[StillStanding]

Shortcuts are Always Short-sighted by Rick Warren
Noah did everything just as God commanded him. Genesis 6:22 (NIV)

One of the pitfalls you will face as you chase your dreams during this Decade of Destiny is the temptation to take shortcuts.

These are the detours that come in life that tempt you to try to cut corners as you run toward your goals but these shortcuts will only get you off track. These may be moral shortcuts, ethical shortcuts, spiritual shortcuts, financial shortcuts, even relational shortcuts, where you start skimming in your relationships.

Shortcuts are always short-sighted.  They distract you from getting where you need to go and from what God wants you to do in your life.

When we look at the life of Noah, we see he doesn't try to cut corners. Noah did everything just as God commanded him.

The temptation to take shortcuts is present throughout scripture -

• Jesus was tempted by the devil to take a shortcut. The devil told Jesus to jump from the top of the temple and, when the angels caught him, it would prove to everyone he was the Son of God. And they would all worship him. But Jesus followed God's plan. Jesus was meant to die on the cross, not jump off a temple. God's plan was that Jesus would be glorified through suffering, not through showing off.

When you see a shortcut, it's usually a temptation to cut the corner financially, ethically or morally - just take a little shortcut.  But you are also saying, 'God, I think I can reach my goal a whole lot quicker my way than your way.'

• Sarah had a promise from God that she would have a baby, but by the time she was 80-years-old, she decided to take a shortcut. She told Abraham to get her handmaid pregnant. 'That will be our baby'. But that wasn't God's plan at all. He provided Sarah with her own baby, and Sarah's shortcut led to problems that have lasted for generations. Shortcuts are always short-sighted.

Noah could have said, 'Lord, do we really need all of these animals? You know, why don't we just leave half the species here. The Sierra club will never know; Green Peace isn't around. We can just call the ones we leave extinct animals.'

But the Bible says, Noah did everything just as God commanded him. To reach the dreams God gives you, you must do things exactly as God tells you to do them.

[StillStanding]

Holding On, Praying Expectantly by Rick Warren
God is always on the alert, constantly on the lookout for people who are totally committed to him. 2 Chronicles 16:9a (MSG)

We've discussed cultural distractions, voices of doubt, and tempting shortcuts. The fourth pitfall you will face during your Decade of Destiny is discouraging delays.

The truth is, when God gives you a dream, there will be delays, difficulties, detours and dead ends along the way. These things are a natural part of life. But you can be ready for them.

The antidote to discouraging delays is to refuse to give up on the dream God gives you. As I said, a lot of people start out well, but they give up too quickly.  They don't hope.

H-O-P-E: Holding On, Praying Expectantly.

Now if anybody had a right to be discouraged, it was Noah.  Do you know how long it took Noah to build the arc?  120 years.  Could you go 120 years on a project without one word of encouragement from anybody else in society?  In fact, could you go 120 years with everybody ruthlessly ridiculing you and saying, "That guy is nuts. He thinks he hears from God."

Noah trusted God. And when he heard God's warning about the future, Noah believed him even though there was no sign of a flood. I bet there were many days that Noah didn't feel like going to work, but for 43,800 days, he went to the same place and he worked. He never gave up.

Now listen, the way you use the middle of your life has more influence on your end than the beginning.  A lot of people think, 'Oh, I have to begin right or I won't end right.' No. It's what you do in the middle of your life -- when you don't give up even though you feel like it -- that determines the end.

You could have messed up a whole bunch in the beginning and you might be thinking, "I'm going to give up on a dream. I'm going to settle for second best." But if you hang on and refuse to give up, the rest of your life can be the best of your life. That's what Decade of Destiny is all about. The decisions that you make in the middle of your life will determine your end.

Don't give up on the dream. Don't give up on the marriage. Don't give up on your health. Don't, don't, don't give up.  God is in control and the final chapter of your life, you haven't read yet. God's already written it, but you haven't read it yet.

The Bible says, "God is always on the alert, constantly on the lookout for people who are totally committed to him." God is looking for people that he can bless.  I want you to be one of those people in the next ten years.

Pray -- Jesus, I know that in the days ahead there will be times of discouragement. But I want to do exactly what you tell me to do and I want to refuse to give up when I feel like giving up. I want to hold onto the dream that you give me.  I want to be one of the people that you can use and bless in the next ten years.

[StillStanding]

My church is doing a series called Recalibrate; it's a study of the Beatitiudes. I've enjoyed all of the sermons so far (although I missed last week's by being home sick).

The next two in the series are up:

Full Meal Deal http://newbergcc.org/downloads/101024.mp3
Mercy! http://newbergcc.org/downloads/101031.mp3 (I really liked this one)

NOTE: my pastor likes to make references to sporting teams; any offense caused by disrespect to your sports franchise of choice is unintended.

[StillStanding]

Wow, after over a year of posting to the Prayer Circle on another divorce support website, I was asked to stop reposting these emails.

So I guess the readers here will benefit from them from now on.

[StillStanding]

My church is doing a series called Recalibrate; it's a study of the Beatitiudes.

The next two in the series are up:

Purity http://newbergcc.org/downloads/101107.mp3 (This is a guest speaker, not our regular pastor)
Peacemakers http://newbergcc.org/downloads/101114.mp3

NOTE: my pastor likes to make references to sporting teams; any offense caused by disrespect to your sports franchise of choice is unintended.

[StillStanding]

Short but sweet: http://thisisindexed.com/2010/11/given-received/

[Still]

SS,

Anything new in your situation?

[StillStanding]

Not really; not since our conversation about paying (mutual) bills.

[StillStanding]

My church is doing a series called Recalibrate; it's a study of the Beatitiudes.

The final sermon in the series is up:

Rejoice! http://newbergcc.org/downloads/101121.mp3

NOTE: my pastor likes to make references to sporting teams; any offense caused by disrespect to your sports franchise of choice is unintended.

[StillStanding]

To Obey God, Let Go by Tom Holladay
Today's devotional is by Tom Holladay, teaching pastor at Saddleback Church.

When the wise men had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him." So he got up, took the child and his other during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod.  Matthew 2:13-15 (NIV)

Joseph and Mary had to let a lot of things go because of their faith journey. They left everything they knew when they headed to Egypt. And in one sense, what they were sacrificing was their comfort at the deepest level.

It is often uncomfortable to trust God and follow his plan because we get comfortable with the wrong things. We get comfortable with our little habits and rituals, the things that get us stuck where we are instead of getting us to where God wants to grow us.

If you commit your health to God it will probably mean giving up some of your favorite foods. If you commit your finances to God it will probably mean cutting back on your spending.

It's uncomfortable to break a habit. It's uncomfortable to face a fear. It's uncomfortable to go somewhere you've never been before or forgive someone who has hurt you. But growth and change always come through doing those uncomfortable things and that's what's good in it.

But if we don't we would continue to hold on to something that makes us feel comfortable and end up turning our back on God who is the source of comfort.

The Bible says, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Father of compassion and God of all comfort" (2 Corinthians 1:3 NIV).

I invite you this Christmas, like never before, to recognize that God is the God of all comfort. And in those moments when you want to turn back to that old habit, that old way of thinking which pulls you off track, turn to God and say, "God, give me your comfort."