Let’s recap the last couple of weeks…
Jonah was a prophet of God, a very religious man. God comes to Jonah and tells him to go minister to a group of people that he really doesn’t like. In fact, these people, the Ninevites were the nastiest people of Jonah’s time so God asking him to send them a message was completely irrational to Jonah. Jonah was rather self-righteous. He felt that he was God’s chosen. Well he was, but he let that become his identity and he held himself higher thinking that he was better than those outside the nation of Israel so when God told him to speak a message of God’s grace and mercy Jonah said “no way” and literally ran away from God. Like to the opposite end of the known earth at that time. Then we found out in chapter 2 that through God’s mercy, He chases down Jonah, sends a storm, Jonah ends up thrown over the side of a boat, God sends a fish to swallow Jonah, and then God keeps Jonah alive in the belly of the whale for 3 days. Last week we learned Jonah realized some pretty significant things while in the fish’s belly. Most importantly we were taught how Jonah went from having a religious heart to a Gospel-transformed heart.
So that’s where we’ll pick up, where Prater left off, with Jonah having been barfed onto the shore as one of the greatest acts of God’s unwavering and unshakeable love towards him. And now we’ll get to see the action that comes from Jonah’s changed heart.
Let’s read chapter 3 -
Jonah 3:1-10 (ESV)
1Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2"Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you." 3So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days’ journey in breadth. 4Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them. 6The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, "By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish." 10When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.
Let’s unpack what we just read
In verse 1 it says “Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time.” There’s two words that stand out to me in that verse. The word “then” which is occurs right after Jonah is barfed up on the shore. Jonah died to his old self while in the fish’s belly and THEN was resurrected on the shore.
So first he surrendered and THEN God saved him. Such a small word but it tells so much. It’s clear that God pursued Jonah. God initiates and THEN we respond through surrender.
The second word that stands out to me is literally the word “second.” “Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time.”
Our God is a God of second chances. The Bible is full of stories… Obviously there’s Jonah who after all his rebelling was given another opportunity to be used to fulfill God’s plans. There’s also Abraham. God makes a promise to Abraham, Abraham gets impatient, tries to do thing his own way, makes a mess of things, but God still creates a great nation from Abraham’s descendants which leads directly to Christ. There’s Moses… he kills a guy, goes into hiding, argues with God about his abilities, and is ultimately used to free God’s chosen people from captivity and slavery under Egypt. Look at Peter… he denied Jesus 3 times but in Acts chapter 2 we see him lead thousands to salvation on the day of Pentecost. Even my life is a testament to God’s second chances.
God will definitely use you if you’ll turn back around. But you know what else Jonah’s story tells me? I can’t get in the way of God’s plans. Some of you may be struggling right now thinking you’re too far gone or you’ve messed up too much for God to save you, to use you now. That’s a lie. You are not too messed up for God to lovingly pursue and discipline you back into a saving intimate relationship with Him. Romans 3:23 tells us that ALL have sinned and fallen short. There’s no little bit of nasty to uber nasty scale that determines your usability or save-ability by God. We’re all nasty! But God has a heart of salvation for ALL.
I love that God came to Jonah a second time. You’ve got to figure that Jonah was pretty broken by that point. Jonah is not a story of “Do it right the first time and avoid life’s nasty whales” it’s a story of God using broken, rebellious, undeserving people for His plans and His purposes. As a result, it’s GOD that receives all the glory. Jonah did NOTHING to earn God’s mercy or grace just as we have done nothing to earn the saving relationship we’re offered through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.
When you grasp just how holy and perfect and loving God is and you see how truly little you have to offer Him yet he loves and pursues and wants to save you… When the gospel get’s out of your head and into your heart it changes everything. Isaiah 64:6 tells us that “our self-righteousness acts are like filthy rags.” We are saved by grace and grace alone. When you get that, your actions change. In Jonah’s case it took a pretty big wakeup call to cause a head to heart change but he definitely woke up. In verse 3 we read that Jonah’s response to God the second time around was that he “arose and went.” “Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD."
Obviously he obeyed this time around but something that isn’t so obvious in our English terms is the urgency in which he obeyed. The Hebrew transliteration of the words arose and went is quwm yalak which can also be translated “go now!” There’s a sense of urgency to it…
Have you ever felt that God was telling you to do something and if you didn’t do it right then there was a high probability that you could talk yourself out of it?
In verse 4 it says “Jonah began to go into the city.” The word began in this verse is pretty important. The Hebrew transliteration is chalalbow which can also mean letting loose or untying.
What do you need to let go or loosen so you can begin? So you can go? Maybe it’s your pride? Your need to control? Your security? What’s holding you back when you receive the urgent call to “go now?” To quwm yalak? Jonah had to release what he was holding onto so he could do what God was calling him to do. What are you holding onto?
Continuing in verse 4 when Jonah got to the city he called out, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” That’s 8 words in our English but it’s only 5 in Hebrew. That’s like the shortest sermon ever. The key word for this verse is overthrown. The Hebrew word for overthrow in this context is haphak (hawpak) which can actually be used in two different ways. That word can mean to either overthrow and destroy or to overthrow and change. So Jonah was telling them they had two choices. = To be destroyed or be changed. These choices came with an expiration date of 40 days. That tells me that God’s mercy is a limited time offer. You don’t have forever to turn to Him. The Ninevites knew when their time started and when it would end but you have no way of knowing when your time will expire. None of us is guaranteed tomorrow.
Last week we asked if you were Jonah, if you are running away from God. This week I’m going to ask has God sent you a Jonah? Are you heeding his warning? The choice is yours. You can either walk the road of destruction or you can walk down the road of life. My prayer is that the very warning is the thing that puts you on the path towards life.
So what was the Ninevite’s response to Jonah? Verse 5 says “And the people of Nineveh believed God.” You’ll clearly notice there is no mention of Jonah in that sentence. The people believed God. Our role is to deliver the message but God does the changing.
Continuing in verse 5 “They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them. 6The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, "By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish."
Their actions illustrated their true repentance. The king got off of his throne! He removed his royal robes, put on one of the most itchy materials and then sat in ashes! He even withheld food and drink from the animals!
In verse 10 “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.”
Was God surprised? Was He waiting to see what they would do? Of course not, for God is the same today as He was yesterday, as He will be tomorrow. So what does it mean that God “relented?” It was explained to me that when we're rebelling against God it's like we're trying to walk against the wind but when we turn from our ways and start walking WITH the wind rather than against it, the wind is now with us. When we turn and walk with God, we're no longer fighting against Him.
So far we’ve seen in the book of Jonah a call to change. A call to hear the Gospel. An urgency to take action. I deeply pray for this group. For a stirring to occur. For an urgency to be placed on each one of your hearts to respond to God’s call on your life. As much as we all want Mpact to be a fun place and for you to build close friendships with one another, I can promise you that all these volunteers, myself included, who are in this room, are not here for your entertainment. We’re here to challenge you. To facilitate God’s calling on your life.
So I’m going to ask you, what are you holding onto? What is holding you back? What keeps you from everything God has in store for you? What’s keeping you from the life transforming acceptance of God’s grace?
You don’t have all the time in the world. You have no idea how much time you have. Don’t waste a second more.
Listen here
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
Triumphant Entry - MPact Lesson 3/21/10
I’m really excited to share this lesson with you today. It’s one of those life lessons that the earlier in life you understand and apply, the more fulfilling, hopeful, and joyful your life will be.
So picture this. The people praising Jesus as he rode in on a donkey were desperate for a King. In fact, their crying of Hosanna means to “Save!” or “Please save!” They had been under political oppression by the Romans and they believed that because of a verse in Zechariah 9 Jesus might deliver them from the yoke of Rome and free them from the poverty they were enduring. Let’s look closer at why they thought Jesus was their political savior. Zechariah 9:9 says
They thought because of an interpretation of a scripture in their Bible, the torah (which is our old testament) that Jesus had come to set up a physical throne on earth. In fact, the waving of palm branches, which symbolically conveyed the notion of victory over one’s enemy, further indicated that the people thought that Jesus would then and there bring national deliverance from Israel’s political enemies. Yet Jesus’ popular acclaim would not last; the same people who hailed him as a victor would call for his crucifixion just a few days later.
The answer is pretty simple actually. God IS good and he IS loving. In fact, through those seemingly reasonable requests we’re actually seeking things like love, acceptance, importance, and companionship. Because he is good and loving God provides all those things for us through a relationship with him and additionally through relationships with others but if he tells us “No, I’m not going to meet that need in the way you’re asking” we’ve gotta realize something that so many refuse to accept.
He is God. You are not.
Even though it’s a natural time in your life to seek independence some of you were thrust into independence because a parent let you down, because you had to grow up faster than you should have.
To be honest, whether you’ve been let down and found yourself unwillingly in a position to rely on yourself or you’re just hungry, chomping at the bit for your freedom, this is not the time to transfer the dependence you once had on your parents to dependence on yourself.
For some of you this is just a reminder. For others, you may have never been told that you can depend on God. And for some, you’ve been told but you don’t believe it. All you know is a God who seems unreasonable, who doesn’t take care of you like you think you need to be taken care of, a God who doesn’t answer your prayer like you think he should. After all you’re being reasonable…
In fact there was something I wanted sooooo bad a few years ago. It was my deepest desire and I prayed “God please please please and if your answer is no give me peace!” Every time another month would go by and my prayer went unanswered I was heartbroken. I remember specifically driving in my car asking God rather adamantly “Where’s my peace!?!”
I remember him specifically answering “You don’t have peace because you’re not asking for the right thing.”
It dawned on me. I had been asking God to “gimme gimme gimme and if I don’t get my way make me ok with it” NOT “God you know my deepest desires and longings. You know how bad I want this but God more than anything I want what you want WHEN you want it because your ways are not my ways. Your plans are not my plans and anything you have planned for me is better than anything I could possibly plan for myself. God I trust you with my desires and I ultimately want what you have planned for me”
There was my peace…
While waiting for him to fulfill my request, the desires I had didn’t go away but the priority they had in my life changed. God’s plans for me ranked higher. I got over myself and I found peace and I had hope in his plans.
So how do we know when we’ve begun to accept the truth that He is God and we are NOT??
When we begin to shift from OUR plans for God to God’s plans for us.
The difference for me though, I had been armed with the truth that God is good ALL the time, even when I don’t understand what’s going on. His words and promises are trustworthy. Get that with me. He can be trusted based on what He has said.
How do you know your trust, dependence, and expectations have shifted??
When we begin to want most what God has already offered us.
Do you have any idea what God has offered you? What you have already been promised? I can tell you all day how great God is and how he’s promised you good things but some of you will need to see it for yourself. He clearly tells us in the Bible who he is and what he’s promised.
Here are just a few characteristics of the God you can place your trust in.
I get it. Some of you are really hurt and really mad and you probably have a lot of legitimate reasons. But I’m going to be pretty blunt here. You are just a human being. You are finite. You don’t know it all and even if you’ll admit that, you probably wouldn’t admit that maybe you don’t even always know what’s best for you.
I went for a hike in Memorial Park a couple of weeks ago. I went down a trail that I had no idea how long it was or where it would take me. As I was walking along listening to my music, talking to God I got to thinking how even though I don’t really know what I’m doing or where I’m going,
So often in my life I’ve gone down a path and he’s given me clear markers
When I’m actively seeking his direction for my life the signs can be pretty obvious.
Now before the other leaders in the room start feeling anxious that I’m about to fill you with the false hope that placing your faith and trust in Jesus means you won’t ever have problems, that life will always go smoothly, and fear they’ll have to spend the majority of your time during small group un-teaching what I’m about to tell you, let me clearly state, for the record, that is absolutely not the case. You will have trials, obstacles, pain, heartache, and disappointment. But I can guarantee that applying this principle will ensure no matter what life throws your way you will have a constant source of joy and hope.
Sound good? Let’s get started then…
I want you to go back with me to the time Jesus walked the earth. If you have your Bibles with you, turn to Mark 11:1-11
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, “Why are you doing this?” tell him, “The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.” They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, some people standing there asked “What are you doing, untying that colt?” They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the kingdom of our father David!” “Hosanna in the highest!” Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.
Rejoice O greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
This is a story of unmet expectations. The people clearly thought they needed a political king. I mean it makes sense doesn’t it? They were under great oppression by Rome and God had promised to provide them a king. They expected God to bring them a physical king like the other nations had. God even went as far as to specifically say how this delivering king would make his entrance! They believed they knew what they needed and their plans seemed reasonable enough.
But God didn’t deliver like they expected him to. It wasn’t that He misled the people, quite the contrary actually. One commentary I was reading explained that throughout the book of Mark there are at least 9 examples of Jesus going out of his way to correct these incorrect expectations and interpretations. Multiple times he commanded secrecy in regards to his miracles in order to avoid a popular movement that would make him into a political “freedom fighter” and subsequently blocking his path to suffering and dying to save his people. They thought the fulfillment of God’s promise to them would be seen in the defeat of Rome but we know now that it was fulfilled though the defeat of Satan, sin, and death.
When their expectations weren’t met they called for his death. Seems rather harsh but really the reaction of anger and rejection isn’t all that far off from how we can react when God doesn’t answer our prayers like we think he should.
So here’s the big question of the day.
How are you going to react when you realize that God does not intend to answer your petitions and request the way you think they should be answered?
How often do we bring our plans before God and proclaim “Here ya go God! I have GREAT plans for you!” only after what seems to be silence begin to ask “Where is He” “He just doesn’t get it does He?”
Your plans and requests probably aren’t unreasonable. They may even make a lot of sense and seem like smart, responsible requests such as,
- Wanting the parent that isn’t behaving as a parent to be the parent that they’re supposed to be
- Wanting to make the dance or sports team you’ve worked so hard for
- Wanting admittance to the college you really want to attend
- Wanting the relationship you’re in to work out
- Wanting someone that’s sick that you love to be healed
- Wanting your parent to quickly find a new job to replace the one they lost
- Wanting peace and the pain you’re feeling to go away
- Wanting to be loved, desired, and cared for
Like I said, reasonable right? And since God is a loving God why wouldn’t he answer such reasonable requests in the way you think he should?
The answer is pretty simple actually. God IS good and he IS loving. In fact, through those seemingly reasonable requests we’re actually seeking things like love, acceptance, importance, and companionship. Because he is good and loving God provides all those things for us through a relationship with him and additionally through relationships with others but if he tells us “No, I’m not going to meet that need in the way you’re asking” we’ve gotta realize something that so many refuse to accept.
He is God. You are not.
It seems obvious but our actions and decisions often show us who the god in our life is really is. This can especially be challenging as you find yourselves in a stage in life where you’re gaining more independence, getting to know who you are, how you think, and what you believe. You’re in a place in your life where you want to make your own decisions, where you want to take control of things.
Even though it’s a natural time in your life to seek independence some of you were thrust into independence because a parent let you down, because you had to grow up faster than you should have.
To be honest, whether you’ve been let down and found yourself unwillingly in a position to rely on yourself or you’re just hungry, chomping at the bit for your freedom, this is not the time to transfer the dependence you once had on your parents to dependence on yourself.
The joy and fulfillment and hope I was talking about earlier, is only found in complete dependence on the one true God.
For some of you this is just a reminder. For others, you may have never been told that you can depend on God. And for some, you’ve been told but you don’t believe it. All you know is a God who seems unreasonable, who doesn’t take care of you like you think you need to be taken care of, a God who doesn’t answer your prayer like you think he should. After all you’re being reasonable…
And that makes you mad.
I get it. I get being frustrated with God over my reasonableness and deepest desires and God’s seemingly all too silent response.
In fact there was something I wanted sooooo bad a few years ago. It was my deepest desire and I prayed “God please please please and if your answer is no give me peace!” Every time another month would go by and my prayer went unanswered I was heartbroken. I remember specifically driving in my car asking God rather adamantly “Where’s my peace!?!”
I remember him specifically answering “You don’t have peace because you’re not asking for the right thing.”
It dawned on me. I had been asking God to “gimme gimme gimme and if I don’t get my way make me ok with it” NOT “God you know my deepest desires and longings. You know how bad I want this but God more than anything I want what you want WHEN you want it because your ways are not my ways. Your plans are not my plans and anything you have planned for me is better than anything I could possibly plan for myself. God I trust you with my desires and I ultimately want what you have planned for me”
There was my peace…
And you know what? He not only gave me peace AND hope, but in that particular situation, 3 months later he answered my prayer.
While waiting for him to fulfill my request, the desires I had didn’t go away but the priority they had in my life changed. God’s plans for me ranked higher. I got over myself and I found peace and I had hope in his plans.
So how do we know when we’ve begun to accept the truth that He is God and we are NOT??
When we begin to shift from OUR plans for God to God’s plans for us.
The difference for me though, I had been armed with the truth that God is good ALL the time, even when I don’t understand what’s going on. His words and promises are trustworthy. Get that with me. He can be trusted based on what He has said.
How do you know your trust, dependence, and expectations have shifted??
When we begin to want most what God has already offered us.
Do you have any idea what God has offered you? What you have already been promised? I can tell you all day how great God is and how he’s promised you good things but some of you will need to see it for yourself. He clearly tells us in the Bible who he is and what he’s promised.
Here are just a few characteristics of the God you can place your trust in.
- Compassionate (2 Corinthians 1:3, 1 Peter 5:7)
- Powerful (Psalm 93:1-2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Ephesians 6:10)
- Ever Present (Hebrews 13:5-6, Matthew 28:20)
- Loving (John 3:16, Romans 5:8, 1 John 4:9-10)
- Approving (John 6:27, Colossians 3:3)
- Listening (Psalm 55:17)
- Awesome Protector (Exodus 15:11. Psalm 99:3)
- Victorious (Zephaniah 3:17, Romans 8:37)
- Honorable (Philippians 2:9)
- Good (Psalm 34:8, Psalm 106:1)
- Just (Deuteronomy 32:4, Romans 2:11 )
- Forgiving (Psalm 103:10-12, Hebrews 10:17)
- Protective (Psalm 91, Psalm 118: 6-9, 2 Thessalonians 3:3)
- Sufficient (2 Corinthians 9:8, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Ephesians 3:20)
- Kind (Psalm 103:13, Romans 2:4, Ephesians 1:5)
- Faithful (Numbers 23:19, Psalm 89:1-2, 5, Lamentations 3:23)
He has promised you such GOOD things. You know our heart has shifted from trusting in ourselves to trusting in Him when we are convinced that God only does us good and we want HIS good for us no matter what that means!
I’ve been attending a Beth Moore Bible study on Tuesday nights and 2 weeks ago she reminded me just how good God is. Let’s see what the Bible says about God’s goodness.
- Romans 12:2 reminds us that God’s will for us is good.
- Philippians 2: 13 tells us that God’s purpose for us is good.
- Philippians 1:6 says God’s work in us is good.
- 2 Thessalonians 2:16 says The hope God has given us is good.
- Ephesians 2:10 tells us The works God created us for are good.
- James 3:17 says The fruit God produces in us is good.
- James 1:16 says The gifts God gives us are good.
- Hebrews 13:21 says Indeed, God equips us with everything good.
- And finally, Romans 8:28 promises God works all things together in our lives for good!
God is GOOD ya’ll!
I get it. Some of you are really hurt and really mad and you probably have a lot of legitimate reasons. But I’m going to be pretty blunt here. You are just a human being. You are finite. You don’t know it all and even if you’ll admit that, you probably wouldn’t admit that maybe you don’t even always know what’s best for you.
I went for a hike in Memorial Park a couple of weeks ago. I went down a trail that I had no idea how long it was or where it would take me. As I was walking along listening to my music, talking to God I got to thinking how even though I don’t really know what I’m doing or where I’m going,
I know God certainly does.
So often in my life I’ve gone down a path and he’s given me clear markers
When I’m actively seeking his direction for my life the signs can be pretty obvious.
Sometimes I’m walking along and the signs are a little less obvious
BUT if I’m actively engaged in listening and knowing God my father, what may confuse some people might not confuse me and I keep going, trusting that I’m to continue on the path he started me on.
Sometimes the path can be a little messy and unpleasant even
But that’s just part of the journey and backs up the claim found in Romans 5:3-4.
We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.
Through our suffering we can obtain hope found through a personal faith in Jesus.
Maybe you’ve had the wrong idea about God. Maybe you’ve thought of him as some sort of genie that grants your wishes. And when he doesn’t you get mad because he‘s let you down. Maybe you’ve thought of him as the way to get to heaven but you’ve never sought out a relationship with him or even fathomed letting him have control of your life. Maybe some of you have never even heard that God is good, that he loves you, that he has plans for you, that he desires a relationship with you, or that he’s offered to wipe your slate clean and give you an undeserving grace and eternal life.
So what is God’s response to us as believer’s when we’ve failed him, when we’ve treated him like a genie, when we’ve gotten mad, when we’ve accepted him as Savior but not Lord of our life? James 4:6 tells us that he gives us more grace.
Do ya’ll know what grace is? Grace is getting something good that you don’t deserve. It’s like being on a team and getting a trophy at the end of the season just for playing, not because you did anything to earn it.
What should our response be to God once we know the truth and the error of our ways? What should our response be once we’ve finally heard about the king who humbled himself by riding on a donkey as a precursor to his death? A death and subsequent resurrection just so he could claim his place on the throne of our hearts? Our response should be one of humbleness and repentance. (To repent is to make a change.)
If anyone has any questions about what you’ve just heard, would like to take the step today to make Jesus lord of your life, or if you need prayer, I encourage you to talk to me or your leader.
Friends and Influence - MPact Lesson January 2010
We all want friends. We all want to fit in, be accepted, to feel important. Friendships are vital to who we are and we want them so bad that we may even settle. I know I did. I dated a boy who I thought I could influence but he ended up influencing me. I made choices I never thought I would make to be accepted by him.
I never set out to toss my ideals and values out the window. But when I allowed others to influence my decisions… When it was a choice between living and sleeping with him or not being with him… when I decided it was better to compromise who I was and to blatantly sin against my parents and God… Well I am living proof that the people who have your heart influence you.
King Solomon was no different. If you’re unfamiliar with King Solomon he was the smartest guy in the entire Bible. He’s the one that asked God for wisdom and God gave it to him.
Even with all this wisdom Solomon didn’t always make smart decisions. You know, sometimes you have enough wisdom to know what choice you should make but for one reason or another you chose to do the opposite.
Maybe one reason is influence?
Solomon surrounded himself with people who pulled his heart away from God. The Bible says it this way – “For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and did not wholly follow the LORD, as David his father had done.” 1 Kings 11:4-6
Do you believe that’s the legacy Solomon intended to leave? I would imagine that Solomon had every intention of following after God with his whole heart but because he was not intentional about whom he allowed to have influence over him, God lost His rightful place in Solomon’s life.
Like Solomon, the people closest to you, the people who have your heart, you mind, your ears, are the people who speak into your life. And their words, their attitudes and their actions affect you – either in a good way or a bad way.
Our wise friend Solomon later left us some tasty nuggets in the book of Proverbs. I would imagine, knowing what we know about him, these wise sayings were lessons he had to learn the hard way.
He likely had people pointing out the obvious, speaking truth in order to protect or warn him, much like what I’m doing for ya’ll now, but like the rest of us, Solomon didn’t heed their advice either until it was too late.
Solomon failed to be intentional about who he allowed to be close to him. Looking back I can see how truly unintentional I was about who I allowed to influence my life. My life finally got so bad, I was finally so broken, I ended up in a place where I didn’t even recognize myself.
I wanted so desperate to be loved. To be accepted. To belong. To feel important. I wanted to be liked.
Not only did I seek out fulfillment of those needs outside of Christ but instead I sought out fellowship with people who didn’t even know Christ. People who didn’t give me Godly counsel, if they were even there to give me counsel at all.
They weren’t bad people but they weren’t my friends either.
The Bible describes a friend as someone who will help and encourage us. As someone who is willing to experience loss for us. Other attributes of a friend are humbleness, gentleness, patience, bearing each other’s burdens, to name a few.
My friends were girls that dated my ex-boyfriends. They were girls who couldn’t be happy when I was blessed. They were friends that stabbed me in the back when I needed them most. They were friends who said “If Christie needs me she’ll call me.”
God is a gracious God though and I do believe He truly knows what’s best for us. There was a period in my life where God allowed my past and my life to be purged and cleansed.
It was like he hit “ctrl + alt + delete” and rebooted my whole system.
It was one of those things… that if my entire system hadn’t locked up on me I wouldn’t have restarted my life.
But thank God He’s God and I’m not. About 2 years ago I had a very defining moment and I saw God removing my friends from my life. While my whole world was changing there was definitely a period where I was LONELY.
For about a year I could count on 1 hand the number of people that were actively involved in my life during that period and that number is less than 5 and includes both my parents. Now God is so big and so powerful that He could have literally lead new friends to show up on my doorstep but I believe often God intends for us to take action when He is executing His plan for our life. Jesus may have healed the paralytic in Mark chapter 2 but the paralytic still had to get up and walk.
And that’s what I did for a whole year. I got up and I walked. I walked into a new church without the comfort of knowing my family was going to be there. I walked up to the MPact table on a First Serve Sunday and volunteered, not knowing a single person in the area where I was volunteering. I walked into houses after Hurricane Ike with strangers to help other strangers begin to recover. I walked into GroupLink and signed up for my first small group then followed through by walking into a strangers home to study the Bible with even more strangers!
Each time I took a walk into uncharted territory I grew. I grew in my self-confidence. I grew in my walk with God. I grew in my faith.
I knew I was growing but my heart wanted more. I wanted a peer!
Dictionary.com defines peer as “a person who is equal to another in abilities, qualifications, age, background, and social status.”
I wanted a friend like me!
I’d like to read you an excerpt I wrote in my prayer journal almost 1 year ago to the day –
“I want to break out of my comfort zone and meet friends so I can BE a friend. But I don't want to have just any friends. I pray for companions who are real people with real flaws but have a hunger and thirst that they know can only be quenched by God. I want a girlfriend who is human like me but knows of God's abundant love and grace. I pray for God to send someone in my life that is an encourager, a counterpart, trustworthy, safe, compassionate, supportive, and FUN. Someone I can have girl’s nights and meet up at coffee shops and just hang out and talk about girl stuff!”
That was my prayer and what I was looking for in a Godly peer. The next day an old friend contacted me out the blue and asked me to dinner. Remember I had been LONELY for almost a year. This was huge for me. This was an all out miracle. I knew God was listening.
Now I don’t believe God’s a genie that’s here to grant my wishes. I don’t make it a habit to make up a list of things I want God to provide me. But Psalm 37:4 says “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Here’s the thing... All that walking I was doing… I was walking out my faith and honoring God, delighting myself in Him, by serving others. And when you’re taking delight in God and seeking Him, then guess what, my heart desired the right things! My heart desired what He wanted for me!
I was praying for a friend that I could share Biblical community. The Bible is very clear about whom we should and shouldn’t allow ourselves to get close to. Proverbs 12:26 says “A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray” Proverbs 22:24-25 says “Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.” 1 Corinthians 15:33 says “Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals” So perhaps when I was praying to meet friends so I could BE a friend, I was making the right request…
When I asked for companions who have a hunger and thirst that they know can only be quenched by God, again, perhaps I was asking for the right thing.
When I asked for a friend who is human like me but knows of God's abundant love and grace and for God to send someone in my life that is an encourager, a counterpart, trustworthy, safe, compassionate, and supportive maybe just maybe God had been waiting for me to come to a point that I didn’t want to settle for just ANY friend. I believe my heart was finally in a place where I was ready to be intentional about the people I surrounded myself with. I actually didn’t realize it at the time but in hindsight my heart desired exactly the kind of friend the Bible describes.
True to His word, two months later He not only granted but he exceeded the desires of my heart by providing me wonderful Godly girlfriends like Taryn and Angie.
Who has your heart today? Is it your friends? Is it God?
Perhaps you’re where I was a year ago. Lonely. You feel like you have no one, nevertheless Godly friends. Maybe you feel hopeless. I want to challenge you to start walking. Get up and move. Get out of your comfort zone and get involved.
What does that look like? Maybe that means regularly attending your weekly small group in order to cultivate genuine relationships with peers who love Jesus. Maybe that means finding a ministry in church where you can volunteer. Outside of CCCC, there are other ministries like Young Life and Fellowship of Christian Athletes that might offer great resources for meeting people like you, who love God and are looking for a friend.
Here’s the thing, if you’re sitting at home waiting for someone to show up at your door and you love Jesus then ask yourself how bright are you shining your light? Maybe you have to walk for a year too before you see the fruits of your labor but I promise you, you’re not wasting time and God has not left you. Just keep seeking God first and He’ll take care of the rest.
On the flip-side, maybe you’ve realized the people you’ve been surrounding yourself with are people not worthy of imitation. But maybe you’re too scared to walk away from what you know. At least you have people to hang out with. At least you’re not “lonely.”
I want to encourage you too to start walking. Walk away. Let it go. Change. Matthew 10:39 says that if you hold onto your life you will lose it but to let it go is to find it.
I was having a really great conversation on Facebook the other day on that very topic, letting go of something we see valuable in order to gain the best of what God intends for us. I’d like to quote something Rusty said because I think he explained what I’m talking about better than I could.
“I think that God speaks to our hearts and shows us areas of our lives that need to be cleaned out. Many times if we are stubborn and not willing to make sacrifices we leave ourselves open to more brokenness. God will continue to break you down until he gets you to that point of complete surrender. God is very persistent and He will continue to break us until he gets us where He wants us. [That is], completely dependent on Him and His will for our lives and willing to give anything up in order to be obedient and trusting in Him for our destiny and all our needs.”
Oh how God sweetly breaks us to draw us closer to him.
If your friends aren’t worth imitating maybe it’s time to create some distance. Maybe you’ve known for a while now your relationships are the very thing holding you back from the intimate relationship with God He so desires.
If you’re feeling tension deep down inside right now, pay attention to it.
Additionally, until you begin to back away from some of your more unhealthy relationships, you will never have the time and energy to find the good friendships that God wants for you.
As we move into our small groups, begin to ask yourself these questions:
I never set out to toss my ideals and values out the window. But when I allowed others to influence my decisions… When it was a choice between living and sleeping with him or not being with him… when I decided it was better to compromise who I was and to blatantly sin against my parents and God… Well I am living proof that the people who have your heart influence you.
King Solomon was no different. If you’re unfamiliar with King Solomon he was the smartest guy in the entire Bible. He’s the one that asked God for wisdom and God gave it to him.
Even with all this wisdom Solomon didn’t always make smart decisions. You know, sometimes you have enough wisdom to know what choice you should make but for one reason or another you chose to do the opposite.
Maybe one reason is influence?
Solomon surrounded himself with people who pulled his heart away from God. The Bible says it this way – “For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and did not wholly follow the LORD, as David his father had done.” 1 Kings 11:4-6
Do you believe that’s the legacy Solomon intended to leave? I would imagine that Solomon had every intention of following after God with his whole heart but because he was not intentional about whom he allowed to have influence over him, God lost His rightful place in Solomon’s life.
Like Solomon, the people closest to you, the people who have your heart, you mind, your ears, are the people who speak into your life. And their words, their attitudes and their actions affect you – either in a good way or a bad way.
Our wise friend Solomon later left us some tasty nuggets in the book of Proverbs. I would imagine, knowing what we know about him, these wise sayings were lessons he had to learn the hard way.
He likely had people pointing out the obvious, speaking truth in order to protect or warn him, much like what I’m doing for ya’ll now, but like the rest of us, Solomon didn’t heed their advice either until it was too late.
Solomon failed to be intentional about who he allowed to be close to him. Looking back I can see how truly unintentional I was about who I allowed to influence my life. My life finally got so bad, I was finally so broken, I ended up in a place where I didn’t even recognize myself.
I wanted so desperate to be loved. To be accepted. To belong. To feel important. I wanted to be liked.
Not only did I seek out fulfillment of those needs outside of Christ but instead I sought out fellowship with people who didn’t even know Christ. People who didn’t give me Godly counsel, if they were even there to give me counsel at all.
They weren’t bad people but they weren’t my friends either.
The Bible describes a friend as someone who will help and encourage us. As someone who is willing to experience loss for us. Other attributes of a friend are humbleness, gentleness, patience, bearing each other’s burdens, to name a few.
My friends were girls that dated my ex-boyfriends. They were girls who couldn’t be happy when I was blessed. They were friends that stabbed me in the back when I needed them most. They were friends who said “If Christie needs me she’ll call me.”
God is a gracious God though and I do believe He truly knows what’s best for us. There was a period in my life where God allowed my past and my life to be purged and cleansed.
It was like he hit “ctrl + alt + delete” and rebooted my whole system.
It was one of those things… that if my entire system hadn’t locked up on me I wouldn’t have restarted my life.
But thank God He’s God and I’m not. About 2 years ago I had a very defining moment and I saw God removing my friends from my life. While my whole world was changing there was definitely a period where I was LONELY.
For about a year I could count on 1 hand the number of people that were actively involved in my life during that period and that number is less than 5 and includes both my parents. Now God is so big and so powerful that He could have literally lead new friends to show up on my doorstep but I believe often God intends for us to take action when He is executing His plan for our life. Jesus may have healed the paralytic in Mark chapter 2 but the paralytic still had to get up and walk.
And that’s what I did for a whole year. I got up and I walked. I walked into a new church without the comfort of knowing my family was going to be there. I walked up to the MPact table on a First Serve Sunday and volunteered, not knowing a single person in the area where I was volunteering. I walked into houses after Hurricane Ike with strangers to help other strangers begin to recover. I walked into GroupLink and signed up for my first small group then followed through by walking into a strangers home to study the Bible with even more strangers!
Each time I took a walk into uncharted territory I grew. I grew in my self-confidence. I grew in my walk with God. I grew in my faith.
I knew I was growing but my heart wanted more. I wanted a peer!
Dictionary.com defines peer as “a person who is equal to another in abilities, qualifications, age, background, and social status.”
I wanted a friend like me!
I’d like to read you an excerpt I wrote in my prayer journal almost 1 year ago to the day –
“I want to break out of my comfort zone and meet friends so I can BE a friend. But I don't want to have just any friends. I pray for companions who are real people with real flaws but have a hunger and thirst that they know can only be quenched by God. I want a girlfriend who is human like me but knows of God's abundant love and grace. I pray for God to send someone in my life that is an encourager, a counterpart, trustworthy, safe, compassionate, supportive, and FUN. Someone I can have girl’s nights and meet up at coffee shops and just hang out and talk about girl stuff!”
That was my prayer and what I was looking for in a Godly peer. The next day an old friend contacted me out the blue and asked me to dinner. Remember I had been LONELY for almost a year. This was huge for me. This was an all out miracle. I knew God was listening.
Now I don’t believe God’s a genie that’s here to grant my wishes. I don’t make it a habit to make up a list of things I want God to provide me. But Psalm 37:4 says “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Here’s the thing... All that walking I was doing… I was walking out my faith and honoring God, delighting myself in Him, by serving others. And when you’re taking delight in God and seeking Him, then guess what, my heart desired the right things! My heart desired what He wanted for me!
I was praying for a friend that I could share Biblical community. The Bible is very clear about whom we should and shouldn’t allow ourselves to get close to. Proverbs 12:26 says “A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray” Proverbs 22:24-25 says “Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.” 1 Corinthians 15:33 says “Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals” So perhaps when I was praying to meet friends so I could BE a friend, I was making the right request…
When I asked for companions who have a hunger and thirst that they know can only be quenched by God, again, perhaps I was asking for the right thing.
When I asked for a friend who is human like me but knows of God's abundant love and grace and for God to send someone in my life that is an encourager, a counterpart, trustworthy, safe, compassionate, and supportive maybe just maybe God had been waiting for me to come to a point that I didn’t want to settle for just ANY friend. I believe my heart was finally in a place where I was ready to be intentional about the people I surrounded myself with. I actually didn’t realize it at the time but in hindsight my heart desired exactly the kind of friend the Bible describes.
True to His word, two months later He not only granted but he exceeded the desires of my heart by providing me wonderful Godly girlfriends like Taryn and Angie.
Who has your heart today? Is it your friends? Is it God?
Perhaps you’re where I was a year ago. Lonely. You feel like you have no one, nevertheless Godly friends. Maybe you feel hopeless. I want to challenge you to start walking. Get up and move. Get out of your comfort zone and get involved.
What does that look like? Maybe that means regularly attending your weekly small group in order to cultivate genuine relationships with peers who love Jesus. Maybe that means finding a ministry in church where you can volunteer. Outside of CCCC, there are other ministries like Young Life and Fellowship of Christian Athletes that might offer great resources for meeting people like you, who love God and are looking for a friend.
Here’s the thing, if you’re sitting at home waiting for someone to show up at your door and you love Jesus then ask yourself how bright are you shining your light? Maybe you have to walk for a year too before you see the fruits of your labor but I promise you, you’re not wasting time and God has not left you. Just keep seeking God first and He’ll take care of the rest.
On the flip-side, maybe you’ve realized the people you’ve been surrounding yourself with are people not worthy of imitation. But maybe you’re too scared to walk away from what you know. At least you have people to hang out with. At least you’re not “lonely.”
I want to encourage you too to start walking. Walk away. Let it go. Change. Matthew 10:39 says that if you hold onto your life you will lose it but to let it go is to find it.
I was having a really great conversation on Facebook the other day on that very topic, letting go of something we see valuable in order to gain the best of what God intends for us. I’d like to quote something Rusty said because I think he explained what I’m talking about better than I could.
“I think that God speaks to our hearts and shows us areas of our lives that need to be cleaned out. Many times if we are stubborn and not willing to make sacrifices we leave ourselves open to more brokenness. God will continue to break you down until he gets you to that point of complete surrender. God is very persistent and He will continue to break us until he gets us where He wants us. [That is], completely dependent on Him and His will for our lives and willing to give anything up in order to be obedient and trusting in Him for our destiny and all our needs.”
Oh how God sweetly breaks us to draw us closer to him.
If your friends aren’t worth imitating maybe it’s time to create some distance. Maybe you’ve known for a while now your relationships are the very thing holding you back from the intimate relationship with God He so desires.
If you’re feeling tension deep down inside right now, pay attention to it.
Additionally, until you begin to back away from some of your more unhealthy relationships, you will never have the time and energy to find the good friendships that God wants for you.
As we move into our small groups, begin to ask yourself these questions:
- What direction are your closest friends taking you?
- If you keep heading in that direction, will you end up where you want to be?
- What action do you need to take to get your friendships in a place where you are surrounded by people who better you and your character?
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