GPS -- God's Positioning System

 

You are witnesses

      of these things.

              Luke 24. 48

(A witness in court

does not just recount

what they have seen and heard,

   but their personal experience.

That is why God has

     strategically positioned us

in this exact place,

this difficult situation,

this casual encounter,

this conversation,

among these people

  at this moment in time,

to be a witness of the gospel

      and to live it out.

There are 

  no accidental appointments,

               only divine ones.

What have we seen and heard

              and experienced?

We are not just spectators,

but living proof

          of a redeemed life.

How then do we live?

Do others see any

      difference in us?)

O LORD,

We pray that You will give us

    the boldness and desire

    to share our personal story

    about Your love and grace.

We freely talk about

          our experiences.

Please infiltrate Your words

  into our conversations.

Plant the seeds of the gospel

  in all that we do and say

and how we treat others,

     even the difficult ones.

May Your testimony in us

    be imprinted in our words,

our actions,

         and our attitudes.

Speed Dial

 

...among those who called

       upon His name.

They called to the LORD,

   and He answered them.

In the pillar of the cloud

         He spoke to them...

              Psalm 99. 6-7

(Who are we calling?

Who is on speed dial for us?

Is God our first response,

           or last resort?

When we call upon the LORD,

He does not just pick up.

He has already been listening.

He is already responding,

  sometimes in the most unlikely,

  unexpected, and unusual ways.

Because God knows

            another way through.

    And that would be with Him.

It is not that God shows up.

        He is already here.

We are the ones who are late

     in recognizing Him.)

O LORD,

You are here with us.

May we hear Your voice,

    even through the chaos.

You always answer us

        in some monumental way.

Help us to not just seek Your path,

      but to seek You.

The difficulty we face

   may be just to redirect

   our hearts to You.

May we not just hear You,

    but respond.

We cannot do this life alone.

You never intended us to.

Ridiculous and Impossible

 

And he divided the 300 men

into three companies

and put trumpets

   into the hands

   of all of them,

and empty jars,

with torches inside the jars.

            Judges 7. 16

(God does not just use

the unlikely and unexpected

   --trumpets, empty jars

     and a meager group of men--

to bring about His glory

in overwhelming situations,

      but willing hearts.

It is not if we have courage

        or stamina or ability,

   but are willing to trust Him.

Take one step

    and the next step will

    come to the surface.

We know neither the path,

pace, duration, direction,

            nor outcome.

But we can know Him more

    through this,

even in what may appear

     ridiculous or impossible.

God does not call us

             to be successful,

     but faithful.)

O LORD,

Guide our steps,

our thoughts,

and our hearts

   into whatever is before us.

Help us to not see

      what is overwhelming

  but what step of faith is next.

Grant to us Your wisdom

             and Your strength

on paths that are familiar

and in the unexpected.

Please help us to have

     the mind of Christ in this.

Your victory may be obvious,

     but sometimes

     a long time in coming forth.

Help us to trust You

    where we are

    and Your way in this.

The Weakest, the Least, and the Unlikely

 

"Please, Lord,

     how can I save Israel?

Behold, my clan is the weakest

                 in Manasseh,

and I am the least

     in my father's house."

And the LORD said to him,

  "But I will be with you..."

             Judges 6. 15-16

(How in the world can I

   do this impossible task?

How many amazing experiences

   do we miss

   because we think God has

           the wrong person in mind?

    And that would be us.

Indeed, God always chooses

     the most unlikely people,

because those people know

    it is not in them

    but God Almighty working.

What has He placed before us

    today for His kingdom,

              for His glory,

    for His name all over it?

Hudson Taylor once said,

 "There are three stages

to every great work of God:

first it is impossible, then difficult,

               then done."

The strength of our lives

is not in this challenge before us

      but in His promise:

  "But I will be with you."

And that changes everything.)

O LORD,

Help us to ponder

   not the degree of difficulty,

but Your Presence with us.

Please grant Your courage to us

    to follow You right into this.

You bring the victory

   even in unlikely ways.

Help us to trust You every step

and navigate this differently

   because You are with us.

Open our eyes

   to both familiar and new

that we would traverse

   Your course through this.

And that we wouldn't

          miss the view.

Impossible Peace in Volatile Places

 

And the land had rest

     for forty years.

                Judges 55. 31

(When we listen, respond,

follow God willingly

           and faithfully,

both the journey and the outcome

     cannot help but be

                    very different.

He bears unexpected fruit

         in unlikely places.

He plants forests of majestic oaks

   in barren landscapes.

When we trust Him

        into a difficult situation,

He enlarges our vision

    and strengthens our hearts.

We may have many ideas

          how to handle it,

    but God says, "Trust Me."

And He shows us how.)

O LORD,

If we only realized

that following

   and trusting You

would transform our hearts

   and literally change the world.

You have given us Your Word

that we may know

    life as You intended.

Grant to us the courage today

    to walk away from

    selfishness with its empty promises

           but only trips us up.

Help us to be the bearers

  of Your peace and grace

   in impossible situations.

Bless us, we pray,

    with Your rest

as only You can give.

 

Not-So-Casual Conversations

 

And there arose another generation

         after them

who did not know the LORD

or the work He had done for Israel.

And the people of Israel did

   what was evil

   in the sight of the LORD

and served the Baals.

               Judges 2. 10-11

(Everyone worships something.

And what we worship impacts

    everything about us.

If we do not worship God,

other lesser gods

   take His rightful place.

Without His goodness,

          violence prevails.

We are one generation away.

What faith legacy are we leaving

   to our children and grandchildren?

What they know about God,

and how they know about God

   is largely dependent on us.

They are watching us closely

   to know if God is real

by all that we do, say,

every interaction with them

    and every conversation.

Not just that we love them,

  but there is an Almighty God

  who loves them even more.)

O LORD,

May we be aware

  of speaking of You,

Your steadfast love

   and Your faithfulness.

Help us to seize

    opportunities all around us

to make You known today,

even in the most casual

                conversations.

And please empower us

  to live in such a way

that others are

            homesick for You.

Even today,

   please help us

   to intentionally bring Your name

to the next generations

and that they may know You

      as savior and Lord.

No Divide Between the Ordinary and Sacred

 

And he will show you

a large upper room furnished;

            prepare it there.

And they went and found it

     just as He had told them.

                  Luke 22. 12-13

(Exactly why does God

    want me to do this

                 mundane task

    that doesn't seem to matter?

Because it does enormously.

Sometimes we have no idea

       God's appointment in this.

But His sacred encounters

    and deeper purposes

    are embedded far more

    than we can see at the time.

We don't have to

                know the outcome

   to be faithful to Him.

God calls us to be awake,

   attentive, willing and ready.

God brings His fruitfulness

         to our faithfulness,

even in ways we may never realize.

Whoever prepared that spare room

   had no idea

what God was about to do with it.)

O LORD,

Help us to be sensitive

   to Your nudges

as we go about our days

that You would direct our hearts

    and establish our work

    for Your Kingdom

             and Your glory

  in what we only see as

       ordinary details.

Empower us to be faithful

   in whatever

You place before us today,

  full of grace and wonder,

     delighted that

     You have invited us

   into Your eternal designs.

Help us to be

      faithful to You,

   even in this familiar task today.

In Your eyes,

  nothing is mundane.

    All we do is

           sacred work.