We have a sweeter Song to sing...

Learning the art of "Intercession" is so needed in our day and age. We need to be made strong by God so that we can be poured out for the weak. When a baby is learning to walk and falls, everyone thinks it's cute. But that baby will learn to walk, and he will fall less and less. He will grow up and run and climb mountains. That's expected! If he gets to 22 and he's still trying to walk or falling all the time, you know there is something wrong. It's not cute anymore!! The same is true with us as Christians.

It's ok that we start out as babies in Christ...feeding on the milk of the word, stumbling and falling in sin and getting back up again. But God designed for us to GROW UP, to mature in the faith, to be men and women of His strength, able to learn to help others to walk, to be intercessors standing in the gap and filling in the breeches for others. But most of Christianity today is still toddling around like babies. We have soooo many of our own issues that we can't do anything or go anywhere without falling. We have soooo many holes in our own spiritual walls that we cannot help fill in the breeches of others.

In fact, regarding ISSUES, it seems that we spend our lives diagnosing ISSUES. We think we are special because we have this problem or that, we have this bad experience or that, we have this battle scar or that. We think our issues and problems will be fixed if we take a med, have a change of circumstances or environment, or if we could be married to a different person! However, as one of my favorite authors puts it: "I have news for all of us!!! WE are NOT special! We all have ISSUES...but all our ISSUES are the result of only ONE BIG ISSUE...and that ISSUE is SIN!!!! SIN results in lots of ISSUES! We think our ISSUES are too big for God to deal with, but He's already dealt with root of all issues - SIN - so nothing is too big for Him!"

"So...you all want to know, where do we start?? Jesus Christ!!! He is the only solution. When we get stuck diagnosing ourselves or trying to work our our own problems in our way, we are saying we are greater than God. He can't solve my issues, I have to work them out. But self-work is not the solution. The only answer is Jesus Christ! That's what we will be pointing you back to over and over again!"

"My wife and I are not the answer...we don't want you to depend upon us! We don't want you to depend upon each other. Encourage each other, lift each other up, pray with each other....yes...but don't lean upon fellow humans. Your only safety is learning to lean upon Christ! The "selfishness and neediness" among believers, those that should be born again and baptized by the power of the spirit has got to stop! Satan's greatest joy is when we stay STUCK on ourselves and our weaknesses and our sins...but this does not bring glory to God. We must learn to run to Him...to abide in Him...to gain our daily strength from Him!"

Key thoughts to contemplate...

• God's Kingdom and His glory (our Kingdom and our glory must die!)
• That we would seek after Holiness of life - not in our own might, but in His strength! (All that He has commanded us to do, we can achieve in Him!)
• That we would see it an honor to take the lowest place of service...even to die!
• That money, position, career, and all worldly esteem would loose their attraction in our hearts. (That our lives would truly be, all about Christ!)
• That we would not esteem the best-looking and most talented as most deserving of our time. (Israel chose Saul as King because he looked the best...but God's choice was a lowly shepherd boy! God is looking for those truly humble and teachable in heart...not the proud, good looking or talented. We must be nothing in our own eyes, or He can make nothing of us!!)

We have a Sweeter Song to sing...

There is a legend about a point along the Sirene coast where sailors always wrecked their ships because they were pulled in by the intoxicating melodies of the sirene's. (Remember this is a legend!) Usually one or another thing happened. They wanted to hear it so badly, even though they knew others had died passing by, they thought they were strong enough. So they sailed past the dangerous point. They too would be drawn in and killed as their ships dashed upon the rocks. Others would put wax in their crew's ears (so they could not hear) and then would have the crew tie them to the mast, so that no matter what they heard, they could not give in to temptation. They stayed tied to the mast until danger was past, but about died from the agony of wanting to get closer to shore. Seemed like there was only TWO WAYS to get past. Give in and die, or tie yourself to the mast and suffer.

But one captain had a better idea....As their ship got close to the coast where the enchanting music played, he brought out his violin and began to play the sweetest songs. They sailed by the coast without ever hearing the music from the sirenes.

The same is true in the Christian life. It's not to be about telling you what you can't do - "Don't sail near that coast line or you will die!" It's not to be a free-for-all where we all do what we want, and then we have constant failure or regret as we fall over and over again. Nor should it be about righteous works - tying ourselves to the mast so that we can't give into temptation. Our lives are to be a "Sweeter Song," such a sweet song of Heaven that we will not even WANT to listen to the song of the world or the voices of temptation around us. We can only learn this sweeter song by focusing on Christ...Christ, and more of Christ! There is a sweeter song to this Christian life...unfortunately, most of us have never seen it, heard it, let alone sung it!