AD's February 2016 Devotional

Team of teams: How miracles happen.

Their coach was a driven man, obsessed with winning.  How did Coach Brooks expect an amateur team of USA collegiate hockey players from different Universities to defeat a seasoned professional team from the Soviet Union?   The Soviet’s had won six of the seven previous Olympic games and were considered invincible and unbeatable. The 1980 Olympics would be no different.

It would take a miracle.   That miracle happened during a gruesome practice with the coach demanding yet another round of sprints.   After each sprint, the Coach shouted out, “Rob, who do you play for?”  Rob replied, “The University of Minnesota!”  The sprints continued.   “Dave, who do you play for?” Dave retorted, “Boston University, Coach!”   The team was ready to collapse from exhaustion, yet the coach continued.   “Mike, who do you play for?”  Finally, the team captain shouted out, “Team USA coach, that’s who we play for!”  
 
The sprints stopped and the beginning of their “Miracle on Ice” began.   Team USA beat the Soviet team in a moment of history that Sports Illustrated magazine called the top sports’ moment of the 20th Century.  Team USA took down their invincible opponents.   The victory started when they became a team.

Teams.   They are a biblical concept.   Philippians 1:3-5 (NIV) puts it this way, “I thank my God every time I remember you…I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.”

Miracles happen when we fully realized who we are and Who we serve.   Whether you serve in a smaller ministry team or a large one, we’re still part of a team of teams with a Divine Call of God on your lives.    Let’s live up to our identity and believe God for even greater miracles this year.

AD's January 2016 Devotional

Fully Embracing God’s Sovereignty in 2016

Who or what will be in control of your life in 2016?    A Sovereign God or a random set of circumstances?   God’s Sovereignty evokes a sense of security conceptually but often distress pragmatically.   We can see this in Jesus’ birth. 

Jesus’ birth was prophesized to be in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).   It was only one of the many details of His life that was prophesized.  Statistically if only eight of those hundreds of prophecies were fulfilled, it would be at 1 in 10¹⁷ odds (“Science Speaks,” Stoner).   God’s Sovereign control of the minute details of Jesus’ life has strengthened believers throughout the centuries.  He is a Sovereign God that we can trust implicitly!

Yet, do we fully embrace God’s Sovereignty in the details of OUR lives when we feel “out of control?”   Think of Joseph and Mary.  Caesar Augustus’ decree for a census disrupted their lives at such an inconvenient time.   Their forced journey to Bethlehem accentuated their powerlessness in light of the almost god-like power of the Emperor.  Their lives could have been marked by resentment but instead they fully embraced God’s control of their lives.  The Messiah was born when and where He needed to be born and all of our faith was strengthened.

Regardless of your present circumstances, fully embrace that you serve a Sovereign God Who is orchestrating the minute details of YOUR lives.  As Proverbs 19:21 (TLB) affirms, “Man proposes, but God disposes.”   Trust Him with the details of your life and ministry right now and throughout this New Year.

AD's December 2015 Devotional

 

I See You Seeing Me!

“Enough of this!” screamed Hagar’s inner voice, as she fled from her mistress’ abuse.  After Sarai had forced her to conceive a son for Abram, she felt used and alone but God had not abandoned her.  The angel of the Lord found her beside a spring of water in the wilderness and asked, “Where have you come from and where are you going? “I’m running away!” she replied. “Go back and there I will bless you…” God exhorted her.

In that moment of vulnerability she discovered God’s sustaining love.  Hagar exclaimed, “You are the God who sees me.” She also said, “Have I truly seen the One who sees me?” (Gen16: 7-14 NLT). In Hagar’s extreme circumstances with a challenging pregnancy, she sees God seeing her and that revelation changes everything.  God’s place for her growth was in her trials, not away from them.  (Devotion ideas from a sermon by Cheryl Jamison--Regional Retreat.)

Seeing the One who sees us in all of our circumstances is a key to our maturity.  There is a special mirror called the infinity mirror where one mirror reflects the image of a paired mirror in such a way that there is a depth of images of what appears to be a thousands mirrors.  In Hagar’s moment of despair, God’s infinite love invades her space, changes her attitude and gives her a depth of understanding of how much God loves her.

Whatever your circumstances, choose to look deeply into God’s infinite mirror of love as you fulfill your calling with His Grace and His Mercy.

AD's November 2015 Devotional

Moving your witness from the abstract to the concrete

A famous child psychologist, known for affirming children, had a sidewalk poured in front of his house.   When the neighborhood children wrote their names in the fresh cement, he lost it, “You stupid kids, get off my property.”   The neighbors were shocked and confronted him.   He defended his outburst saying, “It’s true, I do love kids but only in the abstract…I can’t stand them when they’re in my concrete!” 

Hopefully we are not like that psychologist, loving people in the abstract but not connecting with them in our real lives, in our concrete.   We need to reach people in where we actually live!   Here a simple formula on how to keep it real, i.e. how to R.E.A.C.H. people:  Keep it Relevant and Relational, Easy, Anointed, Christ-centered and Honest.    

We also need to watch our attitude!   When Jonah was called to a specific group of people that he resented, he rebelled because he was afraid that God “was a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.”   Jonah 4:2.  When our “righteousness” keeps us from loving the very people that God loves, we need an attitude check.   Let’s keep our witness fresh as God keeps us broken and our witness authentic.

From SO CAL devotions: https://vimeo.com/142902026