The National Day of Prayer is an annual observance held on the first Thursday of May, inviting people of all faiths to pray for the nation. It was created in 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress, and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman. So, as presidents have formally done every year since 1952, President Obama on today, Thursday, May 7, will issue a proclamation urging our country to “turn to God in prayer and meditation.”
No one can seriously question whether our country – our world – needs prayer. We are troubled and in trouble. Just read the headlines or watch a little television as I did earlier today. Within an hour I heard stories about teens committing suicide because of cyber bullying, women swindling money from unsuspecting men by purchasing fake pregnancy tests, celebrities posing in the nude, men scamming hundreds of thousands of dollars from senior women desperate for love, Syria continuing to use chemical weaponry and families searching for lost loved ones in Nepal.
But I have mixed feelings about this day. I am not sure we need a National Day of Prayer any more than we need a Black History Month or a Veteran’s Day. Some things, some people, some history as well as some practices, like praying, need to be a part of every day. They need to be habit. I am also skeptical in 2015 of the government’s involvement in prayer. Yes, the day is part of our country’s heritage born from the first call to prayer in 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a nation to the call to prayer by President Lincoln when he proclaimed of a day of “humiliation, fasting and prayer” in 1863. Those days, those times and those prayers seemed different to me. It seems there was a time when our country was led by those who truly believed in God, who consistently sought His guidance and faithfully asked Him for wisdom and direction. Such was the case not just for our national leaders but also the leaders of our cities, towns, communities, schools and churches. These days? Not so much.
But according to the National Day of Prayer website, this day “has great significance for us as a nation as it enables us to recall and to teach the way in which our founding fathers sought the wisdom of God when faced with critical decisions. It stands as a call for us to humbly come before God, seeking His guidance for our leaders and His grace upon us as a people.” This statement is how I have made peace with the day. And the spirit of this statement is what I pray everyone will embrace – but not just for a day, for always and every day.
The web has been inundated with “model” and “sample” prayers shared for this special day. These actually might be the first misstep. Rather than recite a prayer scripted by someone else, I encourage you to embrace the theme of this year’s National Day of Prayer – “Lord, Hear Our Cry.” Cry out before the Lord sharing what is in your heart. Don’t worry about the “right” words, embrace the right attitudes – humility and gratitude. Don’t fret about the “right” posture, pray as the Holy Spirit leads you – standing, sitting, opened eyes, closed eyes, prostrate on the floor. The theme is not, ‘Lord, Look at Me,’ but rather, “Lord, Hear Our Cry.”
Matthew 6:7 (ESV) reminds us, ““And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.” On this National Day of Prayer, pray freely. Pray openly. Pray passionately. Pray from the heart, and know that “When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles” (Psalm 34:17, ESV).
Just as the Israelites were on the verge of entering the Promised Land, God commanded the priests to step into the water. Hmm? Not exactly what you might expect, but no big deal, right? Wrong! The Jordan River was at flood stage! We’re talking wet feet and probably a few other wet things here.
Now surely God knew the Jordan River was there, and He knew that it was at flood stage when He told the Israelites to cross over to their Promised Land. Still He gave the command to Joshua: “. . . Arise, GO OVER THIS JORDAN, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give them. . .” (Joshua 1:2).
Well, I don’t know about you, but I don’t really like getting my feet wet – especially when I have my shoes on! Ladies, you know the deal! Confession – yes, I take certain shoes off in the rain – even if I am wearing hose. The way I see it, I can buy another pair of Hanes for a WHOLE lot less money than I can a pair of shoes! I learned the hard way, but it only took one pair of spotty leather pumps for me to learn to save the shoes!
Anyway, back to the Israelites and the Jordan River.
Now, if we didn’t know before, we certainly knew after the Red Sea episode that God could part the waters. In Exodus 4:21 Moses stretched his hand out over the waters, and the Scriptures tell us that the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. We know, too, that God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:24), so what’s up with the wet feet? He parted the Sea for Moses. Why not part the river for the priests?
I think it’s less about the wet feet and more about our desire for God to go first. That way, we don’t mess up our shoes. We don’t have to work as hard. We don’t have to wonder how things are going to go. We don’t get wet feet.
It’s that hesitancy to get wet feet that can keep us camped out on the wrong side of the Jordan River. It’s that waiting for God to go first that can keep us from our miracle. Hebrews 11:6 teaches us that without faith it is impossible to please God. Several examples in the Scriptures – the Red Sea and the Jordan River encounters being two of them – teach us that we are always to exercise faith in God. Sometimes that faith requires us to be still and wait patiently (think Joseph in Potiphar’s prison), but at other times, it calls us to step up (think Nehemiah), step out (think Naomi and Ruth) and step into the waters (the Israelite priests).
Contrary to our belief, there can be just as much faith involved in taking personal initiative as there is in waiting passively for the Lord to provide.
Pray hard. Listen hard. Swallow hard. And go first! Step out in faith knowing that our God sees, hears and is faithful!
THIS WEEK seek God’s desire for you – patience or a step of faith. What would the latter look like? What’s holding you back? Are you being obedient in patience or fearful in waiting? Seek God’s direction for you and your life. He will give you peace about what YOU are to do!
It’s a balmy 68 degrees outside! What a wonderful mid-February surprise and treat. The forecast for the end of the week announces more February-like temperatures like a Thursday high of 36 degrees. But right now at 4:30 in the afternoon, it’s 68 glorious degrees.
And I am in the house! Stuck creating a test that my students have to take Tuesday. I need to get it posted on Blackboard, so today is the day to create that test.
With it being 68 degrees outside and the sun shining through the window and me on my laptop with notes spread around me as I create a test, you can best believe my mind has REALLY been tossing about the question of why test? Not just my students and not other school students, but us. Why does God test our faith?
God tested the faith of the ancient Israelites by allowing them to experience hard times in the wilderness, “in order to know what was in your heart” (Deuteronomy 8:2).And He likewise tests us.
We think we know what is in our heart. We think we know how strong we are. We think we have a steadfast, immovable, abounding faith. But it is only in times of testing that we move beyond just thinking and come to KNOW. God does not test us because HE doesn’t know; He tests us because we don’t know.
David prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.” (Psalm 139:23)
Now, my students surely did not ask for Tuesday’s test. As a matter of fact, they have an option to complete another assignment and NOT take the test. A few have informed me that they are choosing this option. Like them, we would sometimes like to opt out of the test, to have a choice to maybe complete another assignment. But like the Psalmist, we should cry out to God asking Him to test us and to show us now – in the good times, in the calm times, in the easy times what is in our hearts – our places of weakness.
When I score my students’ tests, I spend even more time writing feedback so that they know and understand exactly why they received the grade they did. I want them to understand any shortcomings in their responses. THAT is how they learn and how they grow, especially on the interim assessments because THE test is coming – the Final Exam.
We have a Final Exam coming too! My students can look at the Course Syllabus and see the exact date and time of their exam, but we do not know when the end will come. My students have a window of time in which to study and prepare. They may not study every day, but they understand the finite calendar before them.
We do not know how long we have to prepare, so TODAY is the best time for us to prepare. TODAY is the day for us to seek God and to petition His testing so that we will know, understand and grow.
THIS WEEK cry out to God.
(1) Ask Him to search you, to know your heart, to test you and to show you your weaknesses. Be open to and welcome the knowledge of any shortcomings He shows you. (James 1:2, 4). Then ask Him to help you grow in your trust and faith in Him.
(2) If you are in the midst of testing – whether it is from God or testing that He has permitted, do not seek another assignment, but ask Him for what is needed for you to go through. Do not spend time asking Him “why” but rather ask “what.” What would He have you to know and learn from this testing? Identify and recruit prayer partners who will commit to praying with and for you during this season.
When I learned to drive, road maps were all the rage. I have very vivid images of my dad sitting at the kitchen table with his maps spread out and a World Atlas at his fingertips. He would sit there for hours planning our family vacations, mapping the routes, making note of the connections, turns and exits. I thought he and my sister were amazing the way they could recall and discuss highway numbers… “Turn right onto 42 and go about 37 miles then take NC 97 North to 301. You’ll go about 12 miles then merge onto Interstate 95 North.”
I well remember my first solo trip with a road map. Like Daddy, I sat at the kitchen table, spread the map, made my markings and jotted notes. I was going on a job interview and, worried enough about that, I wanted the travel to be uneventful. I even used the little scale in the bottom corner of the map to calculate mileage and approximate time. All along the way, though, I had to keep stopping on the side of the road to consult my trusty road map.
Three things are important when planning a trip using a map – knowing where you are, where you need to end and which direction you need to travel to get there! And therein lies the beauty of GPS. The screen shot always includes a big arrow indicating YOU ARE HERE. That’s good news to any driver!
Want some even better news? Not only are you “HERE,” so is God! He is everywhere! He is with you!
Joshua 1:9 (ESV) reminds us to be strong, courageous and without fear or dismay because the Lord, our God, is with us wherever we go. Deuteronomy 31:6 (ESV) echoes the same encouragement adding a reminder that He will never leave nor forsake us. David asked, “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?” (Psalm 139:7-10, ESV) In the heavens, in Sheol, in the uttermost part of the sea – even there David said we find God’s hand which shall lead us and hold us!
I find that latter thought to be particularly encouraging because I live in the boondocks, and I frequently drive rural highways. This means I regularly lose signals for my telephone and GPS. The “GPS Lady” often tells me she is rerouting. I suppose rerouting sounds better than “I don’t have a clue where you are.” When the GPS loses its signal, I am left to go it alone trying to read road signs while I drive. That is not only frustrating, it is unnerving, especially if I am traveling an unfamiliar and not well-marked route. Whenever the signal reconnects, the GPS offers instructions to correct whatever mis-turns I may have taken and tries to get me back on track. It’s rare, but sometimes GPS cannot get it right and I have to rely on other sources like stopping strangers to ask for instructions or accessing Google Maps on my cell phone.
Our God never loses connection with us though we sometimes choose to ignore the promptings of His Holy Spirit. Now there are times when I know better than the “GPS Lady.” She tells me to turn left and I am looking at a ONE WAY sign or a ROAD CLOSED sign, so I know not to follow her directions. But our God gets it right 100% of the time! Isaiah 40:13-14 asks, “Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, Or as His counselor has informed Him? With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding? And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge and informed Him of the way of understanding?” The answer is NO ONE! He is omniscient and omnipresent, so He knows and He is with us. He is also faithful, so we can trust that He is with us, just as He promised, wherever we are.
There are times when we ignore God’s directions or believe that we know better. Surely when God has us on a route that is bumpy or one that is twisted or winding or scary or lonesome or dark even, He has made a mistake, somehow gotten it wrong. No, it is not God that has gotten it wrong, it is our perspective that is limited while God is finite.
Question God? Be puzzled by His directions? Surely, but never doubt. Even Abraham had questions about God’s directions and decisions (e.g. the destruction of Sodom), but Abraham obeyed in faith. He never mocked, rebelled or cursed God. Abraham knew what we can know as children of God and that is that God is Here, right here with you!
“And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched.
And Jesus said, “Who touched me?” When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, “Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, ‘Who touched me?’”
And Jesus said, “Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.”
And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately.
And he said unto her, “Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.” Luke 8:43-48 (KJV)
I think no woman can even begin to imagine having “an issue of blood” for twelve years! Twelve months would be unbearable; twelve days alone is debilitating, but twelve years?! Try to imagine this woman’s life. The Law made it clear that unless her bleeding ceased for at least seven days, everyone and everything she touched would be deemed unclean and cursed, just as she was.
I imagine her as the subject of idle gossip and ill-intended chitchat because everyone knew about her issue. I suspect some didn’t even know her name; she was defined by her issue. And I picture her isolated, outcast, alone and lonely yearning not just for healing but for companionship and friendship.
What “issue” is defining you?
Be honest with yourself.
Do people know you as an adulterer? Do co-workers raise their eyebrows when you speak because you are a liar? Has the PTA and playground crowd tagged you as a bad mother? Is the Bridge Club whispering in the corner because you’ve been an unfaithful wife? Have your friends labeled you as wishy-washy? Or narcissistic? Maybe unreliable? Possibly bossy? Does your employer consider you incompetent? Lazy? Unproductive? Are you a troublemaker? A quitter?
Has your “issue” isolated you?
Do people avoid you, make excuses to shorten their conversations with you and always seem to have somewhere to go when you appear on the scene? Or does shame make you keep to yourself? Might you be afraid to show your real self because of your “issue?”
That’s how it was for Luke’s woman. For twelve years the woman in Luke’s story was identified and isolated by her issue.
Mark shares this same story in his Gospel with a few more details. A key one is found in Mark5:27-28 (KJV) which says, “When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, ‘If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.’”
Therein lies the secret to our “issues.” Jesus.
The context of this story conveys another important point for us. Jesus was not alone. He was in a crowd. The woman touched Jesus, and He asked, “Who touched me?” Peter and the other disciples don’t believe their ears. “Who touched You? You have to be kidding? Who, in this crowd, didn’t touch You? People are everywhere.”
But Jesus knew there had been a special touch, a seeking touch, a believing touch, a power-filled touch. Jesus knew the woman needed a touch, and He knew the exact moment when she had touched His garment.
And He knows that you need His touch as well!
Make note of three quick points. Jesus asks, “Who touched me” then, according to Mark, “looked round about to see her that had done this thing.” This woman had broken the Law, and here is Jesus putting her on blast. If anyone hadn’t seen her, they saw her then. Mark and Luke tell us that the woman fell at Jesus’ feet. Luke says the woman “declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately.” Mark concludes this story with Jesus telling the woman to “go in peace and be healed.”
In calling attention to the woman, Jesus brought glory to God identifying Him as the Healer. Point One – Your “issue” is not just about you. Lay it at Jesus’ feet and permit Him to heal you and to bring glory to God. Point Two – Healing requires boldness to overcome the fear of what others may say about you and your “issue.”
Jesus told the woman to go and be healed. Wasn’t she healed when she touched His garment? The bleeding stopped, but the healing was incomplete. Sheila Walsh suggests the woman needed healing from shame, disappointment, self-hatred and the burden that the “issue” had been. Jesus knew that the woman needed to be made whole; she needed salvation. Point Three – Christ works in our lives well beyond the point at which we first come to faith. He desires that we become whole in Him.
“Issues” of blood are draining. After extensive bleeding, anemia is likely. The Mayo Clinic tells us that as the body becomes increasingly deficient in iron, anemia worsens and signs and symptoms intensify. Symptoms vary but may include extreme fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath, chest pain, headache, dizziness or lightheadedness and, eventually, death.
“Issues” of the heart are no different. Isn’t it time for you to lay yours at Jesus’ feet?
Read Mark 5:27-34 this week and ponder the daily questions for reflection.
And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, and had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse. When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, “If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.” And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.
And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, “Who touched my clothes?” And his disciples said unto him, “Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, ‘Who touched me?’”
And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.
And he said unto her, “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.”
Monday Questions for Reflection: What is your “issue?” How has it caused you to suffer? How is it defining you?
Tuesday Questions for Reflection: The Law prohibited the woman from touching others no doubt leaving her feeling isolated, abandoned and lonely. How does your “issue” isolate you from others? Are you choosing to isolate yourself – your REAL self?
Wednesday Questions for Reflection: The woman risked breaking the Purity Law and pressed through a crowd to touch Jesus’ garment. What risks must you take to be free of your “issue?” What or whom is keeping you from Jesus?
Thursday Questions for Reflection: Jesus told the woman her faith had made her whole. Do you have the faith necessary to experience God’s miracle in your own life? Are there areas in your life that you do not yet trust to God? What are they? What keeps you from trusting?
Friday Questions for Reflection: The woman, fearing and trembling, fell at Jesus’ feet and, before the crowd, told Jesus everything. Testimony of healing is powerful. Will you lay your “issue” at Jesus’ feet, be healed and share your testimony with others? Who needs to hear your testimony?
When I was a young girl, my Dad told me that I could have ANY thing that I wanted IF I was willing to do an honest day’s work for it. “As a matter of fact,” he said, “if someone has something to give you, they will let you know. In the meantime, plan on going to work to get what you want.”
And so, I began working when I was 15 years old. I’ve worked since with the exception of one year during undergraduate school when I literally begged my Dad to give me a break. “Can’t I have just one semester without working?” I whined. And one semester is what he permitted. Then it was back to work – two jobs, sometimes three.
I remember teaching school full time, working in a Department store 20 hours every weekend and managing an after-school tutorial program two afternoons a week while attending Graduate School full time. And that was one of my “easy seasons.” For another season, I taught school Monday through Friday and worked in a hospital laboratory Friday nights, 16 hours each Saturday and 16 hours each Sunday (a 40-hour weekend) – two full time jobs.
I’ve worked in schools, hospitals, offices and department stores. I even (this is the honest truth) sold cemetery plots door-to-door. Finally, I am retired – honestly. I get the check every month. And I still work two jobs! Why? Many reasons, but partly because my Daddy created a true workaholic and partly so I really can have what I want…without charge cards.
I doubt my Dad was the first or only parent to tell his child that they could have what they wanted if they worked for it. That was not just the mentality, but the prevailing attitude, spirit and belief of our day. You want it? You work for it. For many, there was much truth in that thinking, and they have the homes, cars, clothing and “toys” to prove it.
But there is one thing that working cannot bring you.
Eternal life.
Ephesians 2:8-10 (NIV) makes it clear that we are saved by grace, through faith – and this is not from ourselves. “It is the gift of God” and not by our works, “so that no one can boast.” No one can buy or work their way into Heaven. It is the work of Christ and His work alone that opens wide the doors of Heaven for us to enter.
Isn’t that good news? It is for me; I can only imagine how many jobs I’d have to work to go to Heaven!
Yesterday felt like the title of a book I read some years ago, In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day (Mark Batterson, Author). Just read that title and ponder each word while adding the next word and image to it. In a pit. Bad. With a lion. Worse. On a snowy day. Worst! But actually, there is good news in this story from 1 Chronicles. Paul tells us in Romans 15:4 (NASB) that “whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that…we might have hope.” So what are the lessons from the text that gave title to Batterson’s book?
First, let’s read the Scripture.
Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, performed great exploits. He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. And he struck down an Egyptian who was five cubits tall. Although the Egyptian had a spear like a weaver’s rod in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. Such were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada; he too was as famous as the three mighty warriors. He was held in greater honor than any of the Thirty, but he was not included among the Three. And David put him in charge of his bodyguard. 1 Chronicles 11:22-25 (NASB)
What instruction does this text, written in earlier times, have for us? Well, let’s see.
Benaiah was the son of a Priest. We have a personal relationship with a great High Priest – Jesus. (Hebrews 4:14)
Benaiah was a valiant fighter. You are a fighter. Daily, you must fight the good fight of faith! (1 Timothy 6:12)
Benaiah was from Kabzeel, a city in southern Judah. The name means “gathering of God.” As a Christian, you are part of God’s gathering, the church.
Benaiah struck down two warriors from Moab. The Moabites were closely related to the Israelites, but they were enemies of Israel. There are those who are close to you, but they are your enemies. Perhaps your closest enemy might even be you – your flesh, that is. And you must strike down those enemies – yes, flesh included.
Benaiah went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. Bet you’re thinking, “Hmm. Let’s see her make a connection with this one!” 1 Peter 5:8b says, “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Renowned Pastor, Ray Stedman said in a sermon addressing this topic, “Benaiah slew a lion — a lion, not a leopard, not a wild hyena or a boar or a buffalo, but a lion… it is not for nothing that the lion is called the king of beasts, because it is indeed a very powerful animal.”
But I did a little research.
The “king of the jungle” doesn’t have the strongest bite. There are many other cats and many other animals that surpass the lion for bite. As a matter of fact, ListVerse says, the lion has the “weakest bite of the genus Pathera or big cat.” Wow. But the research clearly points out that the lion doesn’t need a strong bite. This big cat is really a social animal and presents as quite cooperative during the hunt. It is not by power of bite that the lion kills; rather, it is by strangling its prey – biting the trachea. ListVerse says lions “lack the need of a strong bite.”
Our enemy, the Devil, prowls like a roaring lion seeking to devour. Like a lion, he is often social. Like a lion, he is often cooperative. Like a lion, he doesn’t need a strong bite. Like a lion, he often slips up on us and strangles the life out of us.
Every one of us has a lion prowling and pursuing us – that something, someone or some situation that is waiting, seeking to devour us. It might be a loss that we just can’t seem to move beyond – the grief of it has entangled our hearts and minds and even our lives. We may even feel as though a part of us died. There may be a physical disease that is daily draining our bodies of strength or our minds of clarity. Possibly your lion is a habit – a bad habit, that you know is killing you – a substance addiction, gambling, overeating, gossiping, worrying… Your lion might be fear – of the unknown or of something very specific, but it has you paralyzed. You know your lion.
But let’s get back to Benaiah.
Benaiah met his lion in a pit on a snowy day. Bad enough to meet a lion – anywhere. (I once met one on an African road. The body and windows of a little old minivan separated us. That was not enough for me, so in a pit? Not!) But Benaiah met his lion in a pit. Pits tend to be small. They tend to be deep. They tend to have slippery sides. They tend to be hard to escape. And then it was snowing! When I first read this Scripture, my response was, “Really!” (Not as in I doubted, but as in “Really. Can this get any worse?”)
Have you been there yet? In the pit with your lion? On a snowy day? Ray Stedman said, “He met the worst possible foe, in the worst possible place, under the worst possible circumstances.” Now, that’s the Devil for you. Getting you right where he wants you and setting you up for the kill.
Turn to Benaiah once more. The Scripture says, “He…went…and killed a lion.”
Victory!!!!!
Hopefully, you are encouraged that you can face your lion. You can go down into the pit with him – even on a snowy day, and emerge victorious.
But there is one remaining question. How? How did Benaiah kill the lion? How do you kill your lion?
Summer has ended and fall has truly begun – not just on the calendar, but in the weather. We’ve had some really cool nights and mornings. I love the change in the seasons, especially between summer and fall. But I’m a little sad, too. This summer seemed to fly, and it is the first summer in years that we did not get to the beach. Once. Never. Not even a drive by.
I am really fortunate to live about an hour’s drive from the ocean – the real beach! Ponds are nice. Lakes are lovely. But nothing compares to the ocean. Waves lapping. Squishy sand between your toes. Seashells and Seagulls. Sometimes we’ve driven to the beach just for a walk along the shore. With sandals in hand we let the waves wash over our feet, and we occasionally stoop to pick up shells.
That’s a good day – walking hand-in-hand with someone you love along the water’s edge. But to really enjoy (and experience) the ocean, you have to go beyond the shore.
The same is true with life. The same is true in ministry. We have to go beyond the shore.
“And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret, And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship. Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.” (Luke 5:1-4 KJV)
Obediently, but possibly with some hesitancy, Simon launched out. Isn’t this His command for us, too? Aren’t we to launch out into the deep doing what our Lord commands? No excuses. No hanging around the periphery? No sticking with the familiar and the comfortable. No waiting for something to wash up onshore.
Faith can bring the most unexpected of miracles. Verses 6 and 7 of Luke 5 (KJV) tells us that when Simon and his men had done what was commanded, “they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.”
Faith is about action. We can say that we have faith, but faith without works is dead (James 2:20 KJV). Simon could have responded to the Master, “Thank you for letting us know that there are fish in the lake. Wow, we were wondering since we didn’t catch any. Maybe we’ll go out tomorrow night.”
Faith requires us to yield – our thinking, our possessions, ourselves. Our Lord’s thoughts are not our thoughts, and neither are His ways our ways. (Isaiah 55:8) We must trust His commands and be quick to obey them.
As Alvin Slaughter sings, “…by faith we must climb into the boat, and follow His command” letting our faith take us somewhere that we’ve never been before. “Launch out, Launch out into the deep.”
“Sometimes we hold on a little longer than we should Letting go can be hard but it’s sometimes for our good The fear of what’s ahead sometimes makes us fall behind. We can see the times are changing but pretend that we’re so blind You’ll never really know just what the future holds But we know God holds us in His hand. So by faith we must climb into the boat; And follow His command.
CHORUS Launch out into the deep. Let your faith take you somewhere that you’ve never been before. Launch out into the deep. Let your faith make you fly. Let your faith make you soar. Launch out, Launch out into the deep.”
FULLY ALIVE! 