You have my permission to say "no."

          “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” (John 8:31-32 NASB)

I love the word "no," and I avoid using the word "busy."  In several conversations recently, people have talked about how much they have going on. Their lives are full; their plates are full.* They seem so busy. Someone else invariably has an idea, activity, or event that you are the perfect candidate for!  But saying "yes" to one thing means saying "no" to other things, whether we are aware of it or not.  What can I do to help others build margin and live out their priorities? 

I want God and His Word to set my priorities, and not cave to a sense of obligation.  Do we say "yes" to things because we sense the leading of God, or do we overcommit out of obligation?  I have recently been encouraging friends to think through their priorities and activities.  In the busyness of our day, is there a commitment to put Christ and His Word first?  And as for the relationships we really care about, unless we carve out time in our packed schedules for them, there is a danger of those being neglected. Most people need to know that they have the permission, even the encouragement, to say "no."  I love to encourage people to say "no." (graciously, of course)

Please pray with us, and for us, as we seek to encourage people to make time with God a priority, especially as we approach the holiday season, and to protect and invest in the key relationships with which He has entrusted us.

Thanks!

 *P.S.  I don't mind having room on my plate. It gives me flexibility and margin to respond to unexpected opportunities or needs. One of the shortest Bible studies I ever did was "How Jesus handled interruptions."  :-)

MINISTERING WHERE WE LIVE

"For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, 

not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every 

place your faith toward God has gone forth..."

                                     - I Thessalonians 1:8 (NASB)

"Did you see anybody you know?"

"Yes, I saw so and so, and ..."

My 'yes' answer to Tina's question, upon my return from a meeting or running errands, is becoming more common.

Thirteen years this August; that's how long we have been here in Coatesville, an hour west of Philly.  We have lived here longer than in any other place. And our hope is that, as with the Thessalonians, through our lives and familiar interactions the word of the Lord will go forth in "this place." 

I have been meeting informally with a group of pastors and ministry workers whose focus is the city of Coatesville. Some of these faithful saints have been praying for this community and laboring here for decades.  As we have gotten involved locally, this is the first time for us that we have defined our ministry focus geographically.  

[click photo to enlarge]

Informal weekly breakfast gathering of local pastors and ministry workers earlier this year.  It took a visit by a friend from California (next to me) to capture this group with a photo op.  I am fourth on the right, the one with the big slab of scrapple on my plate. (When I am out I like to order things that I would never get served at home.)

Until recently our ministry strategy has been based on the people we connect with:  military, 20s, singles, couples scattered throughout southeastern Pennsylvania. I have been challenged in my "theology of place", to think in geographic rather than demographic (people) terms.  The learning curve has been high for me in this new initiative.  Having previously viewed ministry as it relates to people, I am currently going through the Bible taking note of how different places are dealt with, and how God deals with the people who live in those places. *

Please pray with us that as we engage locally that God would guide our intersections and interactions with those in whom He is working.

Thanks ~ 

P.S.  For more information related to this aspect of our ministry with The Navigators, please check out  www.navneighbors.org

*I started in Genesis and am now in Leviticus.  Progress would be faster if there weren't so many fascinating rabbit trails!  I'd be happy to talk with you about what I am learning.

LIFE LESSONS FROM JERRY BRIDGES

Author, speaker and Navigator Jerry Bridges passed into Heaven earlier this week. Jerry had been with The Navigators since the mid 1950s.

Click here for a summary of Jerry's life lessons prepared by one of our colleagues that was presented at a discipleship meeting in the Philadelphia prison this week.

SUCCESS, PRIDE, AND DELUSION

Recently while getting some time alone with God at a local park, the sound of the wind blowing through the trees caught my attention.  I thought of a passage in the book of Amos, "He who forms the mountains and creates the wind...the LORD God of hosts is His name." - Amos 4:13.  Amos lived during the time of Uzziah, the king of Judah who because of his accomplishments became proud and was stricken with leprosy as a result.

A stretch of the West Brandywine Creek which flows through Hibernia Park, where
I like to go for time alone with God.  By the way, this is also a good fishing stream.

Uzziah's father also had a pride problem. His father Amaziah had been victorious in battle and was ready to take his success to the next level. After defeating the Edomite army, in his delusion of strength Amaziah challenged the army of the northern kingdom.

Jeroboam's reply,  "You have indeed defeated Edom, and your heart has become proud. Enjoy your glory and stay at home; for why should you provoke trouble so that you, even you, would fall, and Judah with you?” (II Kings 14;10) 

[Why is it that others can see our pride when we can't?]

"Stay at home," Jeroboam said. What an insult! Was this meant to be a taunt? The army of Judah was defeated, Amaziah was captured, and the city of Jerusalem was looted.  Amaziah's pride was not just his own downfall; it brought down the whole nation.

We've all heard this before and know it's true: any success is a result of God's choice, not due to our own efforts and talent. Obviously we need to do our best, to be responsible and diligent, but the end result is determined by what God chooses to do with what we do.

[How often do I operate without consciously looking for the leading and provision of God, and rely on my own efforts?]

I sometimes pray that I won't have to learn things the hard way.  Please pray with us that we would focus not on our talent and effort, or the results, but on being faithful, daily, in the little things, and that God would get the credit.

 “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much."   –  Luke 16:10.


- all passages are from the New American Standard Bible.