Deeper Still by phil mccallum | Archive

Anointing, God's Call, Humility, Leadership, Rest/Sabbath, Service

On Seeing Myself as a Sheep

No Comments 20 February 2008

Scripture
The Lord is my shepherd;
I have all that I need.
He lets me rest in green meadows;
he leads me beside peaceful streams.
He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
bringing honor to his name.
Even when I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will not be afraid,
for you are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
protect and comfort me.
You prepare a feast for me
in the presence of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
My cup overflows with blessings.
Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord
forever. Psalm 23

Observation
What was David’s reaction when the wizened prophet Samuel chose him out of all his brothers to be anointed with oil to be king? I just realized as I read Psalm 23 that we know exactly how David felt, for he told us in this song. In verse 5 David sang, “You honor me by anointing my head with oil.” How many thousands of times have I read Psalm 23 and missed the reason why David wrote this Psalm? Surely he wrote these lyrics after Samuel’s visit as his heart response to God’s kindness to him. Samuel had anointed him with oil and David the shepherd boy was dumbfounded that it had happened to him.

With the motive for writing the Psalm revealed, the words take on new meaning. We now have a window into the soul of David as he walked back from the house into the fields to tend the sheep for another day. Months would pass before he would be sent on an errand that would lead him to Goliath to leave shepherding behind forever. During those days he reassessed his life, and his conclusion is astounding.

David, the crown prince of Israel, took on a new outlook on life. He saw himself as a sheep. If he said, “The Lord is my shepherd” then he must have by inference considered himself to be a lamb following the Lord. A dumb sheep is not a metaphor kings are likely to claim. A lion is more likely. But David’s heart is revealed in his choice. He would be a king, but he would follow.

Application
When God asks me to do great things, what is my heart response? Too often it is pride. I like the lion metaphor. But David’s humility rouses me to better desires. I am only a sheep following the shepherd. Though I may be asked to lead, it is the Lord who is my leader. There is a disarming humility in considering one’s self to be a bleating sheep. It’s not impressive, but it does touch the heart of the shepherd.

Prayer
Father, I see how you left David in the sheep pens a little while longer so he would not forget who he was, where he came from and just who you are. I see that in my life too and embrace it for all that it is worth. Thank you for being my shepherd. Thank you for the stream and meadow you give to me. And I take the hope that ahead is feasting. Today it is enough just to be with you, for you are the constant, whether I am in the field, the valley or at the feasting table. Amen.

Anointing, Authority, Courage, Crisis, Direction, Leadership, Pastor, Pioneering

Initiative

1 Comment 01 February 2008

Scripture
Meanwhile, Philip found himself farther north at the town of Azotus. He preached the Good News there and in every town along the way until he came to Caesarea. Acts 8:40

Then Moses told the Levites, â€œToday you have ordained yourselves for the service of the Lord, for you obeyed him even though it meant killing your own sons and brothers. Today you have earned a blessing.â€ Exodus 32:29

Observation
In one denomination in Papua New Guinea a pastor cannot be ordained until he has started at least one church from scratch. Those leaders know that the proof of a pastor is not in the academic degrees on his wall but in the results of his ministry.

There is a path to full time ministry that involves Bible college, interviewing boards, letters of recommendation, trial sermons, and the like. It is a well worn path and it works well in some cases, but it is not the only method God uses.

There is another path to ministry that is less used but very effective. It comes when a person begins to serve with the gifts God has given and the results get the attention of others and are blessed.

The Levites were self-ordained. Moses did not ordain them; he just recognized God’s hand on their ministry and then blessed them. They took leadership initiative in a crisis, stood up for the Lord, and were given a life call to full time ministry as a result.

Philip the evangelist was self-ordained. He was only given a license to drive for the Meals on Wheels program at Jerusalem First Church. But after a national revival in Samaria, leading a Prime Minister to the Lord and starting fires up the seacoast, God at last gave him a settled place in the megapolis that was Caesarea.

Caesarea was a world-class city, on the scale of New York, Hong Kong or Singapore. King Herod had built the largest artificial port with underwater concrete and had made Caesarea the hub of East and West. Philip earned the right to minister in that world-touching city because of his initiative all along his winding path from Jerusalem, to Samaria, to Azotus and beyond.

Application
I wonder at times if God is bored with our life path because we want permission and invitation to serve him. Could it be that there are times that God simply wants us to act? Certainly we need to pray, test and be led by the Holy Spirit. But great movements of God do not start in committees, but with courageous people who take action. The Levites “earned a blessing” because they took initiative when something needed to be done. There is a professional pathway to ministry, but the lives of Philip and the Levites are there to remind us that it is not the only way that God uses. God loves risk and blesses those who take that path.

Prayer
Father, Philip is my life mentor. The way he took I find very uncomfortable. There were rules and regulations even in his time. James and the brothers had to be consulted first. But he took a risk and was blessed for it. Help me to walk confidently when there are unworn paths you lead me on. Help me to make the most of every opportunity and in it extend your kingdom and bless me for it. Amen.

Anointing, Direction, God's Call, Subumission

Don’t Be Self-Called

1 Comment 12 December 2007

Scripture
And no one can become a high priest simply because he wants such an honor. He must be called by God for this work, just as Aaron was. That is why Christ did not honor himself by assuming he could become High Priest. No, he was chosen by God, who said to him, â€œYou are my Son. Today I have become your Father.â€ Hebrews 5:4

Observation
There is a funny scene in the movie The Apostle actor Robert Duvall portrays a has-been Bible-banger who launches his ministry with a humorous scene of self-baptism. He plunges himself into the water, places his own hand on his head, and baptizes himself as an apostle. Of course it’s dumb, but is closer to the mark than we think. How many times in little ways in life do we act out of presumption rather than God’s presence. We charge in as the self-anointed saying things like

It may not be my place to say, but…
Excuse me for butting in…
Here’s my two cents worth….

There is something to be said about waiting to see what God has to say about us. Jesus, in all of his greatness, did not march from the manger into the market square and start preaching. He waited 30 long years, he waded into the muddy baptism waters and he waited until his Father spoke. The simple words from heaven carried Jesus through the next three years. “You are my beloved son, with whom I’m well pleased.” Later when he was challenged about his right to preach in the great Temple without a license, Jesus went straight back to that moment.

Application
If the son of God, Jesus himself, did not take on himself the office of high priest without God saying the word, then no matter the role here on earth we should wait for the Father to speak. Whatever work we do for the Lord, it is ultimately God who does the choosing. Leaders recognize God’s call, but it is the Lord who does the choosing.

So we must wait for the Lord to speak about us.

Prayer
Lord, speak over my life the things you have prepared in advance for me to do so that it will be clear both to myself and to others. Amen.

Anointing, Encouragement, Witness

Why Is It Dark?

No Comments 29 October 2007

Scripture
Then Jesus asked them, â€œWould anyone light a lamp and then put it under a basket or under a bed? Of course not! A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light will shine. Mark 4:21

Observation
I am a bedtime reader. Two chapters before bed is like a sleeping tablet to me. I even read at bedtime when I go camping.Â It is so hard to hold the flashlight under the chin with a book propped up on the chest. But I’ve found at the center of the tent there is a loop of nylon designed just for the purpose. I tie my light to the string and all is solved because the light is in a better position.

God has given us a light. Light argues with the despair of darkness and declares it is never too late for a miracle, that mountains are only one earthquake away from crumbling, and that despair is temporary.

God has placed us in the dark. He must because otherwise our light would be invisible in the brilliance. Darkness comes from discouraging friends that surround us. The blackness can be a hopeless situation when only problems and not answers come knocking. The shadows of night can be coworkers who blow out our candle or family who unplug the light. The inky blackness threatens to stain our soul with despair.

God has given us a lampstand.Â If the Lord has given us a light he will always give to us a high place to position it where it can illumine every dark corner. No matter how obscure the place we are God has surely put some little ledge high up on a wall where that one light can make a difference.

I read a story once of a widow who spent lonely days without her husband in a one bedroom apartment at the top of a long, creaking flight of stairs. The hundreds of pedestrians shuffling below only reminded her that life had passed her by. But she fought off despair with a plan. She began praying over the busy workers in the street below. Then on little slips of paper she wrote messages of encouragement and dropped them from her window. Office workers and street people alike stooped to find her words of inspirationÂ always signed off with directions to her little flat. Many found Christ because of those little scraps of paper when they made their way up the creaking stairs.

Application
If there is a lamp there must be a lamp stand. If the area around us is dark and gloomy it is not the cause of the Lord but of us who have not put the lamp in a place where it can be seen. God has turned the light on and it is up to us to position it where it can make a difference.

Prayer
Father, I ask that you would open my eyes every day to where the lamp stand is for that day. You have given me a light so now I ask for a lamp stand. Amen.

Anointing, Blessing, Encouragement, Fruitfulness, Pastor, Prayer, Serving, Transitions

The Hand Prints of Prayer

No Comments 21 October 2007

Scripture

â€œDedicate Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.â€ Acts 13:2

Observation

It was not enough that two pastors walk out on a new adventure. They needed to wear the hand prints prayer left on them from their home church.The request for the prayers of the church do not come from two trembling missionaries. It is God who asks the church leaders to pray for them. The prayers of the church were significant to the Lord because somehow it gave him elbow room to bless these two new traveling pastors.

To many a missionary is just a faded fridge magnet. For about six weeks sent ones are remembered but within six months the memory of their work is run over by the freeway of daily busyness.

But God never lets the memories of missionaries fade. The finger prints of prayer left by praying leaders are like a tattoo residue on a Christian worker’s life to remind the Lord to keep blessing them.

Application

I’ve had many hands laid on me over many years. They were prayers prayed in the front of a service and then life rushed on. If I were to visit those churches now few would remember who I am. Yet from God’s perspective the residue of their prayers still lingers on my life. I am a sent one representing many churches that have sent me. I trust this day that the prayers prayed will be answered through my life in blessing many, many people.

Prayer

Father, remember the prayers prayed for me over many years. Remember the prayers of my ordination. Remember the prayers at my wedding. Remember the prayers at churches I have left that have blessed me. Today let me see the answer to those prayers. Amen.

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