1 Corinthians 3:1-11 says, “My friends, you are acting like the people of this world. That’s why I could not speak to you as spiritual people. You are like babies as far as your faith in Christ is concerned. So I had to treat you like babies and feed you milk. You could not take solid food, and you still cannot, because you are not yet spiritual. You are jealous and argue with each other. This proves you are not spiritual and you are acting like the people of this world. Some of you say you follow me, and others claim to follow Apollos. Isn’t this how ordinary people behave? Apollos and I are merely servants who helped you to have faith. It was the Lord who made it all happen. I planted the seeds, Apollos watered them, but God made them sprout and grow. What matters isn’t those who planted or watered, but God who made the plants grow. The one who plants is just as important as the one who waters. And each one will be paid for what they do. Apollos and I work together for God, and you are God’s garden and God’s building. God treated me with undeserved grace and let me become an expert builder. I laid a foundation on which others have built. But we must each be careful how we build, because Christ is the only foundation.”

So the next time you hear someone being bragged upon or the next time you see someone getting a standing ovation for their so called accomplishments, ask yourself the question, “Who do I really follow?”

Discernment

Discernment is greatly missing in today’s Christianity in America. I also believe it is one of the reasons we have a divine healing drought going on in this country. It is definitely one of the missing pieces of the puzzle. Discernment is simply tapping into the desire and direction of God.

The book of Acts gives a very clear transition from pre to post Pentecostal experience. The Apostles drew lots in Acts 1:26 to choose the replacement for Judas before the day of Pentecost. After Pentecost, this practice was never mentioned again. Instead, when we go to Acts chapter 16, we see two enlightening examples of how the Holy Spirit gave Paul discernment on how to handle situations. First, in Acts 16:6-12 during Paul’s second journey, he tried to enter a certain part of Asia to preach the Gospel, but was forbidden by the Holy Spirit. Instead, he was given discernment in a vision to sail on to a certain part of Europe and preach the Gospel there. Later, in Acts 16:16-18, he was followed and badgered by a possessed woman for several days until, through discernment, it was time to turn around and cast the demon out of her. Discernment was vital in Paul’s life.

There were no generic formulas when it came to miracles and healings as they are recorded in Scripture. Each case was specific. No one can claim to have the gift of healing without having Holy Spirit discernment. When someone who has the gift of healing encounters someone who needs a healing, they immediately seek discernment on how to speak and pray for the individual. It is not a cookie cutter routine to be carried out.

I have a book on the healing ministry of a great man of God from this past century. It is written in the first person. It was amazing how he was totally dependent on the discernment God gave him. The stories are incredible and give great insight how God healed. Each incident is unique and fascinating.

Even though discernment is a necessity to accompany those who have the gift of healing, it is something all Christians should have. All Christians are designed to possess both discernment and the anointing, but not all reach out to possess them. The anointing is simply God’s stamp of approval along with the power to perform. The anointing goes hand-in-hand with discernment. The seven sons of Sceva in Acts 19:11-16 soon learned that doing things in the name of Jesus was not enough when dealing with the forces of hell. The demons knew who the seven sons of Sceva actually were and they knew they lacked the Holy Ghost power like what Paul and Jesus possessed. It’s not just being saved that makes you anointed. Jesus made it clear that when dealing with the spiritual realm, other factors are involved (Matthew 17:21).

The Christian life should not stop at just reading the Word, praying, and going to church (Acts 2:42-43). To be a dynamic force in the kingdom of God, you need to have discernment and the anointing. If you do not possess them, I encourage you to desire them now. It will transform your life. All Christians should be continuously seeking for all that God has to offer. As the US Army motto is ‘Be All You Can Be’!