You Plan? Ha!

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
~ Jeremiah 29 : 11 – 13 NIV

Tonight at church Pastor Bob talked about God's destiny for us by sharing some of his story.

Growing up in Indiana Pastor's dad owned a service station.  It was on US 20 the old main highway between Chicago and Indianapolis so it was a busy station.  Young Bob learned from his dad how to identify any make and model of car as it drove by just by it's shape.

Pastor Bob had hoped one day to join his father in the business.  One day they went to the diner next door and over pie Mr. Bock asked Pastor to look at his hand.  Dad said "What do you see?" Bob replied "My hand."  His father then told him he was all thumbs - he had no mechanical aptitude. Bob should go to college.

So while in college Bob joined Air Force ROTC with the goal of becoming an officer and a pilot.  He was in senior ROTC and upon graduation would have been commissioned a second lieutenant.  However he was also an English major, and because he spent many nights reading books in a dark library basement, his eyes strained a bit and he failed the final Air Force physical and was booted from the program.

Because Bob had earned two degrees and a teaching credential after graduation he became a middle school teacher.  He loved the children but hated the classroom dynamics so he quit.  Feeling like a bit of a failure he went home and was sitting on his family porch when their local pastor came by for tea.  Having a discussion with the pastor he encouraged Bob to go to seminary.  He said he could do it for a year and if he didn't like it he could quit.

After the first year however Bob enjoyed it and continued on for the full four years.  However upon ordination Bob did not want to become a pastor, his passion was working with children. He had an opportunity to come to California and so he would up working for a church in LA doing street ministry to the youth hanging out on Hollywood during the hippie late 60s.

Following a few years of the street ministry Bob was burned out and he was called by his current church to be their senior pastor.  He had not done sermons, he had not run a church but there he was doing just that.  And 41 years later Pastor Bob Bock is still the senior pastor of First Christian Church of North Hollywood.

God indeed has a plan for us.  We might have a plan for us.  But ours is secondary to God's and most likely your plan will be replaced by God's plan! So we get a grip and get ready for the far greater ride the Lord has prepared for us!

Teach me your way, LORD

Not much commentary today on the scripture below.  It's late, I've been reading Christian books most of the evening and listening to some sermons on the radio. But as I have grown in my faith and been more bold in expressing some of the "haters" are going to town on me.  No matter, God is good and that is ALL that matters!

If you're reading these posts and enjoy them please leave us a comment and let us know.  May God bless you always!

Psalm 86:11-17 (New International Version)
11 Teach me your way, LORD,
that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.
13 For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me from the depths,
from the realm of the dead.
14 Arrogant foes are attacking me, O God;
ruthless people are trying to kill me—
they have no regard for you.
15 But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,
slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
16 Turn to me and have mercy on me;
show your strength in behalf of your servant;
save me, because I serve you
just as my mother did.
17 Give me a sign of your goodness,
that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,
for you, LORD, have helped me and comforted me

Here I am Lord!

Here I am Lord. As I open myself to your perfect presence I see miracles all around me.

Pastor Jefferson at church makes up little cards on his laser printer that have scripture or inspirational thoughts and they're passed out at our Wednesday night prayer and meditation service.  When I saw the message above it definitely hit me right away that as I asked Jesus to come into my heart, turned my life over to HIM and began to live by the scriptures wonderous things happened AND continue to happen! To you some of them may be minor but for me they are truly awesome and testimony to God working in my life.



( Isaiah 6:8 and 1 Samuel 3.)

Riotous Self Will?

I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

John 5:30, KJV

At church tonight Pastor Louise said that she and her husband (also a pastor but another church) sit down every morning reading scripture together and the discuss it. I thought that was pretty cool because it reminds me of my mother and my late stepfather would do the same thing every morning spending time reading devotions, praying and meditating together. It's a nice sign of good Christian matehood I think.

Back to our story however, Pastor said the verse they read this morning is John 5:30 which is Jesus telling his apostles that when he judges, or makes a decision or takes some action based on what he has heard, seen, known, etc. it is indeed just or the right decision because it is not based on Jesus applying his own will to the matter but that of God's.

We are here to do just that, to do God's will; the very purpose of our being to glorify God not us. If the Messiah himself, who was perfect, can subjugate his will to God's, why can't we? Our opinions, our feelings, our plans and schemes, while God loves us for having them and has given us free will are meaningless. There is only one plan for us and that is that which God has declared for us. It's not written down anywhere so you have to seek it. That takes some intense work. But I can tell you once you begin to align your will with God's you too will discover that the decisions you make, the judgments you take will be the right ones.

Remember - God's will is the firewall against self-will run riot!

Amen!

Everything Happens for a Reason

Romans 8:28 (King James Version)

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.


Everything happens for a reason you have probably heard.  Folks often make this remark to comfort someone that they did not get their way. Indeed God has a plan for us and his purpose for that plan is to glorify his name.  So we need not even need comfort because we can be sure that God's plan for us is clear and has a far higher purpose than anything we can come up.  Happens for a reason? Yes. And the reason is awesome!

Romans 10:13-15 (New International Version)

³ for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

¹⁴ How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? ¹⁵ And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

We want others to be saved but we're obligated to share the word.  I know this is something I can do much better.  It is one thing to live a Christian life and model Christ-like behavior.  But as scripture says "how can they hear without someone preaching?" 

Time for me to share the good news!