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Scripture
March on with courage, my soul! Judges 5:21

Observation
When most soldiers march behind armor, the men of this era in Bible history hid behind their mother’s apron. Barak (no relation to Obama) was the General Eisenhower of his day; he was the man standing between desolation and civilization. All eyes were on Barak, but he was suffering panic attacks. Instead of leading the people he ran to his spiritual mother and asked her to go along with him. That would be like George Washington asking for his mama to hold his hand as he crossed the Delaware. Something obviously was wrong, but what exactly?

What Barak faced is what many men face in those self-esteem stripping moments of life. When a man faces a challenge, fear strips away layers like paint stripper, exposing his raw nerves. At that moment a man has two choices.

The first is comfort, especially the comfort of a woman. It can be his mother or a wife he treats like his mother to console him. This is why men turn to pornography, fantasy, adultery and the like in times of stress. In fact, whenever a man is facing unusual sexual temptation he needs to ask himself what challenges is he facing and how is he avoiding them?

The other choice a man has is courage. Courage isn’t what is cracked up to be in the movies. Courage is not a comforting feeling. Courage is a lonely, cold emotion. At the core of tangled terrify feelings, courage is a resolve to press forward no matter what. Courage is not being unafraid, but committed to the cause even when one is afraid. Naturally, lesser men retract from courage and flee into comfort.

All men struggle with the comfort vs courage choice Barak did, it is just that his example is more stark than other men.  David turned to Bathsheba, Abraham used Sarah as a body shield in Egypt, and of course don’t even mention the womanizer King Solomon.

Application
The question lands at the front door of every man: will I be courageous or will I seek for comfort? Courage requires a contentment with unsettling feelings and self-doubt, but on the other side lays self-respect. Today I chose courage.

Prayer
Father, I like the simplicity of Deborah’s prayer: March on with courage, my soul! As I take that choice enflame me with strength. Amen.

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, “Today 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.” 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.

Scripture
And I am praying that you will put into action the generosity that comes from your faith as you understand and experience all the good things we have in Christ. Your love has given me much joy and comfort, my brother, for your kindness has often refreshed the hearts of God’s people. That is why I am boldly asking a favor of you. I could demand it in the name of Christ because it is the right thing for you to do. But because of our love, I prefer simply to ask you. Consider this as a request from me—Paul, an old man and now also a prisoner for the sake of Christ Jesus. I appeal to you to show kindness to my child, Onesimus. Philemon 1:6-10

Observation
Amidst the burning car bodies and tear gas canisters that littered the streets after the Detroit riots of 1968, a slender red headed woman picked her way through the debris field with her parish priest. Her emotions rose into action as together they founded Focus: HOPE, an organization that has brought life to the impoverished residents of the inner city. The executives of the Big Three automakers have been knocked over by the tenacity of Eleanor Josaitis in her passion to give hope to broken lives.

What has released not just millions of dollars, but even the willingness of auto executives to volunteer their time in the organization? As Eleanor says in her spitfire way, “Just ask! It is amazing what people are willing to do for the goodwill of others if they are just asked.”

Philemon had more than money he also had heart. But that heart would not be opened until someone did the ask. Paul had the courage to ask not for himself but for others who could not speak for themselves. It reminds me of when Jesus sent the disciples into the city to get a donkey for the parade. Someone has to do the ask to enable God’s purposes to go forward.

Application
I wonder if Gods purposes hobble at arthritic speed because leaders are not willing to do the ask. Bill Hybels says that the lead pastor of a church is the chief fund raiser of the organization. We need to overcome the selfishness of asking for ourselves and to see things from a kingdom perspective. The Lord has need of it. That should be our motivation.

Prayer
Father today I am going to “do the ask” about a variety of things. Help me to act out of the confidence that this is not about me but You adn that ultimately those I ask will be happier beause I did for they will enjoy the joy of giving. Amen.