Our Link to the King

Prayer links the King on the Throne with the Church at His footstool.
-- Andrew Murray

‘The Lord says,
“Heaven is My throne.
The earth is My footstool.
What kind of house are you going to build for Me?
Where will I rest?"

-- Acts 7:49

Is prayer the missing link to the King in our lives?
If so, let us pray, now.

Thank you, King Jesus, for linking us to You through prayer.
Grateful

The Secret to Perfect Rest

I've come to realize that entire surrender to Jesus is the secret to perfect rest. Rest for the soul is found in Christ alone. Real soul rest is never found apart from Him.

Deo Volente -- As God Wills!
Grateful

Wait for His Help

So the Lord must wait for you to come to Him
so He can show you His love and compassion.
For the Lord is a faithful God.
Blessed are those who wait for His help.
-- Isaiah 30:18 (NLT)

Wait, trust, hope, and rest in the Lord.
Grateful

His Resting Place

My prayer today is that you will know glorious rest
in the Lord Almighty's presence.
In Jesus' name. Amen.

...and His resting place shall be glorious.
-- From Isaiah 11:10 (ESV)

Holiness unto the LORD!
Grateful

Whatever Circumstance You Are Facing...

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil.
-- Matthew 4:1 (HCS)

If The Holy Spirit is the Source of your life, whatever circumstance you find yourself facing, you can rest in knowing that The Holy Spirit led you up to it and He will also lead you through it.
-- Dr. Stephen Manley (paraphrased)

Come, Holy Spirit, I Need You!
Grateful

Let the Beloved of the Lord Rest...

“Let the beloved of the LORD rest secure in Him,
for He shields Him all day long,
and the one the LORD loves rests between His shoulders.”
-- Deuteronomy 33:12 (NIV)

Holiness Unto the LORD!
Grateful

The Sailor's 23rd Psalm

I was raised on an island where the sea meets the land. The imagery that inspires me most deeply is ocean imagery. I recently found in my research this sailor's paraphrase of the 23rd Psalm. I hope it encourages you as it does me:

The Lord is my Pilot, I shall not drift.
He guides me across the dark waters.
He steers me through deep channels.
He keeps my log.
Yea, though I sail ‘mid the thunders
and tempest of life,
I shall dread no anger, for He is with me;
His love and His care, shelter me.
He prepares a quiet harbor before me.
He anoints the waves with oil
My ship rides calmly.
Surely sunlight and starlight
shall guide me on the voyage I take,
And I will rest in the Heaven's port forever.

Here's a favorite old song of Seaside souls:
Click here: YouTube - Bessie Griffin: Old Ship Of Zion

Peace, be still...
Grateful

God's Word on a Grave Marker in Cairo

Through the night there has been chaos in the streets of Cairo, Egypt. Dangerous political demonstrations are underway in Tahrir Square. Still, there's peace in my heart about it all and the reason for my peace may seem like an unusual reason to some. You see, Rev. Oswald Chambers, author or My Utmost for His Highest, died in Cairo, Egypt while serving as a chaplain to the British troops who were stationed there in World War I. Brother Oswald was buried in The Old Cairo Cemetery and his grave was (and still is to this day) simply marked with a white cross-engraved headstone. Luke 11:13 from God's Holy Word is also profoundly inscribed at the foot of that grave marker:

If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him! (NIV)

You too can rest in unusual peace, Cairo. Only come to the Prince of Peace. Indeed, the Son of God will give you rest for your unrest (Matthew 11:28-30). Also, God the Father will give you The Holy Spirit if you only ask (Luke 11:13). There's an early 1900's grave marker, yes an old white cross-engraved headstone in your old city's burying grounds that declares this message to be true.

By Faith! In Faith! (Hebrews 11)
Grateful

P.S. The Biography of Oswald Chambers is titled "Abandoned to God". A great life story of one fully devoted disciple of our Lord Jesus.

Are You Weary? Are You Sorrowing?

For I have given rest to the weary and joy to the sorrowing.
-- Jeremiah 31:25 (TLB)

Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you. Let Me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light. -- Words of Jesus in Matthew 11:28-30 (TLB)

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

Rest, O My Soul

(7) Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you. (8) For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, (9) that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living. -- Psalm 116:7-9 (NIV)

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

The Healthy Balanced Life -- Relational Leadership

Here's an excerpt from my book titled Relational Leadership and published in 2009 by Beacon Hill Press. I pray it will bring freedom to your heart, mind, soul, and strength.

My dad is a commercial fisherman. He makes most of his living as a shrimp boat captain on and around the Atlantic Ocean. Working on the water is a hard life. It is more a calling than a career.

Dealing with bad weather is one of the most uncertain challenges associated with life on the sea. One nine-letter weather word can wipe out everything a shrimp boat captain owns: Hurricane! A few years back, a hurricane named Emily was bearing down on Harkers Island, North Carolina, where my dad lives and harbors his shrimp boat. A newspaper reporter from Columbia, South Carolina, photographed my dad readying his vessel for the storm. When the photo came out in the newspaper, there was Dad swimming with ropes in the harbor, securing his boat as best he could. The boat was separated from the dock at four points. One anchor in each direction held the boat through the hurricane. The balancing hold of the anchors secured the boat against the storm.
 
Whenever I think about my dad preparing his shrimp boat for a hurricane, I think about the balance I want before, during, and after the life-threatening hurricanes bear down on me and my loved ones. My earthly father knows how to get a hurricane-balanced boat. My heavenly Father knows how to give a healthy-balanced life. So, I go to God for the four anchors that will give to me a balanced life and a balanced work ethic.

FOUR ANCHORS FOR BALANCE
As I continuously seek my Abba Father for balance, the same four anchors keep offering me balance in all types of weather. If I desire the healthy-balanced life, I must give equal attention to all four ropes and the anchors they are tied to. I find health in my life and balance in my work ethic as I simultaneously look after adoration, occupation, recreation, and restoration. More simply, if I want health in my life, I must seek God to help me maintain balance between worship, work, play, and rest. The precious Holy Spirit, my life Counselor, will give me without interruption this healthy balance.

The Anchor of Adoration
If we are ever to be true spiritual leaders, we must be people after God’s own heart. We must be worshipers. Worship is more about knowing God than knowing about God. Worship is more about spending time with Him than spinning our wheels for Him. Worship matters to God. Worship is a priority on His agenda, and we will never know balanced lives or balanced work ethics until we embrace Him in worship. Worship is not something we just speed through. It is not a destination thing; worship is a journey thing. Worship is a 24/7 thing, an unending attitude of adoration of the Almighty.
My mentor in life, James Spruill, taught me not to compartmentalize life with secular and sacred labels. God is omnipresent, so whether we’re in the sandbox with the little kids, shooting hoops with the teens, or standing behind the pulpit on Sunday morning, all seasons of life are equally sacred. Jesus said, “Surely I am with you always” (Matt. 28:20); worship is an “all day, every day/all night, every night” way of life. Make sure the anchor of adoration is not dragging the bottom in your life or your balance will be out of whack. The anchor of adoration must be set deep in the Rock at all times.

The Anchor of Occupation
Adoration is worship, and occupation is worship, too. However, we need to practically incorporate both worship and work in our lives. Without worship, we become workaholics. Without work, we become “lazybones.” Neither alone offers the balance that helps us or pleases God. Work is what we do in obedience to God’s agenda for our lives. Worship is how we go about doing what we do in obedience to God’s agenda for our lives. Work is about action. Worship is about attitude. Work done in a worshipful way pleases God and balances us.

When I am looking for leaders to partner alongside me in ministry, I ask the question, “How many hours will your work each week?” It’s a loaded question. If their lips start moving quickly, I know we are in trouble. Some blurt out, “Seventy or eighty hours--that’s my style.” I pause and then reply, “Well, you won’t be working here with that style because you’ll cramp my style, and I’m not looking for more false guilt to carry.” When it comes to work, the words “realistic expectations” are very, very important. God wants us to work, but He’s not a one-anchor God. There are three other anchors that need tending so that our lives will be inwardly balanced and outwardly beautiful. All work and no worship, no play, and no rest make an unbalanced person and an unsuccessful leader.

The Anchor of Recreation
Worship and work are enhanced when we take time to play. Yes, adoration, occupation, and recreation really do go together. Talk about false guilt. Why is it that leaders feel guilty when they take time to play? I’m convinced the enemy spends more time cutting the anchor rope that leads to recreation in the life of the leader than any of the other four ropes. Why? Because playing, taking time for recreation, is the breeding ground for joy and lightheartedness in our lives. We all know that misery loves company. The devil doesn’t want us having what he doesn’t have. Fun! When we play and have fun, we become like little children, and you know what Jesus said about little children: “Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom” (Matt. 18:3).

Starting to make sense, isn’t it? If we don’t tend to the anchor of recreation, we will miss out on re-creation. Schedule some fun time, some playtime, into your life, and being driven will begin to make way for being balanced. I promise. If you will begin to schedule in recreation, eventually, it will become spontaneous, a holy habit you will refuse to live without. That’s a good thing and a God thing too. If you really want to upset the disciples in a good way, just be like Jesus. Take time to play with the children. And don’t let that little boy or little girl inside of you die. If that child already has, cheer up, because our God specializes in resurrections. Ask Him to resurrect recreation in your life. Let the child in you live and laugh again. Ask God to re-create childlike wonder in your life now.

The Anchor of Restoration
Finally, do not forget to set the anchor of rest on solid ground. Remember, we need all four anchors for healthy balance in our lives and our work ethics--adoration, occupation, recreation, and, finally, restoration. I’m convinced that many Christians, and especially Christian leaders, do not need another sermon. They just need to take a nap. Jesus wants us to rest. He offers it to us in Matthew 11:28: “Then Jesus said, ‘come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (NLT).
Is it possible that the four anchors we are talking about are simply and profoundly about giving gifts? Stick with me, now. Is it possible that worship and work are both gifts we give to God, play is a gift we give to ourselves, and rest is a gift Jesus gives to us? I think it’s possible, indeed. Perhaps the reason we have no rest in our lives is we don’t, or won’t, come to Jesus to receive His rest as our gift.

The anchor of resting is connected to the rope of trusting. In his journals, Oswald Chambers was once up against some seemingly impossible circumstances. He went to the Lord in prayer and sensed the Lord saying, “Trust me and do the next thing you can do.” After some contemplation, Oswald concluded that he would do just that. So he simply trusted God and did the next thing he could do. He took a nap!
Resting is a gift the Lord gives to us so we can learn to trust Him more. Talk about the healthy-balanced life. That’s the kind of life I want to live. That’s the kind of work ethic I embrace. A work ethic that is beautifully balanced with four faithful anchors—adoration, occupation, recreation, and restoration--will help keep the boat crew from being upset by bad weather reports and unruffled by God’s divine interruptions as well. Come hail, high water, or hurricane, these anchors will hold us steady and keep us strong because they are lodged into the Rock of Ages!

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

Why Rest Awhile?

In a poem by Mrs. Chas. Cowman, these words hint at one wonderful reason why workers in the Lord's harvest, should take time for sabbath rest?

To cease awhile from all the joy of service,
To find a deeper joy with Him to share.

And Jesus said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while." For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. -- Mark 6:31-32 (NKJV)

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

When We Rest...

It has been suggested:
"When we rest, God works!
When we work, God rests!"

Matthew 11:28-30 may hint to us that this is a very true suggestion.
Psalm 46:10 reinforces the hint.
What do you believe?

My Lord Jesus, please help me to live my life as if I believe wholeheartedly that Your Blood works so very much more effectively than my sweat. Help me to place Holy Trusting above human trying. In Your name, I pray. Amen.

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

Empty Hammocks

When was the last time you saw someone actually resting in a hammock? I often take note that too many resting places are empty.

My family gave me a new hammock as my birthday and Father's Day gift this year. If my count is right, I think it's my fourth hammock. I wish I could say I wore all of the previous hammocks out by resting in them, but the truth be told, I may have worn one hammock out resting in it, while the others just plain dry-rotted.

Anyway, next time you see an empty resting place, give yourself permission to occupy it for a while. Take time to exhale.

Come unto Me and I will give you rest.
(Words of Jesus in Matthew 11:28.)

Thank You, Jesus, for being my Resting Place. I want to be a resting place for You, too.

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

Want to Breathe Again? Rest Area Open!

Due to financial cutbacks in The Commonwealth of Virginia, in 2009 our elected government officials in Richmond decided to close multiple rest areas designed for motorists along the interstate highways across the state. Because I am a reasonable citizen, I can surely understand financial shortfalls, but I must also say that when I heard many of Virginia’s roadside rest areas were closing down, it produced some measure of unrest in my peace of mind as a driver of vehicles. Especially as I grow older, I appreciate like never before the simple blessing of roadside rest in long-distance travel.

During the Christmas season in 2008, even with all of Virginia’s rest areas still open, our family came up on an awful automobile accident just north of Roanoke in the southbound lane. We were probably the third vehicle to approach the scene – a dear couple, in their late sixties, were traveling to southern Virginia to celebrate the holidays with their son and his family. The mother, who had been driving, had fallen asleep at the wheel. It was so sad. A failure to stop and rest adequately was the culprit. As the Pegasus chopper airlifted the father to UVA Medical Center, I called their son on the mother’s cell phone to tell him what had happened along the interstate highway. He didn’t answer so I left a careful and prayerful message on his voice mail. Months later, the daughter-in-law called me to thank me for assisting her in-laws. Her mother-in-law had survived. Her father-in-law had not. Tears.

Our spiritual lives can be illustrated as a car-trip on a highway. We travel along all excited about wherever it is we think we’re headed, all-the-while carelessly discounting the dangers of soul restlessness. As we ride south, the Resurrected Jesus stands alongside the highway with nail-scared hands outstretched. I can see Him holding a sign of hope in those nail-scared hands. His sign of hope is a simple but profound three-word invitation: Rest Area Open!

Matt. 11:28-30 (NLT) – Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light.”

Why do we as weary motorists need rest areas? That’s obvious. We need rest areas because we get weary. Staring through the windshield mile-after-mile can be dangerously mesmerizing and can easily cause us to carelessly forget that our lives are at stake, as are the lives of those traveling with us. Will we stop and rest? Will we take time to catch our breath before it’s too late?

Why do our eternal souls need Easter? We need Easter because it echoes loudly the personal, eternal-life-invitation of the One Who was dead, but is now alive, forever. (Rev. 1:18). Will we finally exit this Easter on the ramp that leads to R-and-R -- Rest and Resurrection? Do we Want to Breathe Again? Rest Area Open!

P.S. Under the leadership of a new governor, in 2010, The Commonwealth of Virginia has now reopened the roadside rest areas. :-)

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

Refused to Rest?

I recently read a line in a book written by a Messianic Jewish author. It wasn't my book, so I cannot retrace the author's name but I have not forgotten the line:

In the beginning God created Paradise, but the man and the woman refused to rest.

Refused to rest? How sad is that!

Lord, you say in Luke's Gospel that "the Kingdom of God is now within us." Sounds an awful lot like Paradise to me. Lord, help me to live in the atmosphere of Your Holiness. I want one of the undeniable proofs of Paradise within me to be that I don't refuse to rest in You. After all, if Your Kingdom is really within me, and I believe it really is, then surely You are my King meaning You are both resident and president within me. You have recreated Your Paradise within me. Let it never be said of me, ever again, that I refused to rest in Your Paradise. Lord forgive. Lord forbid. Your Name is Faithful. My name is Grateful. I'm exhaling NOW! Amen.

Luke 17:20-21 (NIV) -- (20) Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, (21) nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you."

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

Facing Fear? Pray: "Jesus Savior, Pilot Me!"

I woke up early this morning in a deep spirit of personal prayer. These six words of comfort and assurance from God's Word in Proverbs 3:25 (NIV) were on my mind as I inhaled and exhaled the presence of my Lord: Have no fear of sudden disaster!

When I went to bed last night, the words of an old hymn of the church were among my last thoughts. This hymn was sung at my Grandaddy Gray's homegoing service when I was in the seventh grade. My granddaddy, a boat captain, recognized, like every wise boat captain recognizes, Jesus is the Pilot. Hear now the words of the hymn and have no fear of sudden disaster:

Jesus, Savior, pilot me over life's tempestuous sea;
unknown waves before me roll, hiding rock and treacherous shoal.
Chart and compass come from Thee; Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

As a mother stills her child, Thou canst hush the ocean wild;
boisterous waves obey Thy will, when thou sayest to them, "Be still!"
Wondrous Sovreign of the Sea, Jesus, Savior, pilot me.

When at last I near the shore, and the fearful breakers roar
'twixt me and the peaceful rest, then, while leaning on Thy breast,
may I hear Thee say to me, "Fear not, I will pilot thee."

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful

Rejoice. Relax. Rest. Doctor's Orders.

Dr. H.B. London, a pastor-to-pastors at Focus on the Family, shared these three words in a pastor's encouragement workshop I attended today: Rejoice. Relax. Rest. It's a powerful prescription that The Apostle Paul gave in his Epistle of Joy, Philippians, written in a prison cell. I'd say it's a prescription straight from the mind and heart of the Great Physician. JESUS.

ALL JOY! Indeed!
Grateful

Oneness With God Equals Rest That Ministers

My dear friend in Jesus, O.C., writes this commentary based on 1 Corinthians 1:30:

The broken and the jaded and the twisted are being ministered to by God through the saints who are not overcome by their own panic, who because of their oneness with Him are absolutely at rest; consequently He can work through them.

ALL JOY!
Grateful

The Perfectly Balanced Life

Spirit of the Living God, please reign within us and give to us The Perfectly Balanced Life. Only You, Sweet Spirit of Truth, can give us from within a God-ordered simultaneous balance that imparts to us a blessed overlap of adoration, occupation, recreation, and restoration. Yes, we cry out to You, our Loving Lord, to be our Peace and so engineer our lives that we might be the opposite of driven people. We want to be perfectly tuned by Your indwelling presence in the areas of worship, work, play, and rest. In our lives Lord Jesus be glorified, be magnified, and be satisfied. Amen.

ALL JOY!
Grateful