Confused?

My trusted orange Toyota stalled. I was rounding the final corner on my way to the dorm when it just quit. No warning. No symptoms. It just quit running. After I had coasted to a stop, I attempted to restart it. After cranking the engine for what seemed like two or three minutes, it finally started. But it was running on high idle and I thought it was going to explode. Then suddenly, it stalled a second time. So again I turned the ignition, again it cranked for a couple of minutes, again it ran on high idle, again I thought it would implode, and once again it stalled. Finally accepting the obvious, I went to the dorm and called Uncle Bob. Uncle Bob could fix anything. After explaining everything to him, there was a moment of silence. Then he asked a couple of questions. Then more silence. Finally, Bob said, “I don’t know what’s wrong with it. Why don’t you call a dealership and see if they’ll give you some answers.”

What? Uncle Bob, Mr. Fix-it, didn’t know the answer. Unbelievable!

So I called a Toyota dealership and explained the problem. Before I could even finish my story, the service manager said, “Heater fuse.”

Surprised, I responded. “What? I said the car won’t run. Nothing is wrong with the heat.” 

Unfazed, he continued. “The fuel pump that serves the engine is on the same circuit as the heater. Replace the heater fuse and the car will run just fine.”

Sure enough, the fuse was bad. I replaced it and the car ran wonderfully once again. Who would have thought? Even Uncle Bob didn’t know that one, and I was sure that he knew about everything. But this fix-it was even beyond his comprehension.

Some things are beyond our understanding. On occasion we come across things in life that are confusing, troubling, and beyond our ability to correct. In those cases, we need someone who has more understanding than we do. We need someone who has experience where we don’t. And there are even times when we need answers that are beyond what any man can know. We need someone like the Lord.

He is the One who has the right perspective on all things. He can handle anything, because He created everything. He does great things beyond our understanding. He can even do things that Uncle Bob can’t do.
 
God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding.  Job 37:5 (NIV)

Creative Teaching Techniques

Synopsis: In order to apprehend the attention of youth on a weekly basis, we must prepare sessions that are more than “just another lecture”. Their schools have likely adapted various teaching methods over the past number of years. Since they are increasingly accustomed to these alternative teaching methods, students will dread classes that do not offer variety. They are likely to lose interest, and may eventually quit attending altogether. Successful youth leaders realize the need and actively pursue creative methods of teaching.

I. Introduction: If teens are not listening to a lesson, it may very well be that the speaker is not doing what he should in order to grasp their attention. While easy to berate a group that is not attentive, genuine response is not fostered through fear of humiliation or correction. Rather, people listen when the presenter has something valuable to say and he presents it in a desirable fashion. An audience will actively receive and respond to a session that is enticing.

II. Enticing Meetings Draw Youth: Concerning the validity of the previous statement, consider the following questions. Does Hollywood “make” kids come to their movies or watch their television shows? Does Madison Avenue “force” youth to buy clothes at Ambercrombie or the Gap? Do Sony or Nintendo “require” kids to rush to Toys R Us and buy the newest video games? Do BMG, EMI, or Warner “coerce” teens into Sam Goody, Wal-Mart, Target, or Tower Records to buy their latest musical wares? Of course not.

Rather than coercion, these companies know to entice their customers. We should know to do the same. If we will work to make our meetings enticing, then we will witness participation by a willing group of teens. We will more readily be able to affect the youth who are in attendance because they have chosen to be there.

III. Enticing Meetings Require Work: It is not easy to host an enticing meeting. Lazy leaders need not apply for this job. When one is short of time, has many other responsibilities, and tries to work youth ministry into his other obligations, it is often easiest to do what requires the least amount of preparation. Standard lecturing requires studying given material and praying for the Lord’s anointing. When very pressed for time, one might pray and study very little. Then that leader stands at the lectern and reads from the teacher’s manual, praying that God somehow honors it. Or possibly, one reads a verse of Scripture and proceeds to share a number of unconnected stories that come to mind, hoping that, in the end, the teens “get something out of it”.

If a teacher makes a habit of studying little, and then asking God to help him make it through this week’s lesson, then that teacher will inevitably lose the interest of the youth within his ministry. They will soon recognize the lack of preparation. Once they feel that the leader is not concerned enough to prepare, they will not believe that the material presented is very important.

Presenting enticing meetings requires a change in attitude and mindset if we are accustomed to merely haphazard lecturing. To prepare meetings that catch the attention of teens, we must work very hard to prepare for each session. A successful youth leader will labor intensely on the meeting’s content and format.

Iron Sharpens Iron

In order for a movement to be strong, there needs to be room for disagreement. In order for a movement to remain balanced, there should be room for those on both ends of the scale. In order to facilitate challenging and thoughtful discussion, participants must live exclusively by the lesson taught in Matthew 18:15-17. (As far as I can see, this passage applies to ministers as well as saints) Furthermore, until we have processes and formats for men to meet face to face, and discuss their opposing opinions in a spirit of brotherhood, the internet will be filled with divergent opinions that are not brought under the scrutiny of peer review.

 

Environments that allow discussion of views among all ministers will not only allow for elders to propagate foundational doctrines and concepts to younger generations, but will also validate the thoughts and reasoning’s of young men with the elders. Such environments will allow younger men to feel recognized. Too often, when we seek comments, we want only the elders to participate; but when we want offerings, we want everyone’s participation. This is not to say that young men’s ideas or insights should always be followed, however a significant means for them to feel valued in the process, and true participants in the movement, is to create a venue whereby they can be heard.   

 

Sometimes My Preaching Stinks

Am I the only one who thinks this way from time to time? Am I the only one who leaves a Sunday service feeling like I have just dropped the ball in extravagant fashion? Are there others who have finished a service and wondered how such a good thought could wind up coming out so pitifully? Somehow, I don’t think that feelings like these are unique to my experience.

In the course of ministry, there are a variety of outcomes to our efforts. Whether preaching, teaching, singing, or simply testifying, sometimes we see wonderful results, and other times, it seems as if our efforts were worthless. Over time, this variety of outcomes can be confusing.

Why does this happen? What is going on? Why is it that I can preach in one service and the “house comes down,” and then preach the same thing another time, in a different setting, and the people fall asleep while I’m preaching?

I clearly recall such a situation. One Friday evening I was to preach a Statewide Youth Rally. I followed my usual routine of prayer and preparation for the service. Then I conscientiously delivered what I felt to be God’s word for that service. In the end, the youth in attendance responded genuinely and wonderfully to the Word and Spirit of the Lord. We had great church.

Exactly one week later, I was to preach the exact same kind of meeting in a different state. In prayer and preparation, I felt to preach the exact same message as the week prior. In the same kind of meeting, to the same kind of audience, I delivered the same Bible-based message that had brought such genuine response the previous week. But this time around, the audience just stared at me when I made the altar appeal. As I struggled to get the youth to respond to the Lord and His Word, they were very reluctant. In the end, they did pray, but it was not a genuine, heartfelt response. They seemed to pray out of habit and respect for tradition.

Immediately, the questions began in my mind. What happened? Is there something wrong with me? Is there something wrong with the people? Was there something about the situation that I did not learn in prayer? Is there something else that I should have done? These are real questions and feelings that ministers face.

As a preacher, I recognize two particular facets of sermon preparation and presentation that are of interest. The first deals with whether or not I, as the preacher, feel like I have “heard from God” for the service. Preachers realize that we can preach anything from the Bible and it is the Word of God, but I am speaking about the preacher’s desire to preach from the specific portion of Scripture that would be the Will of God for that specific service. The second aspect is in regard to the sermon presentation. It has to do with whether or not the congregation responds as if the sermon is indeed a Word from God. Do they willingly and desirously react to the sermon’s call to action? Or do they blankly stare as if unaware of the sermon’s point? The combinations of these two aspects create four possible settings.

1. I don’t feel like I have heard from God, and the congregation responds like they agree with my feelings.

2. I don’t feel like I have heard from God, but the church responds wholeheartedly anyway.

3. I feel like I have heard from God, but the audience doesn’t respond in kind.

And finally,

4. I feel like I have heard from God, and the congregation responds in agreement with my feelings.

Though there are other dimensions of sermon preparation and presentation, I sense that these four scenarios entail the largest percentage of the ministry experience. As such, it would be good to explore each of them and discover the pitfalls and practical responses.

Prosperous Preaching

And the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying (preaching) of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded, and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the commandment of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.   
Ezra 6:14 (KJV)

Preaching that prospered the people.

I am intrigued by this concept.

How can I do the same?
How can I preach so that it is prosperous to those who hear it?
What can I do to make sure that my preaching is benefiting those in attendance?

I don’t know about others, but I have a goal not to waste anyone’s time with my preaching.

Folks work hard all week and have many obligations on their time. I certainly don’t want them to view time spent listening to my message as time that is wasted.

It seems to me a worthy goal to value other people’s time as much as I would like them to value mine.

Not only do I fear that I might waste their time, but I also fear that I would not connect with them. I’m concerned that somehow, even though I am preaching the truth, and even though I believe I have an understanding to share from the Lord, that yet, I am not able to communicate that understanding in a manner that listeners can receive it. I’ve come to recognize that my knowing their need and knowing the truth is simply not enough to communicate to everybody.

Some folks simply think differently than I do.
Some people have different values than I do.
Some attendees focus on things that I do not.

I fear that these genuine and real differences would hinder me from prosperous preaching.

Maybe this story will better illustrate my point.

“A woman in NYC walked into a bar waving a dollar bill and shouting, “Quiero Cambio.” No one knew what she was saying. One patron tried to calm her down, but in her excitement she poked him in the face. The police were called, and she was sent to Bellevue hospital, where she was sedated and spent the next few days.

When a Spanish-speaking social worker arrived, she huddled with the patient, and seconds later raced out the door to her car and drove furiously to the Bronx.

There, in an old tenement building, she found three children who had died of dehydration. Their mother was in the bar trying to get change to call a doctor. The children died because no one spoke their language.”  (Dan Reeve, Shepherding the Poor, Beacon. May/June 2002)

When attempting prosperous preaching, that’s the lady that I’m concerned about.

Her need was genuine. In fact, she knew she had a need and she even knew what that need was.

Her desire was authentic. She left her house on her own. Of her own accord she ventured out looking for help. Her real desire had driven her to action.

Her need could have been supplied. Her need was not unrealistic. Her answer was readily available, and easy to supply.

Yet, desire, need, nor a ready-answer was enough to guarantee her satisfaction. What she really needed was someone who spoke her language. What she needed was someone who could communicate with her; someone who could understand her. Unfortunately, she didn’t find what she really needed. And her children perished.

As a preacher, a professed communicator, I am bothered by this story. I know that there are sinners in our world, in our neighborhoods, at our workplaces that are just as genuine, just as needy and just as desperate as this woman. I am convinced that there are people who really would like to find answers to their problems.

And as this Hispanic lady who ventured into the bar, I think about an unbeliever who would wander into a church where I happened to be ministering, and I fear that she would find similar circumstance.

I fear that a desperate soul would come to a church searching for relief, and instead find a culture that speaks an entirely different language. God forbid that a person would be crying out for help, and I am totally unable to understand his need.

I pray that people don’t feel so frustrated by their church experience that they lash-out. Not with a fist, but with an attitude that drives them away from the church.

Some might say….

“Well, she’s in the United States now. We speak English here. And if she had learned our language, then everything would have been fine……”

Without getting into all the politics of such a mindset, I wonder if we sometimes subconsciously adopt a similar attitude in the church.

“Hey, if you need salvation, learn to speak the language of the preacher, you’re in a Christian church now. We speak Christianese here.”

“And if you really want help, you’ll learn to understand our vernacular.”

I believe that prosperous preaching addresses people where they are, not from where I am.  Prosperous preaching works hard to understand the language, thoughts, attitudes, & experiences of the one who doesn’t understand Christianity. We’ll not wait for them to understand us to find their answers, rather, we are intent on doing all we can to understand them.

I have spent my entire life in the church.
Pentecostalism is all that I know.
I was raised speaking this language.

As such, it is so easy for me to slip into wording, phrases and concepts in my speaking that readily speaks to saints, but would seem like a foreign language to a sinner. I feel like the more I use this ‘foreign’ language the more likely I am to alienate unbelievers.

Consider:

When leading a service, I encourage and direct the assembly to participate in the worship, but do the words of the choruses connect with all people, or do they more directly relate to saints?

I find it so easy to preach that God delivers from illicit sex & illegal drugs. And while this is true, are these the vices that all sinners are struggling with?

Do I also preach about deliverance from pride, anger, & depression?

I wonder what a sinner thinks when I say that God wants the “backslider” to come home?

What is a backslider? Is that some kind of skateboard trick?

What does the guest think when I address ‘sanctification’?

Sanctification? Is that like pasteurization?

I’ll not run through a list of nitpicking terms, however in sharing these, my intent is to provoke our thoughts concerning preaching.

Is my preaching truly prosperous to the people?

Wouldn’t it be a shame if a desperate person couldn’t relate to our message, could not understand our direction, and rather than hanging around, trying to learn the language, decided instead to go somewhere else, and even accept less truth, simply because it was shared in their own language?

God, help our preaching to be prosperous.

Developing Mission-Minded Youth

I. Introduction

The challenge of leading youth to living a life of purpose centers on the tendency of teens to focus only on the here and now. Too often little or no attention is given to significant matters of the future.

While many have hopes and visions for new cars and next years clothes, many do not give much thought to the things that will matter five, ten or twenty years from now. Thinking about their career, their future spouse, or their involvement in the Kingdom of God is deemed as being too far removed to demand their current efforts.

As such, youth ministry must continually emphasize eternity. While our world centers its desires on the here-and-now, the church resides as the publicist for eternity. The heart of youth ministry is to broadcast that promise.

Preaching, teaching, and programming should be designed to clearly and continually remind students that what they do today has an impact upon their lives tomorrow. Today matters. Youth will not make it to heaven on accident. Therefore they must be compelled to live their lives on purpose.

II. Expectation Evaluation
 
• In the mind of the youth leader, what is expected of youth?
• What are the goals for them?
• What are they envisioned accomplishing ten years from now?
• In planning weekly meetings and functions, what should be accomplished?
• How far into the future are we looking? 

Consider the value of a goal.

Having worked with youth, how many teens achieve the goals that have been set before them? Often times, when goals are set, there is a rare individual or two who surpass the goal. Likewise there are a small number who achieve the goal. Following that, there are increasing numbers of youth that fall further and further short of the appraised goal. (Use fundraising example)

What can this phenomenon mean spiritually?

For too long the highest expectation of youth has been their salvation. The highest goal has been for them to make Heaven their eternal home. While certainly wanting to see this happen, should it really be the highest goal? Could it be that there is more to the Kingdom of God than finding salvation? Could it be that the Lord has a plan of ministry for every child of God? Salvation is an entrance into the Kingdom of God. Having entered into His Kingdom, He then has a plan for each life to fulfill.

If the highest goal has been for teens to find salvation, then what happens to those who typically fall short of the goal? They never obtain salvation. Consider then the benefit of making ministry in the Kingdom the highest goal. If this were the case, then those who do not achieve the goal, having fallen short of ministry, are still likely to have found salvation. In effect, raising the goal has increased the percentage of youth that make it to heaven. It is time to raise the goal.

So, when will you know?

Then the woman told Elijah, “Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the LORD truly speaks through you.” 1 Kings 17:24 (NLT)

“So, when will you know?” That’s the question I was asked. I had made a business colleague aware of some potential changes in our company plans. These changes would have affected her company, and I wanted to notify them of that possibility. However, I couldn’t tell her that the changes were certain, they were still under consideration. Then her reply, “So, when will you know?” How long will it be, what meetings must take place, or what needs to happen so that you will not just be considering these things, but you will know. When will you know for sure?

The widow woman that is speaking to Elijah has come to a clear conviction. The Scripture records that “now she knows for sure” that he is a man of God. Now she knows for sure that what he says is directed of the Lord. What made her come to this conclusion? Elijah’s prayer raised her son from the dead. That’s significant evidence. Yes sir, seeing a family member raised from the dead would certainly be sufficient proof for most people that God’s power was at work. Now she knew for sure.

And yet I am somewhat puzzled by her decision. I find that earlier in her life, the Lord had already performed a miracle. By the words of the same prophet, God had caused her jar of flour not to be used up, and her jug of oil not to run dry until the time of famine was ended. No more grocery shopping until the famine is over. Your refrigerator will remain full until the recession has ended. While hard times were all around, they would have provision. She and her son would not die of starvation. What a miracle! And yet, it was evidently not enough to cause the widow woman to know for sure that God was working in her life. The miracle of day-to-day provision was not spectacular enough to sway her. She didn’t know for sure until her son was raised from the dead. 

Sometimes I wonder if we too are waiting on some additional spectacular action from God before we will know for sure that He is working in our lives. I wonder if we also are acting as the widow woman and fail to notice the hand of the Lord in our day-to-day provisions. Then as a consequence, we continue to look for some extra fantastic sign that God cares for us. I am convinced that when we will stop and consider our everyday blessings, He has consistently proven His concern in lesser recognized ways.

So, when will you know?

An Extraordinary Turn of Events

What a morning. What an incredibly frustrating morning. We started out fairly early today. Maybe that was our mistake. Rather than missing the morning rush-hour traffic, we’ve been slogging along right in the middle of it. Not a well-thought-out plan. To make matters worse, the weather is atrocious. The snow started falling around 4 a.m. and has only intensified for hours now. The road crews can’t keep up. We’ve seen five or six cars on the side of the road or in the medians, and have even driven, or should I say crawled, past a couple of accidents. Welcome to Chicago.

But we have no choice. We have to make this trip today. We’re on our way downtown for an appointment with our priest. Today is the day we are presenting our baby to the Lord. It has to happen today. So here we are, Seth and I and our new baby, inching along in parking-lot traffic, in the middle of a snow storm. The frustration is all over Seth’s face. He can barely see out of the windshield. The defrost fan in our old Escort is barely blowing and just can’t keep up. In fact, the heater isn’t keeping the pace either. Thankfully, our precious child is sleeping peacefully in the car seat. He’s oblivious to all of this. In fact, I really needed to make a video journal of these recent days. But until we can afford a camera, I’ll just have to make due with my written notes and vivid memory. Should I miss any detail, I’m sure that Seth will fill in the blanks.

 

————————————————

 

What an uncanny week this has been. When we left the apartment eight days ago, I simply could never have predicted this series of events. There is no way that any number of childbirth classes, birthing-room tours or obstetrician consultations could have prepared us for the birth of this baby.

 

We shouldn’t have been traveling this late in Arie’s pregnancy, but there was no way around it. Due to some new Illinois law, we both had to present certified copies of our birth certificates to the social services department in order to obtain assistance for the baby. And we really needed that help, as my fledgling woodworking business isn’t making much money and we certainly can’t afford health insurance. So, after searching for my certificate in every likely, and unlikely, place in our apartment, we started the drive from Ottawa to my home neighborhood on the South Side of the city.

 

The little courthouse in the middle of town was the only place I could get a certified birth certificate. I had to apply in person. But we didn’t make it to the courthouse that day.

About midway along in our trip, Arie started to have contractions. She’d been having them off and on for some days now. However, it wasn’t long before she noticed that these seemed different. Naturally, she started timing them, and I started sweating. Sure enough, they were getting more frequent. And by the way she was squeezing my arm and punching the car door, I could tell that they were also getting more intense. Now what?

 

She had to stop. Now. But where? How could I find a hospital? We sure didn’t have a GPS navigation system in our ’89 Escort! Did we even have time for that? And then I noticed a Motel 6 sign. I sped to the motel and ran to the front desk to ask about a nearby hospital. As I was getting directions, Arie burst into the lobby, crying out in pain. We weren’t going to a hospital. The counter person called 911. At this point, the motel manager rushed from a nearby office. Quickly assessing the situation, she bemoaned the fact that their motel was entirely full. And the lobby was certainly no place to bring a baby into the world. All she could offer was the laundry room. We could get as comfortable as possible in there while we waited on the EMT’s. At least there would be plenty of linens if the EMT’s didn’t make it on time. They didn’t.

 

Arie’s labor was unusually brief for a first pregnancy. By the time the ambulance arrived we were already the proud parents of a wonderful baby boy. When the EMT’s came into the laundry, their faces couldn’t hide their surprise. Arie was resting quietly, propped against a wall, snuggled into some motel blankets. I was standing beside a laundry cart, its top covered with six or eight Motel 6 towels. In the center of this makeshift bassinette was our promised child, wrapped in common white bed sheets. He immediately drew the EMT’s attention. I’m sure I smiled broadly as they laid eyes on the center of our universe.

———————————————————

Am I Faithful?

Am I faithful? Of course. Think about it. When was the last time you came across a person who didn’t think of themselves as faithful? I can’t recall when I dealt with an individual who declared, “Don’t consider me, I’m not dependable”. In fact, I can’t think of a recent time that I listened to a person who declared themselves as dishonest, or inaccurate. Regardless of one’s track record, human nature causes the largest percentage of people to think highly of themselves. Yet, this self-measurement is typically faulty. And in truth, my personal opinion of my character is not what carries me through this life.

 

I may think I’m a hard worker, but it’s my employer’s estimation of work ethic that really makes the difference in my salary or promotion. I might consider myself a loving father, but it’s my children’s perception of my fatherhood that actually completes the relationship equation. So, if I am to be considered faithful, who would measure that? And exactly what would be measured on a scale of faithfulness? Faithfulness in the Kingdom of God has to be defined by the Word of God. Beyond my previously held assumptions of faithfulness, I must look to the One who is the ultimate judge of my character. Thankfully, He has given us His written word by which to discover such definitions.

 

The Bible contains many understandings of what it means to be faithful. One such description strikes me as particularly interesting. Within the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30) the lord of the house addresses two of the three servants like this: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord (Matthew 24:21,23). He calls them ‘faithful’. The two that receive this moniker are those who took the initial talents given to them by the master and doubled his investment. Within this text, it appears that faithfulness is related to increasing what you are given, making something more of it. Faithfulness is equated to being profitable.

 

The remaining passage further develops this concept. When speaking to the servant who simply hid the talent that was given to him, this is what the lord of the house had to say: Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury (Matthew 25:26-27). Contrary to being called faithful, this servant is labeled as ‘slothful’. Because he did no more than keep what he was originally given, the master sees him as lazy, not faithful. Yet, I believe that the defining moment in this text is what takes place next.

 

Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath (Matthew 25:28-29). The slothful servant had his only talent taken away from him as judgment for his laziness. Then notice the final words of verse twenty-nine that describe why his talent was repossessed. But from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. How can you take something from the man who has nothing? What was taken from the man was the talent that was given to him. Why then is he described as ‘him that hath not’? While he did have a talent, he did not have any profit from that talent. Though he preserved what was given to him, he didn’t increase what he was given. He was unprofitable. Since he had no increase, what he was given was viewed as nothing. In the eyes of the master, faithful servants invest the talents appropriated to them in such a way as to make a profit for the master’s kingdom.

 

What am I doing with the talents in my possession? A simple review of God’s blessings in my life allows me to realize that He has given me much. Simply having life is a gift. Am I using my life to profit the Kingdom of God? What about the Holy Ghost infilling? Am I using His power within me to benefit His Kingdom? Or am I simply trying to ‘keep it safe’? And what of the knowledge of the Scriptures that has been invested in me by caring pastors and teachers? Do I use this knowledge to promote Kingdom growth, or is it buried away in the recesses of my mind?

 

Questions like these cause me to squirm in my chair. And chair squirming often lends itself to the whisperings of human nature. When I am feeling squeezed by the challenge of Scripture, human nature is quick to share a litany of justifications. Human nature likes to bring to my mind things that might help me to feel more comfortable when Scripture challenges are in the air. So I have a choice to make. Who will I allow to answer my question? Who will I choose to be my judge, human nature or God Almighty? When asking the question, “Am I faithful?” whose report will I believe? The proper answer is clear. I’ll take the report of the One who is in control of my promotion.

Watch and See

Numbers 11:21-23 (NLT) 21) But Moses said, “There are 600,000 foot soldiers here with me, and yet you promise them meat for a whole month! 22) Even if we butchered all our flocks and herds, would that satisfy them? Even if we caught all the fish in the sea, would that be enough?” 23) Then the LORD said to Moses, “Is there any limit to my power? Now you will see whether or not my word comes true!”

 

Prior to this, Moses went to the Lord and shared the complaints of the children of Israel. They wanted meat to eat, rather than manna. The Lord said OK. At this suggestion, Moses was perplexed. “How can you feed this many people? I don’t get it.” God’s declaration just didn’t make sense to Moses. According to his human logic, feeding that many people for an entire month was undoable.

 

Then, in so many words, the Lord replied to Moses, “Watch and See”. Sure enough, God fed them meat. He did just like He said. He did it even though Moses couldn’t understand how it was possible. There is no limit to the Lord’s power.

 

His promises to the church include:

 

Matthew 6:31-33 (NIV) 31) So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32) For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33) But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

 

Acts 1:8 (NIV) 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

 

John 14:2-3 (NKJV) 2) In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3) And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

 

How many times are we just like Moses? How often do we hear or read the words of the Lord and then doubt as Moses did? In the confines of our own understanding, we just don’t see how it can be done. When our minds whisper the thought, “I just don’t know”, let’s be reminded that the Lord Jesus will do exactly as He has promised. Watch and See.