I Remember When...

I was reminded tonight at the mall, that it would no longer be socially acceptable for me to sit on Santa's lap to tell him what I want for Christmas. I know... that sounds weird coming from a guy that's 25!

But seriously... I miss that naive feeling that I had as a kid. I just knew that Santa was real! In the same way that we lose that naiveness (yes I just made that word up) about Santa... I think we also lose it regarding Jesus! We don't necessarily abandon our hope in Christ, but we do abandon the dream that Christ plants in our hearts. We think that they are too big and not able to be attained! We can't afford to lose our vision, passion, and dreams that we have for the expansion of the Kingdom of God! To take this leap of faith that God is calling you to, it might require you to be a little bit naive. Not in an ignorant fashion, but rather we ought to make sure that we are always susceptible to the things that God has for us to accomplish through him.

Do you still believe that God can use you to accomplish great things for His Kingdom, or has your flame been extinguished???

Do you still hear hooves on your roof when you go to sleep the night before Christmas???

Timing is Everything...

Have you ever just known that it was time for a change in your life? You got so excited that you ran to your spouse and they instantly shot down your excitement with a heavy dose of reality. You then got frustrated that your spouse doesn't have the same level of excitement that you do. Later on, you walk back to your spouse with your tail between your legs because you know that you were wrong for being so zealous without weighing out the variables.

It's not that your excitement was not merited... it's just that it wasn't God's timing. Sometimes God will give you a distant vision for the sole purpose of getting you spiritually prepared for a big change in your life. It is vital, especially as a leader, that you are always thinking about what's after next. See... most people just think about what's going to happen next in life, but if you will start to think about what's after next you'll always be one step ahead and better prepared in every arena of life.

Realize though that the intensity of your call in life may not match the intensity of your spouses call. That's OK though. While sometimes both spouses receive an equally intense call to start a church together, it's not uncommon for one to receive the calling to fill a more supportive role. Don't assume that your spouse is not in sync with you because your levels of passion are not equal. The goal is to confirm mutual calling, not mutual intensity. ("Launch: Starting a New Church from Scratch by Nelson Searcy and Kerrick Thomas)

So... realize that God has given you your spouse for many important reasons. One of those reasons is to occasionally contrast you. I'll explain what I'm talking about. A few months ago I was ready for a particularly big change in life. I went to my wife with my radical plan about how this change would take place and why it needed to happen. My wife did not respond the way that I had hoped... instead she responded the way that God had planned. She did not have a peace about it. We both decided to pray about it, and I realized that she was right! We continued to wait patiently on the Lord, and now three months later, that same radical plan that had been birthed in me is about to happen and we both have a peace about it. 1 Peter 5:6 says, "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time." Don't get me wrong, God does call us to take a leap of faith, but... TIMING IS EVERYTHING!!!