God's Top Four Priorities for His Children: Introduction

Have you ever wondered what God's priorities are for your life? I have and the journey to better understanding these priorities has not been an easy one. But, before I dive into this topic, let me say that I am still in process and am still growing in my understanding of God, Truth and Life and how these three realities intertwine together.  

Over the past 10 years I've had the privilege of connecting with people both inside and outside the walls of a church building and across 4 continents (North America, Africa, Asia and Australia). This has definitely had its challenges, but also some really precious and endearing rewards. Bottom line, people are beautiful. It doesn't matter who you are or where you're from, there is beauty in you. Believe it. 

So, as I begin to lay out what I believe are God's top priorities for people, I will submit to you that I am in no means saying that I have all the answers. But, only a helpful framework that has helped me and others in better discerning the movements of God in our lives. I was first taught this by a long time friend and pastor ministering in Taiwan (thanks Dave for your humility and wisdom).

Now, the way these priorities work themselves out in a person's life will be unique to each of us. Though we may at times have some commonalities between our stories, no two stories are ever alike, just as no two people are ever alike. 

My aim in posting this, is to hopefully better help you see the bigger picture, so to speak, so that you can then take this list as a sort of filter or magnifying glass that will bring some greater clarity as you zoom into the uniqueness of your own life story. So, here we go.  

I will first list what I believe to be God's top four priorities for His children (there is more you could add to this list, but grasping these top four is crucial) and then I will expand on them: 

1. Relationship (Salvation) 

2. Christlikeness (Transformation) 

3. Faith (Maturity) 

4.Blessing/Comfort (Prosperity) 

If we can grasp these four priorities in the right order, I believe we will truly experience the greatest happiness and fulfillment for our lives. To say it another way, when we understanding these four priorities in the right order, we will experience the abundant life Jesus promises His followers (John 10:10b)

Now, what I believe has brought great confusion to understanding God's higher priorities for people has been the "prosperity gospel" which in a nut shell emphasizes financial blessing and physical well-being as the main purpose and plan of God for a person. Wikipedia defines it as: 

"a religious belief among some Christians, who hold that financial blessing and physical well-being are always the will of God for them, and that faith, positive speech, and donations to religious causes will increase one's material wealth. Prosperity theology views the Bible as a contract between God and humans: if humans have faith in God, he will deliver security and prosperity."

What the "prosperity gospel" has done is placed what I have listed fourth on the list as number two. It tells people, God saves you and then blesses you. There is little or no mention of becoming like Jesus (transformation) and trials and hardships are interpreted as disobedience and lack of faith. There is real danger in this because it is a distortion of the gospel. 

Now, hear me on this I am not saying that God doesn't want to bless us, I absolutely believe He does, He has and He will! I believe God is a good and generous Father who not only provides for His children, but also blesses and rewards them. What I am saying is that God has a couple higher priorities for us that will at times supersede Him blessing us materially and financially. 

As I have walked alongside people who hold to this distorted understanding of the Gospel, what I have witnessed is that when a trial or hardship comes their way, they almost immediate start thinking that they have done something wrong and will start repenting of every sin that they can think of and/or will oftentimes blame and condemn themselves for not having enough faith. Sound familiar?

But, when we begin to grasp that God has a couple higher priorities for us as His children, then when trials or hardships happen, we have a better understanding of what God might be doing in our lives. Maybe we haven't actually done anything wrong, but God has decided in these trials and hardships to either help us to transform more into the likeness of Jesus or He could be wanting to increase our faith and maturity. But the only way that we can even entertain these options is only if they are actually in our grid of the will of God for His people.  

To be continued....

waiting on You again: Casey Corum (Vineyard Worship)

Have you ever had to wait on God? I am currently in a season of waiting. Waiting for God break in and release His healing. Now my waiting is not passive, but active. In my waiting for God I am still actively praying and fasting. Sometimes, I wonder to myself, "Am I doing enough?" But, then the Holy Spirit eases my anxiety and worry with this Scripture. 

Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV): "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Something that I am in need of right now in my waiting on God is His peace. 

• The peace that reassures me that God hears my prayers.
• The peace that reassures me that God is faithfully with me. 
• The peace that reassures me  that God will break in as my Deliverer. 
• The peace that reassures me that God is my Healer. 

If you are also currently waiting on God at the moment. I pray that you would be active in your waiting through prayer and fasting. What I have found is that prayer and fasting helps to activate our faith as we wait. And it is in this activation of faith that keeps the worry and anxious thoughts and feelings at bay. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 40

What can I say? Today was exciting. Forty days of the Mobile Prayer Station, "it's biblical." Now when I was first starting out forty days of prayer wasn't even on the radar. Personally, I think I was thinking I'd be out more days, but then again what the Lord impressed on my heart throughout this whole adventure was love over obligation. I will write another blog focusing more on reflections and lessons learned throughout the whole of the forty day experience so stay tuned. 

I got to see lots of people today that I've been growing in relationship with from the community which was nice. I've been slowly telling people of my plans of travelling overseas so I've gotten to say some goodbyes. What I've been slowly learning over the years is the importance of saying goodbye. The more I'm able to say goodbye the better I've become at saying hello. I got to do this with quite a few people today which was sad, but also endearing. In saying goodbye I got to reflect and remember just how the other person has impacted my life, how close we've grown and how I will miss them. Saying goodbye has the power to draw us into the depths of our hearts if we allow it. 

There were a few nice surprises today as I got to interpret a dream for Maureen who is the girl I buy my ice coffees from each day. Jose came by to say goodbye and we ended up praying for one another. My dear old friend Glory stopped by whom I haven't seen in like eight years and spent some time together talking and praying. I prayed with a few other friends today from church, as well as, an old childhood friend who just happened to be walking by. So cool! The day ended with Sean, who is a card carrying Coexister who said that he has constructed his own personal religion from lots of other ones. We talked for a bit about faith and life. I ended up praying for him and he started to weep. I told him that he was feeling the presence of God and he agreed. He shared a dream and I asked God to bring interpretation and He did. I love it when God includes me when He draws near to someone. The dream was from God and highly revelatory, I actually saw the lights go on in his eyes as we talked through the interpretation. God is so good!

Lastly, I ended up giving the Mobile Prayer Station sign to my friend Scott Venable who is the pastor of Mosaic Church. We talked and prayed for one another and then He tells me that he will definitely put the sign to use. He shared how he was going to get a street performer permit and continue on with the Mobile Prayer Station. YES! It truly warmed my heart to hear that the vision God gave me has been passed on to someone else who will carry it which is something I've been praying in my heart for over the last few weeks. Thank You Lord! He even said that he was hoping to get some other people in his church to get street performer permits so that they could rotate people through. Wow! Gotta love multiplication. I love the missional focus of what Mosaic Church is doing and have a prophetic feeling that God is going to move mighty through this church to bring spiritual awakening to the area. 

At the end of the day, I know that Jesus used my presence with the Mobile Prayer Station to impact lives both directly and indirectly. I pray that you, who are reading this, were also encouraged and your faith was strengthen as you read how God drew near to people. He loves people and is eager to be in relationship with us. I am definitely looking forward to when I finally get to see Jesus face to face and have Him tell me exactly what He did through the Mobile Prayer Station. Well, this chapter of my life is finished, but there is another one ready to be written/read. I head out to Brisbane, Australia in two days! I've had so much to do in getting ready for this trip and if you continue to read my blog you will discover with me all that God has planned for me while I'm there. Though the future is unknown to me, I find peace in knowing that it is known to God and that my life is in His able, loving, caring Hands. Peace, Gerry.

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 22

In reflecting back on this day, it was filled with a day of conversations with the various people of the community that I have started to build relationships with. Though I didn't get to pray with anyone, I was praying for them in my heart as we talked. Honestly, over the past weeks, I've been feeling in greater measure the weight of this prayer ministry. It's difficult to put yourself out there for people day after day, week after week. Each day has been a day of stepping out of my comfort zone and stepping into the unknown with God. And though I would love to say that I got this down, I don't. Everyday has been a bit of struggle for me because only God knows what's going to happen each day which means I need to trust and have faith in Him.

Standing on the corner offering prayer for people has meant opening myself up to the good, the bad and the ugly. Today was filled with more of the bad and ugly than good which is always disheartening. But, as the Psalmist proclaims, "Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the LORD: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him" (Psalm 91:1-2 NLT). I am continually learning to allow the LORD to be my refuge. I am learning that it's not so much about hardening my heart towards people, but about enduring through their anger, pain and hurt by leaning into God's love for them. This has meant coming to terms with the shallowness of my own love and accepting that on my own I am unable to love people with the kind of love they need, even deserve. But, God has poured His love into me through the Holy Spirit and I need to trust in His love and Spirit living within me. I believe when I do this, I am seeking the refuge of the LORD in the moment. I am understanding more and more that the refuge of the LORD isn't so much about escaping, but about persevering through whatever the day may bring while still remaining faithful, kind, loving and good from moment to moment. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 8

I was once again amazed by God's grace today. So, my friend Nate joined me for about an hour today and while he was there we met two women, Lucy and Ana, who stayed in a nearby apartment complex that my church has been interested in blessing and serving. Not only did we get to pray with them, but Lucy was the woman who, up until a few years ago, organized the activities for the seniors who lived in the building which is exactly what my church has been interested in doing. After brainstorming ideas with her, Lucy gave Nate her contact info. Talk about a God orchestrated appointment. So cool! 

Even though the weather was so wonderfully warm today, some people I encountered still had storm clouds looming over their lives. Case and point, I give you Edwin and Ada who are going through quite a bit of financial stress and anxiety in their lives right now. They actually walked past me and came back around to me. After saying hi to them, the very first thing Edwin said to me was "I wish I could find $1000 on the ground right now." We talked for a little while, but mostly I just listened both to Edwin and Ada, but also to the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God helps to highlight which burdens I need to focus on in prayer and will oftentimes give revelation of what may be the underlying cause while also giving me pictures of hope to share. For Edwin and Ada, God let them know that He sees them and is concerned that they are distressed. 

A new comer today was Larry who complimented me on my burnt orange Converse high tops and asked me what I paid for them. We then proceeded to talk about where to find Converse Allstars at a low price which lead to him talking about why he loves wearing Converse low tops because of an old ankle injury that gets swollen from time to time. Seeing an opportunity, I told him why I was out on the street and asked if I could pray with him and ask God to bring healing to his ankle. He said "yes" and we prayed while bumping fists. I love the diversity of people's personalities and style. I also prayed for blessing and favor over Larry's life. There was no immediate healing that happened, but I'm still glad I asked God for healing for Larry because if we don't pray for healing, healing will never happen. But if we do there is a chance that God will heal. So, no matter the results, I never regret praying for healing for someone. 

Finally, my new friend Lao, the ice cream vender, was out today. We talked about faith while eating one of his very tasty ice cream pops. He said that he has no faith, but that he believed in a higher power. I told him I was a Christian and he stated that he thinks that people humanize God too much and that he has a problem with that. What I was discerning from Lao was that this "higher power" of his was an impersonal being, a nebulous intangible power. So, I ended up sharing my testimony with him and my own personally encounters with God. I shared that it's not only about reading about God in the bible, but also about personally experiencing Him; that knowing God is both understanding and experience. His eyes popped open and I could tell he was interested in encountering and experiencing God. So, I prayed with Lao, asking God "If you are real God, reveal Yourself to Lao." A very simply prayer, but one filled with revelation and power. I have a feeling that my conversations with Lao about God are only just beginning and am looking forward to engaging with him more on the things of faith and life.

Rita Springer: phenomenon

A few weeks back God miraculously grew out one of my legs and then evened them out (for the full story click here). While I have been processing this, what the Holy Spirit has brought to my attention is how I can get easily sidetracked by the supernatural. Meaning, when a miracle happens I can very easily forget the Miracle Worker (God) because I am so captivated by the miracle itself. That's why I love this song, it reminds me that I don't follow God because of the supernatural but because I love Him. "I am not here just to see a phenomenon. I am not here for experiential bliss. I simply come to the feet of the God I serve, the One that I love."

God is a supernatural God, Who works miracles. There is no way of getting around this truth. And this song is a great reminder that witnessing and experiencing the supernatural isn't what we ground our faith in. Rather, our faith needs to be rooted in God Himself. The reason God does miracles is to bring people to faith in Him. But, if our faith is solely rooted in the supernatural, then what we'll have is an immature and shallow faith. "I am not here for the sake of a miracle. I am not here just to see the dead raised. Yes I believe in power supernatural, but that's not why I'm saved." We are saved through a Person, Jesus Christ, in Him is where we must put our faith. 

David Crowder Band: thank You for Hearing me

This song hits really close to home these days because I'm realizing just how much of a gift from God is my faith in Jesus. There are so many people in the world who are searching for something to believe in. My prayer for them is that I hope God guides them to what they are looking for. Ultimately, from my perspective I know that to be God Himself. My life before placing my faith in Jesus and after are like night and day. Before I was lost and wandered aimlessly from one thing to another trying to find satisfaction. Today, I have this satisfaction that I carry around with me because the Holy Spirit dwells within me, His presence dampens the need to find satisfaction elsewhere. 

So, if there is a current anthem to my heart right now this song would be it: "Thank You for loving me....Thank You for finding me....Thank You for hearing me....Thank You for healing me....Thank You for saving me....Thank You for loving me." My heart is so grateful that God has through His grace redirected my faith from so many other things and has placed it firmly upon His one and only amazing Son, Jesus, my Savior and Lord. Thank You God!

What's the anthem of your heart?