In the Boat

Read: Matthew 9

"Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the sea and came to His own city." Matthew 9:1

Examine:

Jesus did not sit around and wait for people come to Him. He was on mission and His mission called Him to be mobile. As God led He moved.

Apply:

The same ministry that Jesus had is the ministry that falls to me. If I pray and ask God to stir and move in my life there are three things from Matthew 9 that I need to expect. First, I have to be willing to lay down my old wineskins. Wineskins for me are my expectations of God, my personal comfort, my image of myself, my view of faith, my attitudes, and my surroundings. If God starts a new work in me all these things are subject to change.

Second, I will have to answer the question, "Do you really believe that God can do this?" The movement of God in my life will lead me to a crisis of faith. He will carry me into the teeth of something that is far stronger than I am on my own. The crisis is unpredictable in its form but guaranteed in its coming. Pursuing God's will in my life will inevitably lead me beyond the edge of my faith.

Finally, I will have to allow my vision to change. So often my desire to see God do something new in my life is built around Him making my life better. That is not how God works. Jesus looked around Him, saw people through God's eyes, had compassion on them, and poured Himself out to see their lives align with God. My journey of faith and the working of God in my life is not about me. It is about God's heart to redeem the world. I have to learn to look at the world and see God's harvest; not my personal playground.

Pray:

Father,

The one thing that is certain in my life right now is that You are changing everything. I feel like I am in the boat, crossing the sea, and heading to a new place. I have a lot of questions stirring inside of me right now. As I look ahead I see the crises of faith looming on the horizon like storms brewing over the sea. I feel inadequate and yet I find myself at perfect peace. I know that You are leading me and that is the only comfort I have right now. I have put my hand in Yours and I choose to rest this morning.

There is not one single aspect of me or my life that I want more than I want a new movement of You in my life. Open my eyes to see the areas of my life that I am holding back. I do not want to cling to any of the old wineskins in my life. I ask for fresh skins and new wine. I pray that in moments where the challenges exceed my faith I will choose to press ahead; trusting You are all that You claim to be. I ask that You continue to shatter my heart with compassion and send me into the world to join in gathering Your harvest.