Wesleyan Covenant Prayer

Lord, I am no longer my own, but Yours. Put me to what You will, rank me with whom You will. Let me be employed by You, or laid aside for You, exalted for You, or brought low by You. Let me have all things, let me have nothing, I freely and heartily yield all things to Your pleasure and disposal. And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, You are mine and I am Yours. So be it. Amen.

The above prayer is a covenant prayer written by John Wesley, a form of which we prayed in worship last Sunday at Beulah. But whether you prayed it in worship or just now read it, did you see what it said? What it implies? I mean, can you without reservation say, “I freely and heartily yield all things to Your pleasure and disposal.” Really…all things? This is surrender…total surrender to God. Don’t get me wrong, I have known many folks who have truly surrendered to God, but many, many more who cannot. That’s because surrender is hard…surrender removes me, my desire, and any control I thought I had. Surrender leaves me feeling helpless, vulnerable, and weak. That’s a scary place to be, yet that is where God needs us in order for Him to work thru us. Anything less just won’t do.

Power Flows From Relationship

Pentecost is just around the corner and I am starting to get excited and frustrated with the church! Why is it that countless believers seem to stand powerless before a world desperately needing what we claim to have? Why does the Church have so little impact when we’re the body of Christ on earth? There are surely many reasons, but I believe a major one is that many Christians are seeking gifts of the Holy Spirit and not the Spirit itself. They want power but not a relationship with the One whose presence gives us power. They want to do great things for God, but do not understand that greatness comes out of a relationship with Jesus Christ and the filling of the Holy Spirit. It seems they are so enamored with self and with what they might accomplish that they have no idea what’s on God's heart. We must learn to understand that there are no gifts apart from an intimate relationship with our Savior and the work of the Spirit is directly connected to the lordship of Jesus Christ in our lives. Apart from the active, indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit there is no possibility of any individual or church doing anything but practicing powerless religion. The spirit of religion is a demon that needs to be bound as it will cause us to think we are doing the right thing…remember satan is the father of all lies. You may be active and involved in your church, but without the fullness of the Spirit you’ll miss the power of God. God does not desire from us more activity, but a deeper relationship.

The National Day of Prayer

Yesterday was the 59th annual National Day of Prayer and in spite of US District Judge Barbara Crabb’s ruling that it violated the ban on government-backed religion it seems to have gone off without much more than a hiccup. One incident you may have heard about was that Dr. Franklin Graham was un-invited to speak at the Pentagon after some criticized him for remarking that Islam was “a very evil and wicked religion” just after the 9/11 attacks back in 2001. I mention these two incidents because we (Christians) have something to learn from them: the squeaky wheel gets all the attention. If a relatively small group of atheists and persons who hold political correctness as their god can cause Dr. Graham (or anyone) to be silenced, or perhaps change the law of the land after 59 years (the Obama administration has appealed the ruling), then we (Christians) had better learn to become vocal or risk being at fault for our loss of liberties. And of all people, we have something to be vocal about! We should be shouting the good news of Jesus Christ from every rooftop, but we have believed the lies of satan when he says, “you cannot do that.” Jesus Christ told us to be his witnesses…now I know that can and does take many forms, but I believe Jesus is more powerful than satan…I believe Jesus holds authority over Judge Crabb and President Obama…and I believe that one day every knee in heaven, on the earth, and under the earth will bow at the name of Jesus Christ and He will judge them…whether or not they acknowledge his existence or authority. Now, if you also believe that, join me in sharing with others the King of kings, and Lord of lords!

The Knot Prayer

I get a lot of emails with devotions and prayers, some days too many, and while I do read them all, most of them I choose not to forward to anyone. This one I received from a friend and it deserves a reading...in fact, read it a few times so you can get the full content of the prayer. It's one we all need to pray...daily. The author is only known to God...Thanks TAS!

Dear God,

Please untie the knots that are in my mind, my heart, and my life. Remove the have nots, the can nots, and the do nots that I have in my mind. Erase the will nots, may nots, and might nots that find a home in my heart. Release me from the could nots, would nots, and should nots that obstruct my life. Most of all dear God, I ask that you remove from my mind, my heart, and my life all the 'am nots' that I have allowed to hold me back, especially the thought that I am not good enough. Amen.

Mother's Day Reminder!

So Mother's Day is coming up this weekend (incase you've forgotten!) and I found this promo clip of the movie "Babies" which is to be released on Friday...I don't know anything about the movie, but thought this clip is a good reminder of what many moms have to put up with every day. Now, as you view it, any of these scenes could be from our house...but none are. Enjoy, and plan something special for that special woman in your life this weekend.

Now It's Your Turn!

Well, I think everyone enjoyed Mike Rayson over the weekend. He is a blessing and has more musical talent in his little finger than I will ever have, but that isn't all…in short, he is the real deal! I am so glad to hear he blessed several and they would like to have him come back…we’re working on that, but in the meantime, there are other real Christians out there who also have blessings and gifts to share. So, please keep us in prayer as we plan events for the coming years…it’s not just about entertainment, it’s about Jesus! In fact, that is what makes Mike so amazing…not his singing or songwriting abilities…not that he plays dozens of instruments or preaches a good sermon…but that he sings, writes, plays and preaches for Jesus. He gives 110% to the Lord. Now, what about you? Whatever your gifts are (and yes you do have at least one), are you passionate about your gifts…are you using them for the glory of God…exclusively for God’s glory? If we would just realize that God wants and needs us to use our gifts with the same excitement and focus as Mike does…and if we would surrender to God’s will and do that…just that…we would generate the same type of blessings in and out of the church as Mike did this past weekend at Beulah! But it’s up to us.

The Battle Rages On...Do You See It?

It is critical that we are able to see the activity of God in and around us. One of my favorite examples is that of the prophet Elisha and his servant in 2 Kings 6. Elisha is being hunted by the king of Syria, who is at war with Israel because Elisha has a God-given ability to forewarn the Israelites about the Syrian army’s every move. Overnight a Syrian force has surrounded the city where Elisha and his servant are staying. It would seem there is no escape. Early in the morning the servant got up to make breakfast and he realized they were surrounded by a great army. Terrified, the servant cried out, “Alas, master, what shall we do?” But Elisha saw something much different than what the servant saw and his response was not fear, but confidence in God. He told his servant, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (6:16). Can you imagine what the servant thought: “We don’t stand a chance! This old man is crazy!” Why the big difference in perception? Elisha saw the activity of God, while the servant only saw the activity of men. God is actively at work around us…do you see it? If we learn to walk with Him and we are willing to surrender our lives to His activity, we’ll recognize His activity and live with confidence and hope. The battle rages all around us, as Paul said in Ephesians 6:12, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”