Sometimes You Have To Be Selfish..

Recently I was reminded by a good friend of mind, a prayer I prayed over him at Summer Camp...
Sometimes during the moment of prayer the holy spirit begins to speak with you and as a Pastor
you can sometimes forget the things you say.

I believe that happens because the bible says that the holy spirit is interceding for us, that he helps us
know what to pray for and how to do it. Anways, going back to what was said during this prayer I
mentioned how we as people in and of the church can get caught up in doing everything, working,
being prepared, talking to people, working at various tasks and we can overlook ourselves.

So, during this prayer I said something along the lines of "Sometimes you just have to get selfish..."
I honestly don't even remember what else I said as I mentioned, my friend reminded me of this, but
what I was speaking was the simple fact as Christians, as Pastors and as Individuals sometimes we
have to become selfish in our own walk, in our needs and in our own spirituality.

You see for me this really begin to hit home after my friend reminded me of this. Because as a youth pastor, husband, graphic designer, worship leader and all the other things and titles that fall under my name, I
sometimes find myself too busy! Too busy to take the extra time to talk to God during the day for me, for
my family, for my wife, for my personal walk.

It's something I believe the church world really deals with and is very relevant, so therefore I am tossing around the idea of writing a book about it. It may never happen but I know for a fact that we as Christians and those who are Pastors, don't really take the time that we need to, for our selves.

Don't get me wrong, every morning I wake up, throw some Praise & Worship on, I begin to pray, but I don't pray for my stuff. I pray for the church, our pastors, I pray for services, staff, people who are in the hospital, but so many times I can honestly say that I don't get selfish!

In fact its rare for me to get selfish... Can anyone else relate with that?

Maybe it's because normally at church, I'm on the stage, leading in some manner...
Maybe it's because I'm praying for someone else or I'm doing some important task for the service...
Maybe it's because I want people to know that we love them and I'm out in the crowd welcoming people
to the church...

Whatever my excuse is, whatever your excuse is, it's time that we get selfish...
It's time that we fill ourselves backup, so we can continue to pour out into others lives!
God has really spoken to me this wekk and reminded me that it's okay to get selfish, it's okay to get what
I need from him, I'm still going to be a youth pastor afterwards, i'm still going to fufill his will in my life...

So, today as I share these thoughts with you and as my good friend Monroe reminded me this past weekend, that it's okay for us to get selfish...

So, take some time for yourself, get alone with God, get alone and worship, pray and medidate on God,
Get Selfish!

Matthew 11:28-30 in the Message translation says “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Think BIG

One of the things I love most about God is the fact that he really knows me. He isn't just some supreme being that hangs out in heaven and some times pays attention to all the thing happening down here in my life. He loves us enough to really know us. He knows every detail of our lives and our innermost thoughts. He cares enough about us to have detailed plans for our futures. He has big hopes for our lives.

Even before we were were born God had a purpose and a plan for our lives. We had value and worth in Him even before we ever did anything. God has big thoughts for us. He wants to use us to accomplish His purpose and plan for our life. The most exciting part for us, is discovering what God created us to do and become. He places passions in our lives for a reason. He gives us dreams and interests for a reason. We are all good at different things for a reason. 

Frequently, the only thing that limits God's plan for our lives, is us thinking we aren't good enough. Us thinking he doesn't know what he is doing. Or us deciding that we couldn't ever actually fulfill all the awesome things God places in our hearts. 

In the bible, great men had trouble with the idea that God could work through them. They felt insignificant or incapable of accomplishing big things because of their past, or their insecurities. Then God came along, and reminded them of all the things he placed in their hearts, and all the thoughts and dreams he had already dreamed for them. Moses was a great example of something we all go through, the fear of what might happen if we allow God to take us everywhere he wants to go. 

Exodus 3:1-12

The Message (MSG)

Moses was shepherding the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the west end of the wilderness and came to the mountain of God, Horeb. The angel of God appeared to him in flames of fire blazing out of the middle of a bush. He looked. The bush was blazing away but it didn’t burn up.

Moses said, “What’s going on here? I can’t believe this! Amazing! Why doesn’t the bush burn up?”

God saw that he had stopped to look. God called to him from out of the bush, “Moses! Moses!”

He said, “Yes? I’m right here!”

God said, “Don’t come any closer. Remove your sandals from your feet. You’re standing on holy ground.”

Then he said, “I am the God of your father: The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob.”

Moses hid his face, afraid to look at God.

God said, “I’ve taken a good, long look at the affliction of my people in Egypt. I’ve heard their cries for deliverance from their slave masters; I know all about their pain. And now I have come down to help them, pry them loose from the grip of Egypt, get them out of that country and bring them to a good land with wide-open spaces, a land lush with milk and honey, the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite.

“The Israelite cry for help has come to me, and I’ve seen for myself how cruelly they’re being treated by the Egyptians. It’s time for you to go back: I’m sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the People of Israel, out of Egypt.”

Moses answered God, “But why me? What makes you think that I could ever go to Pharaoh and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt?”

I'll be with you,” God said. “And this will be the proof that I am the one who sent you: When you have brought my people out of Egypt, you will worship God right here at this very mountain.”

God's plan for us is big, and sometimes a little intimidating. It is supposed to be. God doesn't want us to be able to accomplish it without him. But he does promise us that he will be with us in the midst of everything. He will be there to prove he sent us and help us accomplish big things in his name. What are some things God has put on your heart to do? Today is the day to get started! He will be there with you in the midst of it!

Complaceny (Part 1)

Complacent is defined as;

Pleased, especially with oneself or one's merits, advantages, situation, etc., often without awareness of some potential danger or defect.

A feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of some potential danger, defect

Today I feel like God has opened my eyes to the church and their Complacency in our world.

You see, complacency has a good definition and a bad definition.
What I mean is this, it is a good thing for us to feel pleased and be confident with where we are. Security is a great thing for a leader to have, it is a great thing for Christians to have, but the part that alarms me is the end of the definition that states, "...often without awareness of some potential danger or defect" or "...often while unaware of some potential danger, defect".

Unfortunately I feel like the church as a whole is in this dangerous mindset and attitude. We are so comfortable numerically, financially, spiritually and so on and I feel as if we are heading towards danger and defect without being aware of it!

I believe as Christians, we are also in this mindset. Being complacent in our personal walk with Christ.

Today my challenge for you is this;

Get out of the box, do something wild! Yes, wild! Do something with zeal, do something crazy to reach people for Christ, do something that will cause people to talk within the church and outside of the church.

Do this in your personal life as well, find a way to bring that family member to church, find a new way to worship God, find something fresh to focus on when you go to church, try a different bible translation, try sitting in a new place, start praying for your church and pastor before you get to church.

There's alot we could talk about concerning complacency and the fear of where it could lead us. I believe the ultimate reaping of complacency is being lukewarm. And lukewarmness is a very dangerous place to be.

The main point I want to communicate today is this; don't allow yourself to be comfortable with where your at! But keep it real! Keep striving for the best of God. Keep yourself and your church relevant to the world!

If your church isn't growing, change things! If people are getting frustrated change! Be relevant...

(To Be Continued...)

Pastor Phil