My Box Of Unfinished Busniess

I'm praying for bravery this morning... for you and for me.

We are brave people... i think we can forget this... obstacles, fears, complexities, unknowns... we have faced them before and we can face them again... but will we? Yes... we will... the box of 'unfinished business', the conversation, looking at the thing we have avoided looking at... God will go with us if we invite Him and then take a step... the complex thing can be broken down into little steps... the hard thing is only too hard if we get overwhelmed by the wind and the waves... focus on Jesus and move towards His outstretched hand... I like to picture Him in my problem smiling at me... laughing maybe but not in a mocking way but the way a friend who cares for you and is on your side might laugh and say, 'Don't be afraid. I AM here.'

You are brave. No. No arguments. You are. That giant is blind as a bat. He hopes you get close enough and afraid enough to stay away or just do something stupid. His loud words are just words. Face him with your sling. Pick some stones and take aim. Don't rush in but don't hold back. Aim for the head. There is danger but you are brave and smart.

I got on my knees this morning and put all my 'unfinished business' in a box. It isn't going into the attic. God is going to be with me as I finish each thing. He promised me that He would never leave me or forsake me. (see Deut 31:6, 8; Heb 13:5)

I plan to recycle this box... rip off the tape, flatten it and recycle it.

"For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." - Galatians 6:8-9 ESV

Yes.

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Finishing Is Good For Our Soul

In the ministry I am a part of we focus on Bible College and the church is linked to that college. The Pastor is an instructor at that college. The college offers degrees that serve as 'accomplishment points'. Ordination can only happen, though it isn't set in stone, after finishing a specific four year course of study. Of course, if the office of Pastor is recognized and the person is operating in that role, there are exceptions. There is flexibility. This provides a 'finish what you start' mentality to the ministry. Tackle the project, endure the hardships and then finish the course which in missions is vital to establish a work. Finishing doesn't necessarily mean staying forever and encouraging growth. Maybe it does but it may, and often does, mean passing the baton to another leader to tackle another project.

"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth." - 2 Timothy 2:15 ESV

"For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.' Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. 'Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.' " - Luke 14:28-35 ESV

Once you discover your approval you can take things on.

We should take things on and then finish them. It is good for us.

"And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.' " - Matthew 28:18-20 ESV

A disciple has a lifestyle that goes further. If we have been in one nation we go to the next. If we have built a church we train others in the process so they can go or take over when we go.

Perhaps there are a few out there who are condemned by the talk of 'finishing' because they have many 'unfinished things' in their life. There is no condemnation in Christ. Finish what you can finish and be involved in projects that have a start and end date to gain a momentum of finishing.

"When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, "It is finished," and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit." - John 19:30 ESV

We have a Savior who finished the work of salvation. The completion of that grand project means everything to us. We are hidden in the person of 'The Finisher' and we can have His mind dwell in us.

I plan to finish 2017 well. No striving. Just making it to the finished line. Then I will tackle some new ventures and finish those also. I find that my soul thrives in those new endeavours. The less 'loose ends' the better.

God, please help us in this. We don't want to live powerlessly surrounded by unfinished business. Give us the strength to finish what is before us so we can start a new chapter with You.

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The Spirit Has Been Given

God gave Jesus first and then He gave the Spirit. All of who God Is has been given to us. The Spirit is the 'last' person of God to be given. Father, Son and Spirit are all accounted for.

"For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority." - Colossians 2:9-10 ESV

The fullness Jesus had is the fullness we have. There is more to learn but we have everything. We have everyone. Some meetings can't begin until all the members are accounted for but this meeting can commence.

Oh Lord... What do you have planned for today. No one is missing. I stand ready not as a qualified person but just as a person present at a full gathering. There are a few issues on my agenda but I lay them at Your feet. What is Your vision? What is Your heart? Jesus came to reveal You and now the Spirit Is here to reveal all that Jesus has done.

Thank You God!

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Closing Our Fiscal Year

"I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent." - Revelation 3:1b-3a ESV

Jesus' work is complete. He breathed His last doing the will of the Father. We still have breath. Our generation needs us. If we stop before a project is complete then why did we start it in the first place?

The ministry I'm a part of has an international convention at the end of June. People gather and in a way it has become the end of my spiritual fiscal year. Around this time I start to reassess things. For some this may sound clinical or even works oriented but I see it as a planning tool and a way to fulfill my stewardship of God's possessions. It is a way to say, 'Where are we?, and 'What should we be doing to finish out this year?'

It is not a time of critical self analysis as much as it is a time where I question God because I find it easy to slip into, 'I wanted this and I want that' but what does God want?

It sounds harsh but I think it is very possible to have a reputation for being alive but really be dead. We can talk the talk but like an organization our spending may have far outpaced our debt and a financial collapse is imminent even though from the outside the things may looks sound.

I think most of life should be a moment to moment inhale and exhale. Breath in grace and make a choice (as if it is an exhale) then breath in grace and continue to live that way moment by moment.

"And he said to his disciples, 'Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?' " - Luke 12:22-26 ESV

Amen.

But then there is also this...

"For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'" - Luke 14:28-30 ESV

I still have the end of June to close out my year. That's how I choose to think about my life. Large things need a lot of prayer and some flexible planning or they may not happen. God gave Israel already planted fields when He gave them the promised land but they still needed care and tending in order to be maintained.

To be very transparent I look at my life at times like this and say, 'Am I walking by faith?' or 'Have I walked by faith this year?' and I not sure I can answer that question with a full affirmative. But there is still time. The year isn't over. My life isn't over. The questions when I face God are going to be more about faith then accomplishment. Did I start by faith? Will I finish by faith?

All the accomplishments are His anyway. We are stewards and by His grace co-laborers.

Help us God. Steer us away from self analysis but make us good stewards and responsible managers of time and resources. Be glorified in our midst. Thank You God! Thank You for this generation. We want You to be made visible here and now in this time and this place. Thank You. You have given us so much.

I also want to pray for anyone who is in a season of doubt. Strengthen them God. Help them. Bring clarity and eternal perspective. Let the word of God light their path and illuminate each step. Your grace has made a space for them. Please reveal that in a fresh way. Thank You God.

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Two Essential Ingredients For Male Happiness

Two essential ingredients for male happiness are 'arousal' and 'completion'. If these two elements are not present then a man doesn't feel like a man.

A young man's life is filled with arousal and as he get's older he gets tastes of completion and begins to desire to finish things more and more. An old man looks back and is aroused by what he finished or was a part of finishing and regrets what he left undone or unsaid.

A man who leaves to much unfinished will feel like a failure. A man who does things that have no finish line will also feel empty.

The garden of Eden was a true paradise for Adam. He had endless variety to arouse him and once each animal was named that name stuck and became fixed. It was a place Adam could be a man. All he needed was a mate to share it with and God gave him that also.

Sin, because it is faithless, is empty arousal. It gets old and demands variety. The problem that wholesome variety disconnected from God is limited and soon a man discovers that he can find variety in unwholesome ways and can justify his choices because of his driving need. Then comes guilt and shame or hardness.

Addictions can be healed when a man finds the right avenues to direct his arousal. Those old pathways get washed away. The God who created us knows just how to heal us also.

Continuous solitary arousal fulfillment produces social awkwardness because there is no one to share the growth with. That is as true for the older scholar with his head buried in books for most of his life as it is for the young man that finds his release in video games and activities that lack face to face interaction. Complex social interaction seems daunting because there is no instant pay off. A good balance of team accomplishment and personal accomplishment is vital for boys.

Adam needed Eve. Paradise was lonely without her. This new relationship brought new complexity also. I am not saying we all need to be married to be complete but having people to be with and connect with adds a dimension and flavor to life that is irreplaceable.

Jesus was fully a man. He was the second Adam. The first Adam failed but Christ never failed. His arousal was wholesome and righteous. Sin never killed His innocence because He never participated in faithless activities. He finished the things He started by faith. He finished the work of salvation. God also made sure that there were disciples there so that He had someone to walk with along the way.

Religion condemns a man for his arousal and puts him in program designed to please a God who can only be pleased by perfection. It is a cycle that a man can never hope to find completion in. Life becomes series of subtle compromises.

A relationship with God through Jesus Christ restores a man's ability to be a man. All failure is covered and forgotten. Sin becomes disconnected from a person's identity and new avenues are opened for arousal. Sexuality has it's right expression that has a real beginning and ending in a monogamous relationship where a man can love and cover one woman. A spiritual man can learn to wait and does not need instant gratification. He is not addicted to arousal... it has it's proper place.

A young man can participate in things that have passion and purpose and old men can look back on what God has done and they have been privileged to be a part of. The great commandment and the great commission provide endless variety for the young and marvelous stories for the old to talk about.

The most contented men you will ever meet are those who 'did what they loved' and 'finished what they started.' Many men straighten out their lives just by participating in projects that they can complete. It is a principle that works regardless of a person's theology. Man was designed to finish things. One day we will all stand before God and find out that faith was what God valued. In our weakness we are very strong if it brings us to a place of faith in Christ. His passions and accomplishments produce transformation. The man who participates by faith in what Christ has done will be content forever.

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The Latter Rain - Part 1

"And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, he will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil." - Deuteronomy 11:13-14 ESV

There were to be two rainy seasons in Israel and these two season have different Hebrew words associated with them. Yowreh (Strong's H3138) is the early rain and malqowsh (H4456) is the latter rain. God designed the topography and climate of Israel. It is a unique place in the world and God uses even the climate to speak to us.

Notice that the rains of Israel were linked to the obedience of Israel. The early rain was good for getting crops going and the later rain provided a final watering for things like fruits, grapes and olives. So the wine and oil relied heavily on this later rain.

The two rains speak of two distinct provisions for the completion of a project. One rain gives the resources needed to start the project and the later rain (or Spring rain) provides the things needed to complete the project with a last final push of effort.

"Therefore the showers have been withheld, and the spring rain has not come; yet you have the forehead of a whore; you refuse to be ashamed." - Jeremiah 3:3 ESV

Israel was disobedient and began to lack this finished energy. They started well going into the promised land but could not take the land that God had given them. Many projects went like that for them. They had energy to start but not to finish. Sound familiar?

"But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come." - Mark 4:29 ESV

"So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped." - Revelation 14:16 ESV

It is easy to see the parallels between Pentecost and the early rain. Unlike Israel the Messiah was obedient and we rest in His obedience. A latter rain is coming for the Church before the great harvest of souls in the last days of this age. It won't be just like Pentecost. Pentecost was needed to start the Church. This later rain will be used to hasten the ripening of the grapes and olives. The term 'Corporate Pentecost' is used to describe the church at the time of this great revival.

This later rain will provide a great harvest of souls but it will also water the 'grapes of wrath' that will be crushed in the tribulation period. Those who refused to respond to grace will experience the anger God has for the angelic host that rebelled again Him. There is a point where the lines are drawn and sides have been chosen. Those foolish enough to align themselves with deception instead of truth will experience the opposite of comfort and security. To say it won't be fun is an extreme understatement.

On a personal level we can expect a later rain in our lives also. For those who have believed it will be a great blessing.

"I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus." - Philippians 1:3-8 ESV

God completes what He begins in us based on the work Christ has done. He watered us at our salvation and conversion and He will water us again and again until the last season of our life because of what Christ has done.

Perhaps you think that your fruitful days are behind you. If you have life and a risen Savior you can be fruitful again and again if you continue to sow because God sends the April rains to water what we sow by faith.

"Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like streams in the Negeb! Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him." - Psalm 126:4-6 ESV

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A Happy Ending After A Dark History

If you are believer and read the Bible then you know that hard times are coming. You read of future judgement and not humanistic triumph. It will eventually get worse before it gets better. It is not all a fairy tale ending for our cultures and civilizations. People who adopt non-biblical philosophies can live believing that man might destroy himself by greed or save himself and this planet through diligence, altruism and hard work but believers know this isn't true.

History has already been written and the future is available to us in broad strokes if you just know where to look in the scriptures. The scripture foretold the coming of Messiah and the time frame of the cross and the destruction of the temple in Israel in 70 AD (see Daniel 9). It foretold the triumph and apostasy of the Church (see Revelation 1:11-3:22). The world as we know it will change and it won't be for the better. It needs saving just as we needed saving and the same One who saved us will save it when He returns.

When we talk about such things it comes across as negative and pessimistic. We can even take on a pessimistic attitude to life because of this knowledge. Why save for retirement if the tribulation is right around the corner? Should we raise children if we know the world will be harder for them then it was for us? On and on it goes.

The following thought pattern is very possible for any person who knows of future judgement but has no grace balance.

"If I say, 'I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,' there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot'... Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, 'A son is born to you,' making him very glad. Let that man be like the cities that the LORD overthrew without pity; let him hear a cry in the morning and an alarm at noon, because he did not kill me in the womb; so my mother would have been my grave, and her womb forever great. Why did I come out from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?" - Jeremiah 20:9, 15-18 ESV

Grace sustains us in hard times. Grace gives us hope.

"Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before. The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil. I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame. You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame.  And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions." - Joel 2:23-28 ESV

God has a provision in the midst of trouble. The light that remains always appears brighter in the darkness. God will pour out His spirit on us before the end. There will be grassroots revival in the Church before we are taken away. Just as Pentecost came before Rome destroyed Jerusalem a kind of Pentecost will come in the Church before the day of Jacob's trouble. A corporate Pentecost will come that won't be reported on CNN but it will be as real as Peter preaching before the crowd and seeing multitudes turn in his day.

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you..." - Jeremiah 29:11-14a ESV

This is a promise given to Israel but it is also for all who trust in the God of Israel. We are strangers and pilgrims in a strange land but we sow and reap. We have children and take wives. We do business and invest. We also have a mental bag packed and ready to go because we are all missionaries. God can send us or take us as He pleases.

Our message has good news in the midst of bad news. The world will get darker but Jesus saves all who turn to Him. Life will get harder with brief respites at times because God is merciful but we don't need to be negative or to shut our mouths about it. God is good.

"Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit." - Ecclesiastes 7:8 ESV

The best is yet to come. We will see broken dead people come alive. We will see God restore all that had to be destroyed because there was no fixing it.

"For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:" - Job 19:25-26 KJV

Rejoice. We have a real Resurrection to look forward to.

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