Deeper Still by phil mccallum | Archive

Right-wise-ness Micah 6:5

No Comments 10 July 2007

Phil pointing out the way to Leslieâ€™s parentâ€™s house to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.

Scripture

And remember your journey from Acacia Grove to Gilgal,
when I, the Lord , did everything I could
to teach you about my faithfulness. Micah 6:5

Observation

How can we learn the right way to take in life?

All of life is a journey. Permanence is an illusion. At best we can re-arrange the furniture in the hotel room but there is always another day’s travel toward heaven. Putting us on the right road is only half of the struggle the Lord has with us. The other job he has to do is to get the road into us so that the road map becomes part of our heart as the ways of God are tattooed on the soul.

Journeys are designed by the Lord to teach us about him. A journey is a state of constant change and it is there that we best see clearly God who never changes. Throughout the Bible whenever the Lord wanted to introduce a leader to something new about himself he took him on a journey. Abraham was roused out of the comforts of Ur , young Daniel was kidnapped from the palace and sent back to the land of Abraham while even Jesus kept his disciples in a state of constant flux to make them more receptive to truth.

Of all the journeys Micah could have mentioned the one from Acacia Grove to Gilgal was probably not on the top of the postcard list. Acacia Grove was a black hole where the people had fallen into gross immorality. Gilgal was remembered with a wince as the place where 600,000 men were circumcised. Say no more. Between those events were their first battles and victories. It was on that road they finally took to heart that to God righteousness is never an idea to be talked about, it is always action to be taken. He carved the action of righteousness into their hearts so they would never forget no matter what road they took.

Application

There are seasons of life where the Lord makes the way demanding and clear like the journey from Acacia Grove to Gilgal. Then there are other seasons on the other side of the Jordan where it seems that there are many roads and many options all of which seem good. It’s our faithful journey on the tough road that helps us navigate well when we move on to the next stage of the journey where many opportunities open up. When the road is in our heart we never need a map for we sense the right way to take.

Prayer

Father, thank you for the tough seasons of my life. Thank you for the times at Acacia Grove where you have been uncompromising with me. Thank you for the times like Gilgal when you asked for everything. Thank you too not just for the other side of the Jordan but for the road map in my heart that helps me to journey well when there seem to be so many options. Keep me close to your righteousness so that I am always wise to the ways that are right. Amen.

Prayer

High Decibel Prayers Hebrews 5:7-10

No Comments 08 July 2007

Here are friends in Hawaii praying for our ministry.

Scripture

While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. Even though Jesus was Godâ€™s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. And God designated him to be a High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.Hebrews 5:7-10

Observation

Jesus shouted not because God was deaf but because he needed to put heart into his prayers. Itâ€™s good to know that we can shout once in awhile like a man who has shut his finger in the door. Shouting helps us to process the pain.What changed Godâ€™s heart in Jesusâ€™ prayer was not his volume but the heart of his prayer. He was heard because of his deep reverence for God.

Isnâ€™t it odd to think that shouting is a sign of reverence? But there is a deep respect in desperation for it means that we believe that God is the only answer. Desperation is one way that we honor the great capacity of the Lord.

Application

Let me reminisce about high decibel prayers.I was a young pastor percolating with vision. The entrance to our new church building was on a busy road on the crest of a hill. The worship center was tucked away in a valley away from public view.

With my know-it-all enthusiasm I knew the solution. In the days when most churches in town had rickety hand-painted signs, I had seen a church with an illuminated plexi-glass sign, 15 feet tall with movable track lettering. Today thatâ€™s ho-hum, but in the 80â€™s it had never been done by any church in our town. I knew we needed that sign. So in 1988 I wrote on a little prayer card, â€œLord, give us a sign with moveable track letters so that as cars drive up the road they will receive a blessing.â€

After four years of praying weekly for the sign, time came to ask the elders to put it up. We were on the verge of opening the building. It made sense to invite the community. The money was there to pay for it, but the elders wanted carpet in the new building first.

What good was carpet, I reasoned, if no one could find the front door of the church? So I turned my anger into prayer. I drove to the state forest and hid among the trees. I began to pray. As I prayed I could see the 24,000 cars per day that drove past the front door of the church. I knew he loved these lost people. So I started asking the Lord for a sign. My volume grew until the bark peeled from the trees. Then as soon as it had started I felt that I was done. I drove to my office at peace.

When I came back to the office the phone rang. It was a lady in the church. She explained how her auntie had passed away some months before. She had inherited a large portion of her estate. She wanted the church to have a sign on the main road and she wanted to donate the funds to pay for it. The cost was $7,500 and she would pay for it.

She insisted we use the best in the sign industry. We ended up not just with a first class sign but great heart in it as well. One of the lost friends I had been praying for heard about our plans. He volunteered to lay the bricks for the foundation. As I helped him to lay each stone I thought that only the Lord could have a lost man erect a sign to guide lost people. Within a few years he said yes to Christ, but not before that sign led many home to Jesus. That sign and its changing messages went on for the next 10 years to transform the lives of people driving up that hill. We averaged 2 or 3 calls per week from the community of people who liked our sayings. We had one taxi driver who would do a u-turn so he could read the quote on the reverse side of the signboard. We had one story of a lady who read a message and drove on to give her life to Christ. We had another story of a lady given great hope as she drove to her chemotherapy appointment. Best of all, the first Christmas after the sign went up our congregation tripled in size because neighbors read our sign and came to church.

It was worth shouting in the State Forest to see that happen.

Prayer

Iâ€™m shouting Lord because I know you can hear and you alone can make a difference.

Jesus, Uncategorized

Stuck on Jesus

No Comments 07 July 2007

Press the arrow to listen to this worship song while you read today’s devotion.

All Because of Jesus Steve FeeÂ

Scripture
“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.” (Hebrews 4:14)

Observation

The Christian faith is not a way of living; it is total devotion to pursuing One Person. Jesus says, “Follow me” and we are off. Keeping pace with Jesus is an all absorbing life adventure.

I was in Detroit at rush hour lost in the tangle of freeways of Motor City. I had no map and it was in the days before cell phones. So I tailed my brother’s car so closely you could have assumed that I was being towed. I didn’t want to be lost. My call in life is to track Jesus like that.

Peter learned to stick close to Jesus. Jesus called him, “Peter follow me.” When the Lord later gave Peter the chance to reconsider, Peter’s addiction to Jesus became plain by his response, “Lord where else will I go?” Sure he wandered but after the Resurrection he came back again and never let go.

In fact legend tells us that after Nero’s persecution of Christians in Rome that Peter fled the city only to be met by Jesus returning to the capitol. When he asked Jesus why he was walking back into danger, Jesus is reported to have said that he was going to die in Rome for no one would die for him. Whether this story is true or not isn’t important, because the facts are plain. Peter did follow Jesus to the end and died by crucifixion in Rome just as Jesus prophesied that he would. Peter never flinched from his life call no matter how tough it was.

Application

It isn’t enough to be interested in Jesus, I’m called to be stuck on him. Jesus calls me to trust him and to never stop holding on. That means I must never doubt God’s good intentions and be at peace even when Jesus slips from my view. I may be lost but he will always find me.

Prayer

Father I want to be stuck on Jesus, to cling to him and to trust him. He is my Companion, my Provider, and my Deliverer. He is all I need. Amen.

Accountability, Bible, Devotions, God's Voice, God's Will

Today’s Report

No Comments 06 July 2007

Press the arrow to listen to worship while you read today’s entry.

Mandisa God Speaking

Scripture
“But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. “TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME.” (Hebrews 3:13, 15)

Observation
What would happen if I used last week’s paper to forecast today’s weather?

After all isn’t it a weather report and isn’t it printed in a newspaper? Isn’t that enough?

Of course it isn’t. To know whether I need an umbrella or sunscreen I need today’s report. Conditions change from wipers to swimsuits depending on the current forecast.

What if I based my spiritual journey today on last week’s journal or even last month’s sermon? The word is true enough, but it might not be the word for today.

Application

If I am not in daily contact with the word I will be deceived. In fact if I am not in contact daily with growing believers who are also in the word I can get off track. I am liable to be deceived by degrees. I will be hardened slowly.

Prayer
Father, keep me daily in the word and in the company of those who hear you better than I do. Don’t let me be deceived. Amen.

Motives

Faithful Hebrews 3:2, 5, 12, 19

No Comments 06 July 2007

I love clean windows. My kids call me OC which apparently isnâ€™t a good label to have. I call it leadershipâ€¦just keeping the vision clear.

Scripture

He was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was in all His house. Now Moses was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken later; but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house–whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end. Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. So we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief. Hebrews 3:2, 5, 12, 19

Observation

What makes a faithful man? You know, the kind who has earned a gold watch and the respect of those who seek his advice not his business card? The answer is locked up in the word â€œfaithfulâ€. He is a man â€œfull of faithâ€. Because of that he can endure when times are hard, funds are low and tension is high. A faithful man has found a navigation point not on board his rolling vessel; his eyes scan the horizon for the North Star of stability in God to lead him home.

His faithfulness is not fixed on a person, but first on the Lord. People will always disappoint, even those we are called to be faithful to. But when our faith is fixed on the Lord’s purposes in a person we can hang in there longer than we think possible or reasonable. It’s true in marriage or in the marketplace.

When unbelief settles in a man will no longer be faithful. As soon as he loses his faith in God he will also lose grip in difficult days. What does he do when he is offended, or challenged by hardship, misunderstood, mistreated or whatever? If he is not faithful he will become bitter and quit. Endurance is the result of faith that God will eventually come through.

Application

It is a subtle sleight of hand, but I can end up working for man and not the Lord if I’m not careful. Then when appreciation runs low loyalty can dry up. Serving the Lord alone does not necessarily improve conditions but it does help me keep heart. Subservience doesn’t work, just servanthood. I want to serve the Lord as a son and not a slave in the house. I want to be faithful for the right reasons.

Prayer

Father, please do that in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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