Receiving from God

Receiving from God.

Everyone has received from God. Life, abilities, talents. Everything.
Everyone is born with different talents, inclinations.

But talent is not enough. You need to develop your talents. Beethoven was incredibly talented but he worked extremely hard to write great music.

The same thing applies to spiritual gifts. John Wesley was wonderfully gifted to preach, teach, evangelise and write spiritual literature, but he did not achieve any results without very hard work.

CS Lewis was a wonderful Christian writer and a profound original thinker, but his books did not just fall out of the sky. He was an academic teacher at Oxford and Cambridge Universities. He was an expert in English literature. He was a professional thinker and writer. God used his talents and skills to win many people to faith in Jesus, people who were not attracted by any form of conventional Christian religion, whether Anglican, Catholic, Evangelical or fundamentalist.

Jesus was not just a preacher but also a story teller. God used story tellers like CS Lewis to show children and adult intellectuals the eternal truths of the Bible.

One Christian writer tells how the Narnia fantasy stories taught him to believe in the Christian values of right and wrong, and the battle of good against evil. He explained that conventional Christianity turned him off.

“Why did one find it so hard to feel as one was told one ought to feel about God or the sufferings of Christ? I thought the chief reason was that one was told one ought to. An obligation to feel can freeze feelings.” Barney Zwartz

We can receive from God by responding intuitively to music and stories.

We can also receive from God through prayer and God’s answers to our prayers or the prayers of others for us.

Sometimes answers to prayer come quickly and easily. You are running late for an appointment and you ask God for a place to park in a crowded city. Less than a minute after your prayer, a car pulls out of a parking place in front of you.

Once I cried out to God from the depth of my heart for a friend who had taken a fatal overdose. I prayed non stop for hours. A week later my friend recovered completely without any physical damage.

Then there are persistent prayers. I prayed for my unbelieving parents to believe in Jesus. I prayed for my mother for 25 years and for my father for 40 years. Both made peace with God on their deathbeds.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Mt 7:7–8 NIV

Goals, Callings and Priorities

 It is so important to have goals for your life. Without clear goals in life, we go round in circles without achieving anything significant.

If you have ten priorities, you have no priorities.

But it can also be dangerous to have too few priorities. There are very successful doctors, preachers and business people who have neglected their spouses or children.

I love classical music. When I think of the greatest composers, I always see amazing achievements but abject failures in their family lives.

But one composer shone with heavenly glory.

Johann Sebastian Bach was so devoted to music that he damaged his eyesight studying sheet music by candlelight. He was extremely focused, but his first priority was the love of God.

He was also a faithful husband and a very good father.

He had many children and some of them also became excellent composers.

There are fanatics who only have one goal in life, but there are also duty-bound people who only want to be good Christians without a clear idea of a particular goal or personal calling from God.

What would it be like if Paul only wanted to be a good Christian and nothing more?
What if Johann Sebastian Bach only wanted to be a good father and church organist and nothing more?

Do you only have one goal in life? Perhaps you should ask yourself whether you are perhaps too self-centred or whether you are neglecting some important duties.

Do you have a clear idea of your identity and calling or do you only have a vague idea that you should be a good Christian?

Ask God to show you what he has created you for.

Every person is unique. God has created you for important tasks. Not only famous people are important in God's eyes. God has a plan for your life.

We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith;

if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach;

if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. Rom 12:6–8 NIV

You may think you are not a prophet or teacher, but you can study the Bible and teach your children.

You pray for someone and an encouraging word comes to you for that person. Maybe you should share that thought with the person.

Maybe you are a practical person. You are a good gardener. Your neighbour is sick and his garden is unkempt. If you work in his garden, you might be able to win your neighbour for Jesus.

If you like to play the piano or guitar, maybe you can visit a retirement home and encourage the elderly with music.

We all have talents and abilities that we can use for Jesus.

What is your thing? Who needs your help? When you pray about it, what comes to mind?

God wants you to Succeed

 I love success. It feels good. God doesn't want his children to fail. God wants to help you make progress in his work with your talents.

Jesus told of a rich man who entrusted three of his servants with a considerable sum of money each. They were to invest the money productively. They were to act wisely and diligently.

When the rich man returned from a long journey, the first two servants had invested with great success.

The first servant reported, ‘Master, I invested your money and made ten times the original amount!’

“ ‘Well done!’ the king exclaimed. ‘You are a good servant. You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, so you will be governor of ten cities as your reward.’ Lk 19:16–17 NLT

The second had brought in five more of his five pounds of silver, and he was rewarded in the same way.

But the third was frightened and did not want to take any risks.

“But the third servant brought back only the original amount of money and said, ‘Master, I hid your money and kept it safe.

I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn’t yours and harvesting crops you didn’t plant.’ Lk 19:20–21 NLT

The rich man was angry and the fearful servant was dismissed.

Many say that Jesus accomplished everything on the cross and we can do nothing to earn our salvation.

This is certainly true. But a wise preacher once said:

Jesus didn't accomplish everything so that you could accomplish nothing.

Success is good, but not always good.

If you use your talents to build a big porn company like Hugh Heffner, the founder of Playboy, you will burn in hell unless you repent and get God's forgiveness.

If you use your spiritual gifts to build a big church and get rich, but the members look to you instead of going into the world as disciples of Jesus, you may finally get into God's heaven, but not as a hero of faith.

Success is good when your success is the work of God in you, through you and with you.

I love success. It feels good.
God doesn't want his children to fail. God wants to help you move forward in his work with your talents.

What is your Calling?

 Many years ago I heard a guest preacher. He was a missionary and he challenged the Christians to come forward to lay down their lives for missions. At least twenty Christians came forward, but no one became a missionary.

What is your calling? Have you asked God?
If you have a God-given purpose, are you practically involved in fulfilling that calling?

There are some Christians who are fully committed to fulfilling their calling. Without these Christians, God's kingdom on earth would perish. Thank God that will never happen.

But we must never sit in a cosy corner and leave all the responsibility for God's kingdom to a few heroes. Unfortunately, there are too many such passive Christians. That's why we're not seeing revival yet.

Most Christians are not called to lead a church or preach from the pulpit. Unfortunately, we have a misguided tradition where everything revolves around the pastor in the pulpit. Preaching has no value if Christians are not activated as dynamic disciples.

What is your calling? What does your heart burn for?

But perhaps you are overburdened by everyday duties and tasks.

Peter, John and their brothers had to leave their work as fishermen to fulfil their calling, but most of us are not called to do this.

Paul was more than full time in ministry, but he often worked as a tent maker as well.

Luke was not a prominent preacher, but he was well educated. He researched the stories of Jesus and wrote the Gospel of Luke.

You have talents and abilities from God. You have an important role in God's plan, but you can only fulfil your potential if you take time to develop your gifts.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. Ecc 9:10 NIV

Do you feel obliged to always satisfy the wishes of others?

If you strive to always fulfil the expectations of others, you will always be tired and frustrated, and never reach God's goal for your life.

Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Is 55:6 NIV

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isa 30:21 NIV

It is rare to hear the audible voice of God, but if you are open to the leading of God, He will direct you.

If you always fulfil the wishes of others, you will always turn away from God's purpose for your life, even if you always behave properly.

Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” Mt 8:21–22 NIV

Jesus did not mean that we should not attend funerals, but he insists that God's calling must be our first priority.

Two Ways to Receive from God

 To rest in the Lord and get the things done: both are important. Wisdom is to find out, when it's time for which one. (Sarah Fischer, Swiss preacher)

God has ways of giving, and so there are two ways of receiving from God. Some of God's gifts require serious effort on our part to appropriate.

Great musicians like Bach and Handel had amazing musical gifts, but they worked incredibly hard to develop their gifts. Some of God's miracles can only come through intense, repeated or prolonged prayer and sometimes also fasting.

Other times, God just gives you a present that falls in your lap because you are his child and he loves you.

So I say to you, Ask and keep on asking, and it shall be given you; seek and keep on seeking, and you shall find; knock and keep on knocking, and the door shall be opened to you.

For everyone who asks and keeps on asking receives; and he who seeks and keeps on seeking finds; and to him who knocks and keeps on knocking, the door shall be opened. Luke 11:9-10 (AMP)

If God wants you to reach out and extend yourself to appropriate His gift, you will miss out if you just sit and wait for it to happen. On the other hand, if God just wants to drop a blessing on you as a present, you can miss out by fasting and praying or working hard. I believe he is right.

We can limit God by expecting Him to give no more than we pray, work, expect and proclaim. God loves to surprise His children with little blessings but also sometimes overwhelming great gifts.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, Eph 3:20 NIV

In my youth I studied German as a foreign language and I worked very hard at it. Over the years, God has used me to minister to German-speaking people. I preach, prophesy and blog in German.

Writing a blog in my second language involves serious work. I often refer to a dictionary to find just the right word. Writing in English is easier. It also took me some time to become proficient in typing in German on my computer, and I still type faster in English.

But sometimes I just get a German message that flows into me and through me to others. I had a German colleague in my workplace in Australia. When she left our workplace, I sat down and wrote a lovely poem for her in German. It was so easy.

"Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?
Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?

If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" Luke 11:1-13 NIV

 If you are married, you will know that marriage is not easy. It requires work, sacrifice and patience. But if you have a good marriage, you will find that it is often easy and delightful to give and receive loving gifts. So it is with our relationship with God. 

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. James 1:17 NKJV

God helps His Children to Succeed

I love success. It feels good. God does not want his children to fail. God wants to help you progress in your work with your talents.

Jesus told of a rich man who entrusted three of his servants each with a considerable sum of money. They were to invest the money productively. They were to act wisely and diligently.

When the rich man returned from a long journey, the first two servants had invested with great success.

The first servant reported, ‘Master, I invested your money and made ten times the original amount!’ 

“ ‘Well done!’ the king exclaimed. ‘You are a good servant. You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, so you will be governor of ten cities as your reward.’ Luke 19:16–17 NLT

“The next servant reported, ‘Master, I invested your money and made five times the original amount.’ Luke 19:18 NLT

But the third was frightened and did not want to take any chances.

“But the third servant brought back only the original amount of money and said, ‘Master, I hid your money and kept it safe.

I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn’t yours and harvesting crops you didn’t plant.’ Luke 19:20–21 NLT

The rich man was angry and the anxious servant was fired.

Many say that Jesus accomplished everything on the cross and there is nothing we can do to earn our salvation.

This is certainly true. But a wise preacher once said:

Jesus didn't accomplish everything so that you could accomplish nothing. (Bill Johnson)

Success is good, but not always good.

If you use your talents to build a big pornography company, like Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy, you will burn in hell unless you repent and receive God's forgiveness.

If you use your spiritual gifts to build a big church and get rich, but the members look to you instead of reaching out to the world as followers of Jesus, you go to heaven when you die, but not as a faith hero.

Success is good if your success is the work of God in you, through you and with you.

I love success. It feels good. God doesn't want his children to fail. God wants to help you progress in your work with your talents.

If your work is his work and your success is His success, you will be really successful.