What a beautiful Sabbath day...and the perfect number too! A date in history that will never be repeated again!! 07-07-07!!!! Numbers have always been significant to me, so I thought it was cool that this date just happened to be Sabbath.....God's Seventh day, ordained and sanctified for rest and worship since the dawn of creation!
The sunset picture above I took at the Corona Del Mar beach last night as we ended our 10 day event of "Operation Global Rain." Youth groups from several different churches had gathered to worship, share food and fellowship. It was truly a blessing and inspiration...as young adults talked and shared about their own walk with God and inspired us in seeking a closer walk with Him!
My favorite part of the day though, was listening to a visiting speaker, Pastor Martin Kim, who shared a very convicting message, "Expect Great things from God." He started off by sharing how his church had decided they wanted to do something special for God, so had collected an offering (about $200 dollars) to go for some special project. They received a little more than their goal in the offering plate, so decided the next month, they would pray for even more. The next month the offering doubled. Then they decided to pray that God would give them more for an even bigger project...like at least a $1,000 offering. They surpassed their goal, and prayed that the next month, God would give them more. Each month....as they prayed and sought to sacrifice different luxuries in their lives, God blessed them with larger and larger donations and offerings for different projects they sought to take on. By the end of the year, they were working on monthly projects of $30,000-$50,000! It was incredible!!!! Inspired by the testimonies of people like "David Gates," this young man and his wife have totally given their lives as volunteers and workers for God knowing that as God has been blessing and leading in the past, He will continue to lead in the future!
My heart was stirred as it only confirmed what I feel God is calling me to do with my own life! And some of the stories he shared broke my heart anew as it made me realize how inadequate my current measily little sacrifices are with what God longs to do in my life!
"The secret to financial security is: All that you have belongs to God, and you surrender all to God!"
"You're either a missionary or a mission field! How you are living your life and using your time determines which you are!"
"Faith is the assurance that the thing which God said is true and He will bring His Word to pass!"
"You can't outgive God!"
"Are you living a life of no regrets? Do you want to get to heaven and realize with breaking heart that you could have done MORE...so much more, for the cause of saving lost souls? "
"Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, In all the places you can, At all the times you can, To all the people you can, As long as you possibly can!" - John Wesley
Pastor Martin works with a ministry called "Adventist Southeast Asia Projects" and he shared some of the things that their ministry is helping to fund. It was exciting and humbling to see!
- For $10, you can give the gift of a radio to little Cambodian villages where Pastors are not able to visit as frequently! (If we could cut back on some little small extravagance that we don't really need, or the fancy dessert at a couple of restuarant outings, we could afford to give a community the gift of the gospel via radio broadcasts!)
- For $10, you can give the gift of a Bible and study guides to eager students and seekers that don't have any other way to acquire God's precious word! (And to them, when they receive it, unlike us, they realize it's true value and it is precious!!!!)
- For $5, you can provide one set of "easy reader" Bible story books for young orphan children who have never before heard the good news! (Come on, that's like going without my favorite box of granola or "Golden Grahams" next time I go grocery shopping!)
- For $20 a month, you can support one Cambodian Lay Bible Worker to travel around and share the gospel. (If we could forgo the "text messaging" charges on our phone and cut back on a few extra's we get at the store when we go shopping...we could afford to do this!)
- For $100 a month, you can sponsor one Cambodian Church Planter (If we could forgo 4 or 5 meals at one of our favorite fancy restuarants, or cut down on our excursions or outings...we could afford to give some needy community a worker to tell them about Jesus, possibly impacting thousands!)
- For $550, they can build a decent bamboo and thatch church to give shelter to the growing groups of believers in impoverished areas. (Wow...considering what most of us make these days, that's not that big of a sacrifice...one church at a time!)
The messages and stories, as I watched this young man share with tears in his eyes, convicted me afresh of my own "selfishness and greed" and the need for my heart to truly be broken with the things that break the heart of Jesus! He told heart breaking story after story, of children growing up without hope, families torn apart by spiritual and physical poverity, young gospel workers risking their lives to share (some being imprisoned and beaten - yes....these very days) because they are sooo passionate to get the message out of God's love!
Then he talked about the story of the "Rich Young Ruler" who, feeling that he had done all for God, asked Jesus what more he should do.
It tells us in Mark 10:21 that...
"Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
WOW!!! Go sell EVERYTHING you have!!! What?!!! That's preposterous!!
Yes, that's what the Rich Young Ruler thought as well, as He sadly walked away...
What does "Following Jesus" really mean? How does "forsaking all and giving to the poor" practically play out in our lives today?? I have to admit, I'm not exactly sure of all the details of that answer, but one thing I do know...it means a whole lot more surrender than I have yet done!!
Today as I was helping Alisha get a few necessities from Wal-Mart before she leaves for Florida, I was also looking at a few nice summer tops that caught my eye!
"Now wouldn't that look nice with those tan capri's you have....or with those jean shorts?" a little voice spoke inside my head.
Then another voice countered, "but you don't NEED it Melody....just imagine with that $10 or $20 bucks what you could do for God...you could pay the food bill for a family for a month, or send a set of Bible story books to an orphan...?"
The other voice picked up again, "But I'm not in Cambodia...I'm living in America right now...in a classy culture, and I need to look good! I can't live on just a few items in my wardrobe! I need to have variety and change at least every now and then!"
"But Melody..." the other voice entreated! "Are you more concerned about how you look or what people think, or about what is important to God...the broken people around the world!?"
"Well, obviously God, I am more concerned with you and the hurting people around the world....or I wouldn't be living my life as I am!" I argued back. "And I am already sacrificing in a lot of ways!"
"But..." the voice spoke back... "Are you truly giving your all??? Or just what you can afford to give while still keeping your comfortable lifestyle and plans?"
"Hmmm....." I had some more thinking to do! The tops, as attractive and yet cheap as they were (they were on "SALE" - imagine that), ended up staying on their rack, and I left the store a little lighter in heart and spirit.
I have to ask myself again though, as the battle rages within over the deep core of my life and priorities...
Whose truly on the throne of my heart? Is what I am spending my time and money on (limited as it may be) really counting for helping myself or others to Heaven? Is what I am doing neccesary for my life, or is it just a cushioned excuse to keep from stepping outside a larger comfort zone that I've developed through the many years of my life! Why is it so easy to get entangled in the THINGS of this life??! Why does it always have to be such a struggle? Was Jesus serious when He said, "It's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter Heaven???"
Yes, as I analyze the inadequacy of my own "surrender and service" and of the vast needs all around me, I am tempted to despair! But I also realize that God didn't ask me to take on the world (He already did that) He just asked me to take on ONE DAY, and ONE NEED at a time! And it is my prayer that He will help give me new eyes to see, and a new heart to share, as He transforms my life and spirit into conformity with His own.
If not us...WHO?
If not now...WHEN?
If not here...WHERE?
"Lord, break my heart with the things that break the heart of Jesus..."
*Be watching www.audioverse.org for Martin Kim's Sermons from 07-07-07 "Expect Great Things from God." They should be up and able to download within the next couple days!! And they are worth listening to!!!!
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