Christ is All in All
I am sitting here trying to understand how to operate
my new laptop. The TV is on, the air conditioning
is humming loudly, and I am sitting here alone.
I have two spiral notebooks at my side, and a variety of colorful
pens. That’s how I usually blow off
steam – writing about what is on my mind.
Today, I have been pondering my ministry. I am the Pastor of Eternal Word Fellowship
Church. It is a great church, but it is not yet thriving as I hoped it would
be. I am praying that I not be
controlled by numbers. I am praying that I will do all the Lord has put in my
heart regardless of how others respond.
I used to worry a lot about the people that I felt turned their backs on
me. Sometimes I wondered if they
actively opposed what I was trying to do.
Can Christians actually be blackballed? As you can see, my mind is
racing, thoughts flowing, past, present, and future all ripe for consideration.
But today, sitting here, I realize that nothing else
matters. Marvin Sapp sings a song with
that title that often speaks to my spirit in times of stress. It is so true. Nothing else matters besides seeing
Jesus. I long to sit in His presence and
hear what He has to say.
Got to Be There
Turning off the electronic eyes that seem to be
everywhere, and shutting myself off from the rest of the world, I often find it
necessary to sit. And listen. And wait.
Many times we are tempted to spend our prayer times doing all of the
talking, but sometimes, we should be quiet. Intimacy is often found in what is
not said. Psalm 46:10-11 (KJV) reminds us, “Be still, and know that I am
God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God
of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.” It is in the stillness of life that God
speaks – He speaks right in the middle of it. As the Scriptures tell us, He is
WITH us! And when He speaks, it is always what you need to hear, even if it is
not what you want.
Our human relationships suffer in this bustling, busy
world from lack of presence. We sit in
the room together but our minds are a million miles away. Each one has their cell phone, tablet, TV, or
pc to keep them company. We have
forgotten how to relate face to face.
But face to face intimacy is exactly what is needed in
order for our relationships to be strong.
We have to talk to each other, look at each other, and touch each
other. That’s what happens in real
relationship. I love technology and all
that it does, but I am so afraid that we are more connected than ever, and less
connected than ever, all at the same time.
Like many of the raffles we love to take a chance on,
we must be present to win.
The Honor of Your Presence is Requested
“The honor of your presence is requested,” a line
normally only seen on formal invitations, finds its way into my thoughts. Jesus
requests the honor of our presence, no matter how worn out and weary we may be.
The invitation is extended in Matthew 11:28-30 (KJV):
Come unto me,
all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke
upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find
rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy,
and my burden is light.
All we have to do is accept the invitation – to come
as we are – into His presence. Why is
that so hard for us? We are willing to give Him almost anything – money,
service, talent – except our presence. The sad truth is that all of our sacrifices
for Him are useless without the
sacrifice to Him – our presence, our
lives, us!
After all, our living sacrifice is God’s greatest
desire. Intimate relationship between Him and us. This is why Christ died – to absorb the sin
that separates us from God. Nothing else matters.
