This Weekend at NCCA
We will be led by the Holy Spirit and worship God.
Membership Class Schedule
Date Time Class 4/18/10 9:30 AM The Tenants of NCCA 4/25/10 1:00 PM The Importance of Spiritual Covering 5/2/10 1:00 PM The Tenants of NCCA 5/16/10 tbd The Importance of Spiritual Covering 5/23/10 tbd Reconciling Homosexuality and Christianity
A Page from Pastor Randy's Journal
"Seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you."
Matthew 6:33Today, as I’ve been sitting, listening to what God had to say, I had an experience in which He “showed” me Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42). He told me to get really quiet and to just listen for a while. So I did. In the course of the hours of simply listening, my mind wandered several times. My mind SCREAMED a few times at me about several very painful situations; situations that I would love to fix for others; situations in which some that I love very dearly are suffering. Anger rose up in me; some confusion rose up in me; frustrations, etc. Then, all of the sudden, like a wonderfully patient friend and companion, I felt Jesus whisper from a distance and say, “Come back over here.” So, I took my soul and sat it back down in front of Him again. I meditated on 1 Peter 5:7 and spoke to my soul and said, “Mind, will, emotions, O my soul, be quiet and listen to your King.” Several times this took place and, each time, He demonstrated great love and patience with me.
Through all of this, I was reading Madame Guyon’s short book “Experiencing God through Prayer.” In this book, she addressed “abandonment.” She wrote that abandonment is “the means God uses to reveal His mysteries to us.” I thought about that for a while and realized that I sometimes truly struggle with abandoning myself and my thoughts to Him. I prayed for help and it became progressively easier, especially as I reminded myself of the Word from Matthew 6:33. I kept praying it, thinking it, meditating on it, whispering it until it became not only a passage of Scripture but a personal directive for me to abandon all and seek Him alone.
Today, as I’ve meditated and progressively moved into the Holy of Holies and soaked in His Presence, I can honestly say that I am working on abandoning my fears, my doubts, and all of my frustrations. I’ve “cast all my cares over onto Him,” again. I’m discovering again and again that He is the only means of salvation; not just salvation of my spirit (our spirits for eternity), but that He is the Savior, the “Sozo-er” of my thought-life, my mind, my will, and my emotions.
As I’ve sat here and written this, a few unexpected visits and emails have arrived letting me know that God has taken care of some of the situations at hand. What an awesome God! When we do our part, when we choose the greater part that Mary chose, we will see that God will take care of that which we can’t.
Jesus, I want to sit at your feet and not be troubled. I want to “choose the greater part” (Luke 10:42) of sitting and receiving from Your Presence. Help me to follow you. Father, give me strength to pick up the Cross of self-abandonment and follow You. Not my Will but Your Will be done. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
