Conjugating 'Verbs: In God We Trust?

* Another disclaimer on this series of posts. Just like the Proverbs themselves, they won't be exhaustive statements about a particular topic. They're more like quick hitting devotional thoughts. You probably already knew that, but I feel better getting it off my chest. Sometimes it bothers me knowing there's a lot more that could've been said but wasn't.

I had a video conference this morning during my regularly scheduled time in the word, and so I'm a bit behind in that department today. I'll try and get caught up during my lunch break. You may be wondering why I'm not getting caught up now, and you may be on to something there... but anyway, I wanted to share another thought from Proverbs that hit me last Friday.

This is something that's been floating around in the back of my mind for a while, but finally came to the forefront last week. The Lord really smacked me between the eyes when I came across this verse:

Proverbs 18:11 says, "The wealth of the rich is their fortified city; they imagine it an unscalable wall." On the surface this may not sound incredibly profound or even all that applicable to most of us. I don't know many people who are rich, even if nearly all of us ARE rich when compared to the majority of the rest of the world. No, it's the idea that's behind this truth. The rich are trusting in their wealth, rather than in God. I think the majority of us wrestle with this from time to time, and some rarely ever truly trust in God at all.

What hit me this past week was what I was choosing to trust in. I know some trust in money or their wisdom or the power of democracy or having a great military. The list goes on and on. But what was hitting me was in the realm of ministry: it's very easy for me to trust in people, in the student leaders we have, in the structure we've put in place, in the systems and plans that we've laid in order to reach our goals.

I do believe we have great student leaders, and I do think much of the success of this ministry is in their hands. But it's all too easy for that feeling of contentment/security/trust to allow me to become complacent and comfortable. To unconsciously rely less on God than if times were tough and we were really struggling. One of the greatest challenges to the people of God throughout time has been prosperity, or even just the false feeling of it. (We can certainly overestimate how well we're doing and feel good about it, even when we really shouldn't.)

I've also been reading through Isaiah, and there I see a people that has prospered to the point that they no longer "need" God or rely on Him. I appreciate the wake up call from the Lord, that nothing I have planned or laid is really an unscalable wall. Whether you are in vocational ministry, have a leadership position in one, or are "simply" a follower of Christ, I want to encourage you to trust in Him and Him alone. It's far too easy to subtly slip into trusting in man, trusting in our own wisdom and strength, trusting in our own plans.

How do I know whether or not I'm really trusting in Him? A ten second evaluation of my prayer life is probably all that it really takes. Am I really crying out to Him to move? Am I interceding for the lost? For my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ? Am I burdened by the things that burden the heart of God?

Proverbs goes on to say in 21:31, "The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests in the Lord." Continue to do your best to prepare, to plan and to carry out the vision God has given you, but make sure you do it on your knees - constantly driven by the reality that Jesus meant it when He said, "Apart from me you can do nothing."

Conjugating 'Verbs: Speak the Truth

* This might turn out to be a regular series on my blog. I picked the name mainly just because it sounds cool, not because it ties directly into conjugation. The 'Verbs refers to the book of Proverbs in the Bible, which I return to often and love to meditate and reflect on. One definition of conjugation - in various disciplines - means to join together. I can easily justify that definition by the fact that these entries will join the Proverbs together with real life applications.

As one who regularly gets to speak and preach to others, I constantly face the temptation to worry about what others think and how well I do in presenting the information. This may have been further heightened by the fact that I'm beginning to try and develop speaking/preaching abilities in some of the guys at BSU. In doing that, I've been working through a list of questions to use when evaluating someone as they deliver a message. While I think that's important and will continue to work on developing both my and their skills in presenting a message, thinking too much about the delivery was once again leading me to forget what is most important for us in this arena.

While I've begun to read through Isaiah in the mornings, I'm continuing my habit of one chapter of Proverbs a day. This morning the Lord spoke very specifically to me about this issue. It's interesting how I got there, though, because I started out in chapter 20 - since today is September 20. Somehow when I turned the page to go from verse 3 to 4, I actually turned two pages and continued right along in Proverbs 23:4, so I didn't even notice. It wasn't until I was recapping the encounter with Karin that I realized I was in the wrong chapter. But it was where God wanted me to be.

Proverbs 23:15-16 says, "My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad; my inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak what is right."

That verse just hit me right between the eyes. Simply put, the most important thing for those speaking/preaching is whether or not they clearly proclaimed the word of God. That's what I'm focusing on this morning as I am about to head out the door and preach at First Baptist in Maryville. That's what I want to continue to focus on as I preach at the BSU and what I want to instill in the guys as they have opportunities to preach as well.

I still think it's important to do your best, to not present in such a way that you're actually a distraction to what God is trying to say. But hopefully I will be able to remember what's really important: that God's word is proclaimed and that He can speak through it regardless of how great of a presenter one is. I hope those of you that have the opportunity to teach God's word to others will remember that as well.