Category: Throwback Thursday

Prayer, Throwback Thursday

Throwback Thursday ~ Pray for Revival

Michelle Lesley

Originally published September 18, 2009

 

Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; Acts 3:19

Prostrate yourself before the Lord in humility and prayer:
But He gives a greater grace, therefore it says, “GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.” James 4:6

Repent of known sin.
Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent. Rev. 3:19

Ask God to reveal any hidden areas of sin in your life.
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Ps. 139:23-24

Yearn for a deeper level of relationship with God.
O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water. Ps. 63:1

Forsake complacency about your spiritual life.
You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. Jer. 29:13

Obey everything God commands, even when it is hard, humbling, inconvenient, or costly.
Samuel said, “Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. I Sam. 15:22

Request that God will unleash His Holy Spirit, empowering your life, and sweeping through your church.
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? Luke 11:13

Return to your First Love.
Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “Return to Me,” declares the LORD of hosts, that I may return to you,” says the LORD of hosts. Zech. 1:3

Expect God to work mightily.
But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me. Micah 7:7

View prayer as a high priority, just as Jesus did.
But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. Luke 5:16

Invite others to pray with you for revival.
They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Acts 2:42

Voraciously desire that God be glorified.
Be exalted above the heavens, O God; Let Your glory be above all the earth. Ps. 57:5

Agree with God about His desires for your life and your church.
Then Moses came and recounted to the people all the words of the LORD and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the LORD has spoken we will do!” Ex. 24:3

Lift up the name of Jesus.
And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself. John 12:32

Sanctification, Throwback Thursday

Throwback Thursday ~ Pursue the Imperishable

Michelle Lesley

Originally Published June 30, 2010


3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

4 to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,

5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

6 In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials,

7 so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,

9 obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.

13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,

15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;

16 because it is written, “YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY.”

17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth;

18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers,

19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.

20 For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you

21 who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,

23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.
1 Peter 1:3-9, 13-23

Luke 11:12 says that if we ask God for an egg, He won’t give us a scorpion. But sometimes, when I ask God for an egg, He gives me a Denny’s Grand Slam instead.

Such was the case with my Bible study this morning. I asked God to speak to me through His word about something that’s a concern for me right now, thinking He would lead me to one of those comforting passages that says that He cares for me (1 Peter 5:7, Matthew 11:28). I only ordered an egg, but God knew I needed something more filling and nutritious. Something I could chew on for a while. Something that would stick to my ribs.

So He served me up a heaping helping of the first chapter of 1 Peter.

I’ve been asking God to teach me to need Him more. No, not just “need”. NEED!!! And guess what I’ve learned– God delights to answer prayers like that. Guess what else I’ve learned– He doesn’t usually do it by waving a magic wand over your head and instantly making you the way you want to be. He brings circumstances or people into your life that you have to walk through and work through. Along the way, He’s quietly transforming your character to make you more Christ-like. It’s like nuclear physics homework, only not as easy or fun.

(Personally, I would prefer a magic wand. It’s easier, faster, and requires nothing on my part. On the other hand, Cinderella got the magic wand treatment, and where did that get her? She didn’t learn to sew a designer gown, shop for comfortable shoes, or make her own travel arrangements. How could she fend for herself the next time there was a ball? But I digress…)

So, I find myself in this situation where God is teaching me to really NEED Him. I’ve done literally everything I can do on my end. The only thing left is for God to move. And, boy, do I need Him to move. Like, yesterday.

So, I’m praying and praying and praying about this situation and God helped me understand that I’m missing the point. The whole point of this little exercise is not about the end result (the resolution of the situation). That’s temporal. It’s not going to last. The point is what God is teaching me as He walks me through it. That’s imperishable. Eternal.

And so, I pursue the imperishable.

Because I was redeemed –bought back– not with perishable seed (23) or with perishable things like gold or silver (18), but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ (19), and until I reach my inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled, and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for me (4),

I will forsake lusting after the perishable (14) and pursue obedience and holiness (15-16), which are imperishable.

I will greatly rejoice whenever I am distressed by perishable trials (6), because the proof of my faith –which is imperishable– even proof by fire, is more precious, more valuable than all the perishable gold or material things in this world (7).

Pursue the imperishable things of God. They are more precious than food, shelter, safety, family, money, reputation, things. They are eternal.

Sanctification, Throwback Thursday

Throwback Thursday ~ With the First Fruits (and all the subsequent ones, as well)

Michelle Lesley

Originally published July 22, 2010

Honor the LORD with your wealth
and with the firstfruits of all your produce;
Proverbs 3:9

Ouch. God really convicted me of something yesterday. The verse above, in its proper context, is clearly talking about honoring God with our material increase: our money, our possessions, the tangible fruit of our labor.

I’m a stay at home mom. My paycheck does not come in the form of dollars and cents, but in hours and minutes. My wealth is time, and lately, I haven’t been honoring God with it.

I confess, I have workaholic tendencies. I hit the ground running when I get up and don’t stop until I go to bed. We just moved into a new house. There’s a mountain of work to be done, and that’s how I’ve been spending my wealth of time. I have squeezed God in when it was convenient for me. I have given God the leftovers of my time; the scraps from the table He Himself has seen fit to bless me with. I have pushed Him aside and lavished my wealth on work.

I don’t want to “make time for God” any more. I want Him to so consume my heart, my mind, and my spirit that I can’t tear myself away. I want to be engulfed in passion for communion with Him. He is only honored when I give Him what He is rightfully due– everything.

Sanctification, Throwback Thursday

Throwback Thursday ~ Going to Pot

Michelle Lesley

When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing twenty or thirty gallons each. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” So they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it to him. When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom, and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.”
John 2:3-10

Much has been said, and many words written, about Jesus’ first miracle– the turning of the water into wine at the wedding of Cana. Why was this first miracle a miracle that put Jesus in the position of a caterer? Why not a healing? What did the disciples think? Was it really wine or just grape juice? And so on.

But I don’t believe I’ve ever heard anybody look at this account from the perspective of the waterpots.

What was it about those waterpots that made Jesus decide to use them? People used the water in them for washing their hands and possibly their dishes. They were common. Utilitarian. Probably not very clean. Why didn’t Jesus call for golden pitchers or silver goblets for the fine wine He was making?

The waterpots were close to Jesus.

The wedding Jesus was attending was in a small town, in an average home. It was likely that the hosts didn’t even own goblets or pitchers made of silver or gold. If they did, they certainly didn’t own enough large ones to hold all the wine Jesus was about to make. Gold and silver containers would have been far away in a palace or a wealthy home. The waterpots were close to Him, ready and available.

The waterpots had a great capacity for being filled.

We’re talking 120-180 gallons here. Your bathtub holds about 60 gallons when completely filled, so this would have been the equivalent of two to three completely full bathtubs of wine. Pitchers and goblets wouldn’t cut it.

The waterpots were willing to get dirty so others could get clean.

(Ok, so I realize I’m anthropomorphizing, but just go with me for a minute.) Those waterpots stood there year after year providing clean water for dirty people. They didn’t consider themselves too good to be used for handwashing. They didn’t pick and choose how or when they were used. They just stood there and fulfilled their purpose thanklessly, without complaint that they were being used or getting dirty. They were willing to take on a humble task, and Jesus took them and did a great work through them.

The waterpots were usable.

When Jesus told the servants to fill the waterpots with water, no one said, “Oh no, that’s the good china! You can’t use those!” The waterpots themselves were accustomed to being used. That’s what they were made for.

The waterpots also didn’t put up a fuss when Jesus wanted to use them for a new purpose. They didn’t say, “We’re too old to change,” or “We’ve been doing this for years. Who are You to tell us to do somethng new?” They were at their Master’s bidding.

What about us? Sometimes we want God to do great things through us like He did with the waterpots, but we don’t want to be like the waterpots. We want to be gold pitchers or silver goblets. We want to be special, not humble. Pretty, not getting dirty. Served, not serving. Our way, not His way.

Are you close to Jesus?

Do you, through prayer and study of the Word, have a great capacity for being filled?

Are you willing to get dirty so others can be cleansed by the gospel?

Are you usable?

Maybe “going to pot” isn’t such a bad thing after all.

Church, Throwback Thursday, Worship

Throwback Thursday ~ Rolling Out the Welcome Wagon

Michelle Lesley

Originally published August 25, 2010

The LORD said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your supplication, which you have made before Me; I have consecrated this house which you have built by putting My name there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually. I Kings 9:3

As Golden Girl Sophia would say, “Picture it:”

After church one Sunday, a friend says, “Why don’t you come over to my house tomorrow night for dinner?”

So, the appropriate time comes on Monday evening, and you drive over to her house. The door is standing open because she is expecting you, and you’re familiar enough with each other that you feel comfortable just walking on in.

As you’re walking in, you see your friend standing there, and you say to her, “I invite you into this house! You are welcome here!”

Anything seem a little off about that?

Well, of course that seems strange. It’s her house.

But that’s what is taking place in churches all over America every Sunday morning. I saw it in a televised local church service last week. The worship leader stood up to lead the first song and said, “God we welcome you into this place!” I’ve heard others say things like, “Lord, we invite you into this house this morning!” We sing songs like Holy Spirit, Thou art Welcome and Lord, we Invite You.

‘Scuse me? Isn’t the church God’s house?

Of course, it isn’t God’s house in the same way the temple was God’s house, in that there isn’t a holy of holies where the actual presence of God resides. On the other hand, I wouldn’t go so far as to say that it’s only a building, like the post office or a doughnut shop.

At some point, way back when, or maybe even recently, a body of Believers got together and asked God to give them a place where they could worship Him. God saw fit to answer that prayer. He provided the land, the permits, and every brick, nail, and piece of sheetrock. He allowed His name to be placed there when we decided to call it “Grace Fellowship”, “St. Luke’s”, or “First Baptist”. He protects that building and allows it to stand as a testimony to the community: God, and God’s people, can be found here.

It’s not your church. It’s not my church. It’s God’s church. And it exists for His glory.

But somewhere along the way, we’ve forgotten that. Somewhere along the way, we gave God an eviction notice and became squatters on His property. How arrogant have we become that we strut into church as though we own the place, and dare to invite Him, to welcome Him into His own house as though He were a guest? How dare we?

Maybe it’s partly because we no longer have a holy of holies that we don’t see God’s house as sacred. “Ah,” you may say, “but that’s Old Testament thinking. Now we know that where two or three are gathered in His name, He is there in their midst. (Matthew 18:20)”

Really?

When it’s my church, my comfort, my pew, my ministry that nobody else better touch, my style of music, my opinion about how long the sermon should be, my feelings that got hurt, my idea of how things should operate, what I got out of the service, are we really gathering in His name?

Welcome, Lord. Are You sure You want to come in?