Before going to the Point that night, my family and I had a New Years dinner with some friends.  They have a tradition of making resolutions for the coming year.  They can be something physical, spiritual, emotional, silly or serious; whatever.  As we were going around the table and sharing what we were “resolved” to do in 2008, I began to consider my walk with the Lord.  “What am I resolved to do for God this year?”  I was reminded just then of my greatest problem in my walk with the Lord - resolution.  Not necessarily my desire to live for Jesus, but my “self effort” to do so.  I have heard people make statements like this over the years, “I believe that you just need to do your best in everything, and then let God take it from there”.  That sounds good on the surface (sort of like a New Year’s resolution), but at it’s core it is a very self centred statement.  I am going to do my best, and then let God take it from there.  God doesn’t want our best and he doesn’t care about our resolutions.  From what I know of human history and my own life, trying our best has brought utter failure when it comes to the things of God.  It didn’t work for Adam and Eve in the garden, and it’s still not working.  The Lord is doesn’t want us to try harder, he wants us to die harder.  We are constantly trying to offer him the best of our “self effort” - our flesh, our old life.  Paul said in Romans 7 that in us there is no good thing.  We have nothing of our own to give that is worthy of God’s use.  But we have been deceived (especially in the U.S.) into believing that when we bring our best effort to the table, then God will bless it - because “God helps those who help themselves”.  Well, check out Genesis chapter four and see how that theory worked out for a guy named Cain.  God is our Help - period.   We have nothing to help ourselves with.  When we finally come to the conclusion that Jesus was actually telling us the truth in John 15 when he said “with out me, you can do nothing”; then God can begin to work in and through our lives.

So, when it came my turn to speak at our New Years dinner, my resolution was “less of me, more of God”.  I want to offer God this life that He has given me - not my old man, but the new man that is renewed in Christ Jesus.  I don’t want to give him my best (which the bible calls a filthy rag), but I want to give him his best.  I am resolved to do less in 08′ so that God can do more.  What is your new years resolution?

I know that what we are doing in our fishing trips is not for everyone.  In fact, some of you that went and experienced rejection are probably viewing it as a failure.  Let me assure you that it wasn’t.  First of all, you can never fail when you share the good news - regardless of the response.  If they reject what you are saying, or even get mad and curse you; “happy are ye that suffer for my name’s sake”.  Victory!  Jesus said it would go like that sometimes.  If they hear what you have to say and tell you that they will consider it - Victory!  You successfully planted the seed of the gospel.  If they are convicted of their sin and want to repent and trust Christ as Saviour - Victory!  You win every time.  But some of you are saying, “I’m just not the type of person to approach total strangers to share my faith”.  You are probably right; some of us are naturally gifted by God to be able to confront and be direct, while others are gifted by God to be more non-confrontational and indirect.  Neither is better than the other - but we all still have the same responsibility to share our faith.  So whether you are doing it in by approaching total strangers on the street, or by targeting those you already know - the question is: are you being a witness for Jesus Christ?  Are you daily being intentional about sharing your faith?  When was the last time you spoke to someone about eternity, or handed a tract to someone, or took a good friend out to dinner for the purpose of telling them about Jesus?  This is the reason God left us on planet earth after he saved us.  If you are still breathing, then you should be witnessing.  We have been called to a mission - Paul said that we have been given a “ministry of reconciliation”.  How is your ministry doing?

Okay, I will let you off the hook - no pun intended.  No one is asking you (unless you are a student in one of our home groups) to go to the mall this weekend to intentionally share your faith with strangers - whew!  But let me ask you; how intentional are you about sharing your faith as you live out your everyday life?  Have you clearly presented the gospel to all of your lost friends, family members and co-workers?  Have you warned them of the great danger they are in for violating God’s law?  Have they heard from your lips that the wages of their sin is death - “eternal fire”, “everlasting punishment”?  Do they understand their need for the Saviour?  “How shall they believe in whom they have not heard, and how shall they hear without a preacher?”  How do you intend to do what God is calling you to do with those that God has already put in your life?  Here’s an idea: make a list of everyone you have a relationship with, or have regular dealings with, that you have not clearly communicated the gospel to.  Then, be intentional about praying and asking God to open doors of utterance to be able to speak to them the mystery of Christ as you ought to speak.  When you see and interact with them, expect God to answer your prayers - get your fishing pole out and be ready.  Use the law to clearly shown them their sinful state, and the reason they need to repent and trust Christ as Saviour.  Once you have - don’t mark them off the list; but rather underline their name and pray even more fervently for their conscience and the Holy Spirit to work on their heart as God intended.  Watch as the Father begins to move in their life to draw them to himself - and then be ready to minister to them as God allows.

I think going on a “fishing trip” is a good thing; but let’s not neglect the fishing holes that God is sending us to every day.  That may be a High School, University,  place of employment, family member’s home, the grocery store, etc. The fish are biting, we just need more fishermen dropping lines in the water.

There was a time when these calls really bothered me; but since I have gone through the Way of the Master evangelism course - I have gained an entirely new perspective. Instead of being interruptions in my busy schedule, (or while I’m watching my beloved Chiefs lose yet another game) they have become opportunities. Jesus likened evangelism to fishing when he said that he would make us “fishers of men”. For those of you that are fishermen (I’m not), you know that most of the time you have to go try and catch the fish: actually making the effort to go to where the fish are and then try to lure them into biting down on a hook that you have disguised with food so that you can pull them in. Typically, fish don’t just jump into your boat or onto the shore so that you can easily put them in the net. Fishing for souls is no different, you usually have to go where the people are and make the effort to draw them into a conversation so that you can set the hook of the gospel and reel them into Christ. Telemarketers are fish that jump into the boat! I don’t call them, they call me. I now view that phone call as God literally hand picking someone for me to share my faith with.

Yesterday I received a phone call from a girl named Esther who said that she was taking a survey for an insurance company and wanted to ask me a few questions. I said yes, and proceeded to answer all of her questions. Before she was able to end the conversation I said, “Now that you have been able to ask me some questions, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?” She said, “Of course sir” - what else could she say. I asked if she had a Christian background - she said yes. I asked if she considered herself to be a good person - she said “Oh yes, of course”. I asked if she was familiar with the ten commandments - she said yes. I asked if she thought she had kept the ten commandments - she said yes. We were off and running from there! I had the opportunity to take her through the commandments and show her how she had violated God’s law, and that she was not a good person. I was able to lay out the penalty for breaking God’s law and the way that he has made to escape that punishment. After sharing the gospel (which only took about three or four minutes), I thanked her for her time - and just as I was about to close the conversation she said, “Sir, can I tell you something”. She then began to weep.  She went on to tell me through her tears that she had been struggling with some things in her life and that she was so glad that I took the time to talk to her about God.  “You don’t know what this means to me”, she said.  I asked her if I could pray with her, and she eagerly agreed.  After praying for her, she thanked me again and we said goodbye.  Wow!  It is amazing what God will do when our focus is on his mission - even with a phone call from a telemarketer.

When we pulled into our garage, we noticed that the door going into the house had been kicked in.  We also noticed a van parked across the street which pulled away while we were in the garage.  We went around the house and entered through the front door, went into our bedroom and found our belonging strewn all over the place.  At that point it occurred to us that the robbers could still be inside the house - so we went back outside and called the police.  When they arrived, they checked the house for “bad guys” - and when all was clear, we went in to survey the damage.  These folks obviously knew what they were doing - the police said that thieves are usually looking for electronics and guns; and since we have no guns, they took most of our electronics.  (TV’s, camera’s, cam corder, lap top, etc.)  They even took our sheep skin rug and a pillow case!

I must admit that last night, I was pretty angry - I felt violated.  I felt “unsafe”.  In times like these  it takes awhile to process what’s happening in light of who I am in Christ.  I know that God is the God of the living and the dead - which is basically everything.  I know that he allows everything in my life (especially adversity) in order to form his image in me, and in some way glorify himself and further his kingdom.  As the police were searching our home, Kim and I were praying these very things to the Lord - along with praying for those who had done this to us.  But it wasn’t until this morning that I could really come to terms with it and act in faith.  This morning, after coming before the Lord and truly acknowledging him as my LORD in all things - that He alone is my safety, my strong tower and shield, my provider, my comfort, and my only source of joy - only then I was able to truly thank him for what had happened and forgive those that had stolen from us.  I am a child of the King, and nothing happens to me that my heavenly Father does not allow.  Among all that he is doing through this situation, I know that first and foremost he is using it to draw me to himself so that he might have more of my life.  I have so much to praise him for - this situation could have easily escalated from burglary to something much worse had we actually walked in on the thieves in the act.  God allowed me to be a testimony of his grace to the officers that were there last night, and I will be able to follow up with some form of “thank you” for all their help. Who knows what opportunities lie ahead to share our faith with insurance adjusters, contractors, home security companies, etc. God is good and his mercy endures forever - this is nothing more than “light affliction” as Paul called it; a small inconvenience so that Jesus can increase in us.  Praise God!

It got me thinking about my life, and asking some other questions.  One question was, “Does my life leave others wondering - how does he do that?”  Do people see the power of God in my life, in my marriage, in my family, or in my ministry and wonder; “how does he do that?” I know that magic tricks have some natural explanation - even if I don’t understand it.  But I would hope that my life does not have a natural explanation.  I want others see such victory and glory in me, that the only way to explain it is by something super-natural.  I would hope that my life isn’t an illusion that has my best effort and strategy as the explanation to it’s success.

Another question was, “Is what you see, what you get with me?  Or do you see one thing, but in reality, is my life something different?”  Am I a spiritual illusionist - do I put on a good show with the Christian life, or is it real?  A great preacher used to put it like this; “Can it be said of you what is written of you in scripture?”  Is my faith real?  Are the truths that are written about me in the bible the reality of my life?  I see many “Christian magicians” in the church; those who give the perception of walking in the Spirit, but the reality is something quite different.  I want a life that is unexplainable outside of Jesus.  I want to worship God in the beauty of His holiness and be continually filled with his Spirit so that my life is truly magical - but not an illusion.

In the bible, people are sometimes likened to trees.  I have often considered how we are like Christmas trees.  We were uprooted from the world and brought into God’s house.  He has placed us in a place of prominence (seated in heavenly places),  covered us in His glorious light, and year by year he adorns us with ornaments of His grace.  As we plug our lives into him through worship in spirit and truth, and we learn how to live by faith, we begin to glow brighter and brighter.  Hopefully, each year we have new ornaments that represent something significant that the Lord has done in our lives as a result of yielding ourselves completely to Him.  The ornaments are outward manifestations of God’s grace that others can see when they look at our lives; each one holding a special memory for us.  God’s love is amazing!  He has taken our dead lives and brought them to life - he has taken what was once ordinary, decorated it with his glory and he desires to put it on display for everyone to see what he has done.  He wants others to look at us the way my nephew was looking at my Christmas tree - with awe and wonder.  Not because of the tree - but because of what’s on it.

So, I’m reading this potion of the book on laziness just before I head off to the gym the other morning and I begin to think about the girl behind the counter that I see every time I go in there.  I have been going there for over a year and haven’t said a word to her about the Lord - what the heck am I doing?  Not to mention several other  members that I see every time I work out, but have never shared my faith with.  What am I waiting for?  How long do I need to “build relationships”? I talked to them about the weather, the Chiefs, who we think will advance on American Idol - but never the Lord.  So, today I am committed - I am not leaving the gym until I witness to someone.

Well, I get through my entire work out and I haven’t spoken to anyone yet.  I was looking and praying, but no opportunities had come up.  On my way out, I stopped at the front counter for a cup of coffee, and I struck up a conversation with the girl I mentioned before.  I used the technique we have been learning in the Way of the Master - I took our conversation and turned it from the physical to the spiritual.  I began to talk about the serious coffee drinking that goes on with our staff at church.  Then, I popped the question: “Do you have a Christian Background?”  She said, “Yes, I go to the Community of Christ church”.  I then proceeded to ask her if she considered herself to be a good person, to which she replied, “of course”.  We were off to the races from there!  I was able to take her through the law so that she could see her sin and guilt before God, and then I spoke to her of God’s grace in sending his Son to pay the penalty for our sin.  It was awesome!  I left that day praising God; but also feeling like such a fool for waiting so long to witness to her.  I don’t want to stand before the Lord and have to admit that the reason I failed to sow the seed of the gospel was because I was just too lazy.  Hopefully, I won’t have to.

Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, NOT because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. (John 6:26)

Are we seeking God because of the “miracles” - the power and glory of God alone, or  do we seek him for our own personal satisfaction?  God is looking for those who are looking for him - “the hour cometh, and now is, when the TRUE worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father SEEKETH SUCH TO WORSHIP HIM.”  When was the last time you sought the Lord with no agenda, other than seeking his beautiful face and worshipping him?  As a father myself, I love it when my sons just want to be with me - but too often when they approach me, I catch myself thinking, “Okay, what do they want now?”  Is that what the Lord is thinking when I approach him?  The Lord is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.  So what’s the reward?  He is.

As I was spending time before the Lord this morning, I was reading 2 Chron. 13-15: the story of King Abijah.  Here was a guy who understood what victory was all about, and how to get it.  What it came down to for Abijah was one thing – seeking the Lord (2 Chron. 14:2, 11, 15:2).  Because of his simple desire to seek the Lord, God was with him and he had victory.  In fact, the bible says in 2 Chron. 15:12 that he and the people actually made a covenant with God “to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul”.  (That sounds like something Jesus said once.)  And when they sought him with all their heart and all their desire; he was found of them – and he gave them rest.  That’s victory!  My chief concern in life is to simply seek after the Lord and worship him – he will take care of everything else.  It’s funny how the Lord reveals himself in my life, and how he confirms what he is trying to accomplish in my heart.  The man who approached me at Benetti’s said his name was Kevin.  I’ve never seen him before, and I don’t know if I will ever see him again.  For now, I will just consider him a messenger sent from God to remind me of my need to simply worship, and then wait for the anointing power and victory of God in my life.