Category Archives: Spiritual Formation

The Pulse of Prayer

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“The pulse of prayer is praise. The heart of prayer is gratitude. The voice of prayer is obedience. The arm of prayer is service.” ~William A. Ward

I know I am not alone when I say that struggle in offering praise to God. I do not struggle to feel gratitude for all that God has done, nor to emotionally be engaged when I consider that the Creator wants to listen to me. But the words … they do not always come naturally.

In a recent small group meeting we made a list of some things that Peter praised God for in 1 Peter 1:3-5. If you are struggling with ‘the pulse of prayer’, then I encourage you to learn from Peter and let his inspired words inspire you.

~The Father of Jesus Christ~

God we are filled with amazement and gratitude when we consider your relationship with our Savior and Brother Jesus Christ. He has brought such joy and confidence into our lives as we depend upon Him. He constantly points us to You in His teachings and we are learning to love You just as we love Him. We do not know how You, as His father, allowed Him to endure the cross – but we are so thankful for your love for us expressed in Jesus.

~Mercy~

Lord we recognize that we deserve nothing from You. Your love has endured with us through so many failures and stumbles. We could only expect your disapproval and ultimately hell… but because of your Mercy we are able to speak to You this moment. Your mercy is enduring, overwhelming, overflowing.

~New Birth~

Father, Jesus taught us to pray “our Father”, and we can truly do this because we have been born again into Your forever Family. As we look back at our lives before we knew You, we shudder with shame, regret, and guilt. We do not dwell there, though, because we are filled with rejoicing at being born into such a diverse and wonderful Family. Thank you so much for Your willingness to adopt us, Father us, grow us, and mentor us in Spirit.

~Hope~

Without You, we have no hope. No hope now – for we have tried to arrange and fix our lives on our own. We’ve just made a mess of it. No hope ever – we have no power to save ourselves. And so we await with patience the hope that is ours now, but which will be ours forever when it is fulfilled. As you know, we live in a hopeless world – a result of hopeless choices … only  You can give us hope.

~Resurrection~

Thank you for hope that includes the resurrection. The Divine testimony of the resurrection of Christ we read in our Bibles gives us the assurance that this resurrection is in your capable hands. We will arise … we will see our loved ones again … this life is not all there is. Some days, that’s the only thing that keeps us going.

~Inheritance~

Everything we own has an expiration date. The gold we wear won’t last into eternity. The possessions we so carefully inventory will be ash. But the inheritance that You have provided is in Your powerful hands. Forgive us for being so attached to this world. Remind us often of Your incredible provision … what awaits Your family.

~Shield of God’s Power~

Father we know that we are not shielded from disaster, troubles, or crisis. These things we experience (sometimes daily). But we know that no matter what happens on this earth, you are our eternal shield, the Enemy cannot have us. We remember through our tears and pain that we belong to You forever.

Our expressions of praise for who You are are inadequate, incomplete, lacking … but please accept them and grow within us the capacity for more. Thank you Father, Amen.

~John

A Community For Discernment

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josh

Written By Josh Linton

Lately I’ve struggled with decision…okay, for those who know me, I seem to always struggle with decision. Honestly, the voices in my head make it difficult to discern which one is his. Conversations about what to do rage into the night and early morning as I twist in confusion over each argument. Waking late into the day with hollow, dark eyes usually makes me even more disoriented. It’s as though the light of the sun actually sheds light on the conversations draped in shadow. Hence more forehead-slapping bafflement.

Discerning God’s will hasn’t always proved an enlightening experience for me. Why won’t he just appear in a dream and say what he wants me to do? I’d endure wetting my pants at the sight of an angel just to know what God would like for me to do. My exasperation says bring it on. Come vision. Come dream. Come terrifying angel wielding flaming sword!
But nothing.

Paul’s experience makes me wonder, though, if it would be any easier if it actually happened. In Acts 16 when he experienced a call through a vision it appears that he still took it to the group for a chat. Listen to this statement by Luke: “After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them” (v. 10). It seems clear enough that Paul took the vision to them, discussed it and the “we” concluded it appropriate to head out for Macedonia. Though a vision for himself, Paul shared it with his traveling companions.

My impulsive, individualism wants to disagree. If you get a vision from God who cares what anyone else has to say. But Paul did. His example reaffirms the seriousness God places on a collective discernment of his will. Together we discover his mission, together we trace his lead, together we wrestle with individually placed calls from God. Even after Paul saw Jesus on the road to Damascus he went and spent some time with Ananias to figure out his next moves. Should isolated, personal calls from God open up for critique to others called-out? Apparently Paul thought so. And his willingness to embrace this vulnerability goes against the individualistic propensity to stand alone, to go rogue as a disciple. And at times that certainly may be necessary but never within an atmosphere where a collective discernment of God’s will is devalued.

Lone pilgrim disciples conceive their journeys in dreams and birth them in interactive dialogue even if ultimately the discernment they uncover through such an exercise leads them against the community’s consensus. So dream. Seek God’s voice. Just make sure to talk about it.

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I’m Josh Linton, husband to Ashley and father to Jarret, Avery and Jaxon. To tell the truth, we’re a tad crazy. We don’t like yelling around the house so when somebody yells we yell at them to stop. Each of us is burdened with intense passion and sometimes this causes a scene at Wal-Mart or in the driveway before school. But overall we love each other just as loud and have plenty of crazy, intense love to share with our friends.I try to find and join God in life but struggle with my own desires and ambitions throwing me off focus. I write, sometimes, too. Currently, I’m in transition so if I told you where I live I’d have to tell you again soon. So, let’s save that for later.

Josh Linton will be contributing to this blog every other Friday. More of his writings can be found HERE. Follow Josh Linton on Twitter HERE.

God Begins in the Darkness

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The darkness of this world continually surprises me. I shiver at the news headlines declaring the unspeakable ways that humans treat one another. I do not have to offer examples, you’ve already seen them. The suffering of children in our world is composing a great cry of injustice and helplessness that I know our Abba hears. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.* I do not know how He refrains from eradication of this race.

In such a statement I reveal how unlike Him I am. It is easy to glance at a few news stories and pontificate about what God ought to do. Such a statement is a divine death warrant for me, and would empty our churches and fill our cemeteries.

The darkest part of our heart is where God does His most brilliant work. Too many people are living out of the darkness … the empty place … the untouched region where grace has never ventured. For many who do not follow the Christ, the darkness is lived out vividly. For those of us who have pledged our allegiance, the darkness is hidden away. We think.

But it exposes itself at the most awkward moments. A temper lost. Words spoken. Hidden acts of aggression. Secret sins. Blatant judgments. A sense of reasonable pride. Yes, they all betray us. We’ve hidden some darkness in our hearts and not allowed God in to that place. It’s that word we despise – hypocrite – an actor on a stage. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent….* We can flow from one impersonation to another without much notice, even to ourselves.

Has God rejected us for this? Not yet. I believe that it is in the darkness that God does His greatest work. Our job is to invite Him in, and allow Him to do his work. He hasn’t ever taken you where you were unwilling to go. So many of our own hurts and the guilt that plagues us could disappear in the shadow of His grace.

When you are feeling the darkness in your own heart, invite Him in to expose and cleanse. He promises that He will continue to love and recreate you until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts*.

*Ephesians 4?17-19; 1 Corinthians 4:4-5; 2 Corinthians 4:5-6;2 Peter 1:18-19