Change

The time is here. I have decided I need to take some time away and focus solely on God. The question is when and where? That is in the hands of Him and I will know it is time when He decides. What I am talking about it praying and fasting. There is a desire deep within me to do this. I feel the ever-present tug to committ solely to praying and thinking about God and being still in His presence so I can hear what He wants me to do. Our lives are so full of stuff that I think we tend to forget in the busyness about God and our function and purpose here.

This last week I heard J.P. Moreland speak on the college campus where I work about the spiritual warfare going on inside of us and around us. It is so obvious to me that our existence here is plagued by an evil presence. I have heard and seen situations with numerous people just this summer about this evil and how they have relized its presence and dealt with it on a spiritual level. This sort of stuff gets really deep for the average Christian and most don't even realize it is happening until it is too late.

My church is one of these places. We have gone through a split in the last 2 years and have since hired a new pastor and have lost 5 pastors. It may seem this would be bad for the church but it has only been the opposite. As my mentor Mike Barrett put it, our roots are growing deep and winter is here. It is only a matter of time that spring will be here and the buds will begin to blossom and grow. Like the parable of the fig tree being pruned to produce more fruit, we are being pruned to be more fruitful. Our congregation of 2500 had been split down the middle and has since turned over almost completely save a few hundred dedicated servants. I believe that these servants are the core of the church and have been called to serve in a much, MUCH bigger way. Something incredible is happening here within our Christian community, from the church to the streets. Ministry will take on a new meaning and will no longer be associated with the stuffy church setting that kills us.

About a month ago, our Executive Pastor and Administrator, and his wife (who was also the women's ministry pastor) left the church. It was a shock to the congregation but a needed one. I believe the direction that he and his wife wanted to move was not within the will of God for our church. The reason I believe this is that a day later our lead pastor called one of our interim pastors that spoke several times over the past year to fill in before our lead pastor was hired. But a day before he was called he had typed an email ready to send asking if there were any positions available that he may be able to serve. He deleted the email as he didn't want to come across as being pushy or "haughty" about his Godly insight. He had also turned down a great pastoring position knowing there wasn't any current openings at our church, but that God moved him to do this and to take that faithful step.

The Spirit is moving. The Holy Spirit will pour out onto the Earth in the final days...