I've been thinking and praying through a lot of things lately... Admittedly, most of my thoughts/prayers are pretty self-centered. Even when I think I am being "kingdom focused," I tend to still want to see my church(es) grow. As a local pastor, so much of my attention is given to the hope that God does a work in Austin ...that starts right here at my door step.
But, what if I really embraced a vision for the Kingdom of God that was bigger than myself, my church(es), and my cause. What if I began to think and pray for God to do great things here ...that I could just see - even if I couldn't participate, or that I wasn't involved with or leading?
One of the things that amazes me about Jesus is his complete and absolute allegiance to following God. It wasn't Jesus' mission that drove his life and ministry - it was God's mission. The disciples never got that... They wanted power, Jesus could care less about power. They wanted their place assured, and Jesus would say, "Serve." They wanted prestige, and Jesus went off on some tangent with guys like Zacchaeus and the Gerasene Demoniac or the woman at the well.
How much of my ministry - my life - and my desire to see God move, is actually that ...mine?
It seems to me that God is trying to tell me something. The way of Christ is serving, loving, giving... When I make it about me, or my church, or my kingdom - I am on shifting sand...
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