Coming for Cleansing

God is great,

That's something I've been learning more and more lately. It's funny how the simple truths slowly gain more and more meaning and transcend the natural. God has taught me a lot these last 40 days, I didn't totally stay off the computer because I needed to write a paper and do some banking stuff and I got distracted a few times but overall it was a really good time to think and get more done. Sometime last week I was in school and between classes we were praying for revival and my good friend Mike prayed something that really opened my eyes again to something I already knew but forgot. Somewhere in his prayer he said "God you're so big". And God really is big, he is so much bigger than all our problems and things we face, he is so much stronger than the greatest power of darkness, and no situation is outside of his soveriegn control. He's magnificent. And he cares. Those things really are comforting.

All of a sudden when Mike said that I just wanted to start throwing everything in God's hands. My dreams, relationships, grades, reputation, possesions and even sin. I mess things up when I try to control their outcome and come about as I think is best. But God is so ridiculously big. He is so much more powerful than our most intense struggle. He can sustain us when we are at the end of our rope.

We were just at the call yesterday, it was a really really powerful day. Not because God was especially present their but because it was the body of Christ with the different gifts flowing together to edify us. There were prophets and singers, and preachers and teachers and just a really balanced feel to it. There were a few things that really stuck with me. Mike Bickle talked about Song of Solomon 8:6 and love and how the greatest commandment was love. And just one sentence really stuck with me "Long earnestly for an increase in supernatural love." Because that is something we can pray for and God will answer it, I was getting bogged down with praying for humility and selflessness and gentleness with boldness, and confidence and spirit-led generosity and all these other things and now I can really rest easy knowing I'm not missing anything if I just keep praying for a greater increase in supernatural love. That covers everything that's important.

Also there was a lot of talk about just asking for ideas and creativity from God to do what you are called to do not on your own power and wisdom but by God's. And that really encouraged me to do everything as to the Lord and ask him to bless it and help me to do it as best as I can. I was memorizing Hebrew vocabulary on the way back from the trip and I commited my time to God beforehand and asked him to increase my efficiency and ability to memorize and block things from distracting me and it was really cool because I learned more in the next 20 minutes then probably about a couple of hours on the way up. God just wants us to rely totally on him. In every single activity to commit it to him and do it in his strength and ability it would completely revolutionize our world. People would begin to look to the christians to pave the way in each field and for advice. And Christians would everyday be reminded of their deep dependance on God alone. I am so quick to take credit for things that God has done and God's been convicting me of that.

As we were driving back I noticed a few church advertisements and I never noticed it before but they were so worldly in their means of inviting people in "Come in and feel welcomed, enjoy fellowship and music and good preaching" Something like that. And fellowship and music and preaching and a welcome atmosphere are incredible things, but it's more like those are actually an afterthought to the most important thing there is and they come as a result. I think a good church advertisement would go something like this "Have you sinned and are in danger of the fires of hell? Come to us! We'll show you how to get right with a righteous God" Don't play around, cut to the quick of what is really at hand. I think people would really appreciate that kind of honesty and urgency about the state of their souls. Also that alliteration of "Get right with a righteous God" is kind of catchy. Haha, but in all seriousness I think we really need to rethink the way we do church and quit copying the way that the world does thing effectively. Because actually the kingdom of God is entirely opposite from the world's way of doing things.

Tommorow I'm heading out with a group of people from FIRE to Washington DC to speak to some senators about a hate crimes bill that if passed would allow anybody to sue a pastor who simply read what the bible says about homosexuality and send them to jail if anybody who heard the message did anything mean to homosexuals. It should be a really interesting couple of days. God bless you all.