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What if you weren’t afraid?

January 4, 2010 By 19 Comments

I started my first Sunday of 2010 at Cross Point church here in Nashville. The title of the teaching was “My Prayer for You” by pastor Pete Wilson.

The title didn’t immediately hit me, so as he started to talk, admittedly, my mind wasn’t fully present until he said, “You may not want me to pray this for you, but I’m going to anyway.”

What? Why would he say it that way?

His message was simple:

  1. Faith
  2. Purpose
  3. Wisdom

But what he said wasn’t.

He spoke about faith, and fear, and limitations, and lack of faith. He said things like…

“Fears establish the limits on your life…”

and

“The reason why you’re paralyzed by fear is not because of fear, it’s because of “little” faith.”

All of these were fine to listen to, but I didn’t really hear them, like I hear a harp, until he started talking about money (of course). Basically the story went like this…

A man commits to giving $600, because it was doable. God asks him to step out in faith and commit to $2000. Man does. Questions his commitment. Man get’s a $2080 raise three days after.

But provision is not the point of the story.

A man commits to give what he knew he could. God asks him to commit to a number that wasn’t possible. Man’s heart was turned and expectant upon God. God surprises him. Man is overwhelmed. Man’s faith increases.

I wondered what $ amount I would have to commit to see my faith exercised? Then I wondered, “if God can do all things, what stops him from sending $100,000 my way, to commit and giveaway?”

My faith.

Honestly, I don’t believe that I have the faith to commit to that kind of faith. That’s just scary faith…like stupid scary faith. It would surely end up in failure? Right? I mean, how in the world could I dare to believe that God could do that?

And there you have it. My own “little faith,” rooted in fear, has already established the limits that I put on God’s ability to use me like that. This, my friends, is messing with me in ways that have only just begun.

For Discussion: Imagine if I/you really did believe that God could, would and will use me, you, us, like that? What then, could be possible? What’s stopping you/us from believing like that?
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Treadmill On!

March 27, 2008 By Leave a Comment

Every time I watch the Microsoft Sync commercial, I laugh at the guy who commands the treadmill on, only to hit the machine at full force and fall on his back (ouch). Why?

He has something that I wish I had…complete trust.

In the commercial he calls out and runs to the treadmill in the same manner in which I grab a chair and sit down. I don’t think about it. I sit as if it will always be there; without question to the chairs reliability or my trust that it will support me. But isn’t it funny when someone sits in a chair and it breaks? We find amusement because we too, didn’t expect the chair to fail. In fact, it’s abnormal not to rely on a chair.

If sitting on the promise of a chair requires complete trust, and I believe that God’s Word is true and right, then how do I find myself trusting a chair more than His promises? Should I, a professing and believing Christ-follower put more trust in His promises than the chair in which I sit? I should, but I don’t. It’s more normal for me to trust a chair than it is for me to trust that God will heal the sick, broken hearted and wounded.

His treadmill is my trust.

Trust on!

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