ARE YOU A FORGIVING PERSON?

We live in a wonderful yet often painful world. Nothing can totally isolate or insulate us from the disappointments and losses of life. Even good people sometimes experience bad things. In the midst of life’s struggles, we all accept that forgiveness is a good idea. Forgiveness, said one writer, is God’s antidote for bitterness, wrath and anger. But actually acting on that idea is another thing: forgiving is not an easy thing to do. Before we can learn how to be better ‘forgivers’, we need to recognize what forgiveness is not. Forgiveness is not giving approval to what someone else did to you. Nor is it excusing someone else’s mistakes, or trivializing the offense, saying that it doesn’t really matter. Forgiving someone doesn’t mean saying that your feelings are of no importance and it doesn’t mean that you commit yourself to a relationship with that person in the future. Forgiveness is not naive. It does not say ‘I was not hurt, you did not hurt me.’ Forgiveness is very honest. Forgiveness is not easy because it seems to run against every natural human emotion, every natural response. Naturally speaking, we will try to defend ourselves or even to fight back. Forgiveness requires that we move past those basic instincts to something higher.

Ephesians 4:32 ‘Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.’ (NIV)

We forgive not because we don’t feel hurt, or because we don’t have a right to feel offended. We forgive because it is the godly thing to do, and because God forgives us. No matter how great someone’s offense against you, your past offense against God is infinitely greater. And, thank God, he has forgiven you. Letting that awesome power of forgiveness and release run through your heart, like a river through a canyon, is the key to finding lasting peace and closure.

Prayer: ‘Lord, I know that forgiveness is not easy, and it doesn’t feel natural. But I choose to forgive, to allow your releasing power to flow through my heart and mind today. I release others from their debt, because you did that for me. Help me to be a forgiving person.’

WHY IS BOLDNESS SO BEAUTIFUL?

Boldness is Beautiful!

What you can do, or dream you can, begin it; boldness is beautiful, there is power in it. There is a time to wait, the time of soul searching and heavy prayer. But there is also a time for action — for bold, courageous and determined steps into the unknown.

Acts 4:29 ‘Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.’

Boldness unlocks the power of God in our lives like nothing else, because boldness works to release the true power of our inner faith. Without faith we cannot find the favour of God; but without boldness we can never exercise our faith. Without boldness, favour is like a muscle that is never flexed. Without boldness, nobody will ever see the depth and the power of our faith in God — not even us. Faith demands more than giving mental assent to a course of action — it means more than simply saying, ‘Yes God, that seems like a good idea to me…’ Faith must have an outlet in action. Eventually, my faith in a word from God requires that I seize the opportunity he has put before me, without delay.

Sometimes, doors of opportunity are open for only a short space of time. If we fail to make use of them at the right time, they disappear. God is a gracious God and will often give us a second or even a third chance, but he wants us to learn the power of grasping God-given opportunities when they are first given. He wants us to learn the power of decisiveness, because it strips away all insecurity and double-mindedness. The boldness of faith breeds a mind of single focus, and a heart of gritty determination to succeed.

Prayer: ‘Lord, help me to learn how to act at the right time, with boldness. Help me not to delay when you have prepared a path before me.

HOW DO YOU TELL IF YOU ARE HAVING AN IDENTITY CRISIS?

If you and I are ever to achieve something great with our lives in the service of God and other people, we must learn to live off divine revelation, rather than borrowed motivation. Many people prefer to rely on man-made formulas for success instead of relying upon God-inspired strategies.

They imitate, but they don’t initiate. They copy but they don’t create. They never think in an original way, prefering to be spoon fed reading ultra-light motivation books or listening to salesman-like hype that tells them ‘You can do it’ but never quite tells them what it is they can do — or how to do it.

The renowned communication teacher, Howard Hendricks once said: ‘The tombstones of many Christians – including many in positions of leadership – will read, “I came. I saw. I concurred.”‘ So many people, including many Christians, have all the cool and fashionable style in the world, but they lack any real soul! They have cookie cutter lives, with no sense of their own identity. They wear Saul’s armour, going into life’s battles wearing an outfit and carrying armour that they haven’t tested or proven for themselves. If you accept another person’s revelation, you will also inevitably take on his or her limitation. It is not wrong to imitate those you respect and admire. But we should use imitation only as a temporary scaffolding to help us build our own identity.

In Matthew 4:4 ‘Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”‘ (NIV)

Prayer: ‘Father, I know you have a unique plan and purpose for my life. Help me to learn all I can from the people I admire most, but help me not to live off their motivation when you want to give me personal revelation. I want to prove my own identity in you.’

DID YOU KNOW THAT YOUR LIFE CAN IMPACT OTHERS?

Today scientists talk about the so-called Butterfly Effect. The theory goes that the wings of a butterfly beating in one part of the world can actually lead to changes in conditions many hundreds of miles away, even on the other side of the world. Everything in nature is, in some way, connected; every cause has an effect. In the same way, individual choices made by individual people – even insignificant people – can change situations and events, sometimes on a huge scale, and sometimes many miles away or many years into the future.

In John 12:3 we read about someones “butterfly effect”… ‘Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.’ (NIV)

There is no way that Mary, a forgiven sinner, could possibly have foreseen the impact her one simple act of devotion would have on people around her let alone the whole world over. How could she have known, when she walked into that room filled with hostile faces, that her simple but brave act of anointing the feet of Jesus would warmly touch the hearts of shame-filled people of every nation and race? Or that Jesus’ response to her would inspire untold millions to reach out for divine forgiveness, whatever their sin. If your heart is pure toward God, and you do what you do out of devotion to him, you may be surprised how big an impact it will have.

Prayer: ‘Lord Jesus, I love you. Please help me to set in motion good things, simply because I act out of humble devotion to you, with a heart of worship and love.’

CAN YOU PREDICT THE FUTURE?

These days, futurists represent a multi-million dollar industry. These people absorb huge amounts of information about the past and the present in order to suggest predictions about the future. They extrapolate forward to suggest how the past and the present may affect future trends. They charge large corporations tens of thousands of dollars to identify strategic possibilities that might help carry them forward. One leading futurist said this: ‘The important factor to realize is that we know very little about the past, a little more but not everything about the present, and nothing at all about the future.’ Actually, we do know one thing about the future: it is shaped by the choices people make today. The choices you make right now determine not only who and what you will become; they also have a bearing on the destiny of people around you – and especially people who look up to you. We are all carriers of the future, agents of change who leave the world different than how we found it – for better or worse.

1 Corinthians 3:21-23 ‘… All things are yours … whether the world or life or death or the present or the future– all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God.’ (NIV)

Reading and applying God’s Word in our lives allows us to project a better future into our present, to set the train of our thoughts and values on a track that leads to a heavenly future. That is the basis of our unique hope: that is what enables us to strengthen people and point them to a better tomorrow.

Prayer: ‘Lord Jesus, help me today to set myself and others up for a better future, by living out the values of your Holy Word. I know that I am a change agent in this world – so help me to change it for the good, by lining up my actions with your Word.’

ARE YOU A MODERN DAY PROPHET?

Jeremiah 1:17 ‘Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified by them…’ (NIV)

The prophets of the Old Testament were not mountaintop mystics who spent most of their time sitting on a mountaintop, contemplating a blade of grass or ‘the essential oneness of all things’. They didn’t just drift into town with a strong dose of the Holy Ghost shakes and say the first thing that popped into their super-inspired brains.

Most of them were students of history. They were in touch with the roots of their people. They were also students of their own times, in touch with contemporary culture. They were in touch with times in order to be ahead of times. They shared the present experience of their generation in order to shape the future destiny of their generation. God speaks to his people within a certain generation so that they will shape the future in line with the word. We’re certainly not all called or gifted to be prophets, but we can all have a prophetic kind of influence in our world, by the power of the Holy Spirit. The world today desperately needs a prophetic church.

AW Tozer said that a prophetic person is ‘one who knows his times and what God is trying to say to the people of his times… Learning will enable a man to pass judgment on our yesterdays; but it requires a gift of clear seeing to pass sentence on our own day.’

Prayer: ‘Holy Spirit, please help me to speak and live in a prophetic way that really connects and speaks to people in this age. Help me to understand the world in which I live, and to see what you are doing in this age. I want to help shape my generation under you.’

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ARE YOU SEDUCED BY CELEBRITY?

‘We use God’s mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil’s strongholds.’ 2 Corinthians 10:4-5

An invading army cannot co-exist with a stronghold. It’s the same in life. Either we take down the strongholds that threaten us, or the strongholds will take us down.

One of the great strongholds we face today is celebrity.

For as long as human beings have appreciated talent and ability, we’ve had celebrities. In the past, celebrities were people we celebrated because of some great achievement or some admirable quality. Today, a celebrity is often little more than someone who is well known for being well known. Many people are famous just because they are famous, because someone has found the right image for them.

But we should think again about where our culture of celebrity is leading us. Celebrity is built on novelty. When celebs see their star losing its shine, they often turn to shock value to rescue them from obscurity. When something loses its shock value, something more shocking has to take its place – shocks must get more shocking over time.

Celebrity also distorts reality.

Satan has used this ploy to deceive people from the beginning. With Eve, he made the tree seem bigger and God’s command seem smaller. Deception takes root whenever we lose our sense of proportion.

Celebrity is about image. In the end, image is just a poor substitute for what human beings really want — influence! The most impacting man in history, Jesus, wasn’t even interested in fame. Yet no matter how hard you try, you just can’t ignore him or escape his influence.

What does the Bible say about celebrity? Of course, it doesn’t use the word itself. But it does give some pointers as to how we should respond.

The Bible says that only God deserves to be worshipped. In the Old Testament, God forbade his people from building idols of stone or metal. Why? Because he knew that when you build idols you freeze your revelation of God. You say, in effect, ‘This is all that God can be for me.’ You limit God and what he can do in your life — and you reduce yourself and your potential, for you were made in his image.

The Bible also teaches that the road to influence often passes through a town called Obscurity.

John 12: 24 says, ‘Unless a seed falls into the ground and dies it remains alone; but if it dies it brings forth much fruit.’ (NIV) God has put a seed in you. The seed contains the DNA programming for your future. It contains all the godly plans and God-given abilities that will lead you to your true destiny. The seed is not just what is, but what will be. The seed is the future.

There will come a time in your life when God will seem to bury that seed, hiding it from view. It will look like the end of the road for you. You will say, as will others, ‘Where are those gifts that blessed so many? Where is that ministry that showed such promise?’

At this, the most vulnerable and lonely point in your life, your whole future will depend on how you respond. Will you shake your fist at God and determine never again to give him your whole heart? Will you try to find the fulfillment of his promises in lesser things? Or, will you realize, as all great heroes of faith have done, that this is simply a part of God’s preparation?

It is painful when your present blessing is removed; it is even more painful when God seems to bury what you thought was your future. Sometimes, though, God subtracts from your present in order to multiply your future.

Many Christians have only ‘near death’ experiences.

They won’t allow God to complete the work of preparation in their lives. They struggle to be great, when God is first on the side of the small. They admire the mighty, when God first smiles on the weak. They long to be self-sufficient, when God reaches first for needy.

Let God finish his work of preparation, of training, of stretching, so that you’re ready for everything he has lined up for you! Don’t hide behind image, or crave celebrity, when God is building you for long-term, generation-changing influence.

ARE YOU PREPARED TO LIVE WITH INSECURITY?

Hebrews 11:7 ‘By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.’ (NIV)

“When you live by Faith, you are living on the edge of insecurity”

Faith heroes always challenge the the status quo. In one way or another, they are not ‘normal’ by most people’s standards.

God told Noah to build a boat. ‘Great,’ said Noah, ‘what’s a boat?’ ‘You know,’ came the reply, ‘one of those things you use when it rains a lot.’ Noah was excited, but perplexed. ‘Great,’ he said, ‘what’s rain?’ (Genesis says there had never been rain to the point in time.) When God told Noah to build a boat, it wasn’t a balsa-wood boat-in-a-bottle constructed out in the garden shed. Noah built a supermarket-sized boat in his driveway — and several other people’s driveways. It was huge! Tourists came from miles around to take photographs of ‘the fool and his boat’. Noah found favour with God — and saved his family — because he refused to be ruled by popular opinion. God declared a flood to world that had never seen rain — and only Noah was prepared to believe him. Were their moments when Noah felt doubt? Of course. Were there times when Noah wished someone else had received the call? Sure. Nevertheless, Noah was prepared to live with the insecurity and that was what made him a world changer.

Prayer: ‘Dear Father, thank you for the example of people like Noah who are obeyed your call even in the face of ridicule. I want to pursue your call on my life whatever the cost, so please, I pray, trust me, call me afresh even today.’

ARE YOU A DANGEROUS PERSON?

Hebrews 11:33-34 ‘[It was faith people] who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.’ (NIV)

Faith people are dangerous people! They are not people who mirror the status quo: they challenge the way things are and point the way to something better, the Kingdom of God. Sometimes, they are sandpaper that disturbs a complacent world. William & Catherine Booth defied religious convention and brought relief to millions suffering in poverty. They challenged the powers of respectable society.

William Wilberforce, the famed English politician, worked for over a generation to overthrow the practice of slavery in the British Isles. He challenged the powers of trade and commerce that lived off the sweat and suffering of the slaves.

Martin Luther nailed 95 statements to the door of a city church one October morning. His statements called for massive reform of the Catholic Church. He was ex-communicated by the pope and then called to appear before a council of princes. Facing possible death, he ended his defence with this classic statement: ‘I cannot and I will not take back anything. My conscience is bound by the Word of God. Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen.’ He challenged the powers of dead religion — and changed not just the church, but also the world.

Faith people are dangerous people. What ‘damage’ can you do to the Kingdom of darkness today?

Prayer: ‘Lord, help me to be dangerous to the ways of this world. Help me to stand up to the pressures of conformity and complacency. Help me, even today, to do some damage to the Kingdom of darkness, by walking in your light.’