The Confidence We Have | 08.08.12

This past Saturday, the following Facebook status I posted seemed to garner a good bit of attention:

"Elton Taylor believes the very best thing to do whenever you feel overwhelmed is to ASCEND IN WORSHIP. Worrying solves nothing. Emotional reactions change nothing. They only make YOU worse off... But when you elevate your mind above the circumstances and begin to magnify the LORD your GOD, something happens... YOU change! Your perspective, your response, your attitude ALL change because NOW you're looking at those same circumstances from a totally different angle than before. You being able to get past how you feel and call for an uprising of GOD's glory without musicians, a worship team or pastor is what keeps you together AWAY FROM THE PHYSICAL SANCTUARY. #TrustMe #YourSanityDependsOnIt"

What I didn't share on Facebook was that I was speaking from my own experience of what was going on that very day.  I began to feel overwhelmed by things happening around me, and it became more evident as my mind began to race with thoughts of "What if?," "How will I?" and the such.  The hovering presence of worry was attempting to set in, and then I remembered something: "I don't have to feel this way!"  I can't tell you how many times I've said, "The joy of the LORD is my strength," "In His presence there is fullness of joy," and "Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the LORD delivers them out of them all."  BUT THIS TIME, I had to do more than just SAY it...  I had to BECOME it.  Those words had to COME to BE...IN ME.

Trust Me | The Worshipper's Thought of the Day

Having been born around the time when the Smallwood Singers were one of the hottest recording groups in gospel music, I literally grew up listening to the music of Richard Smallwood.  I can say without hesitation that he is my favorite gospel songwriter of all time and arguably one of the best songwriters ever because his music has ministered to me throughout my entire life and continues to do so.  Upon hearing his new single "Trust Me" from the forthcoming project "Promises" with his vocal aggregation Vision, I was reminded all over again why I love the gifting and ministry of Richard Smallwood.  (If you have not heard "Trust Me" yet, I encourage you to do yourself a favor and visit his Facebook fan page so you can listen to it.  The Music Player is located near the bottom of the page's lefthand column.)

Our lives are literally marked by situations that have required us to trust GOD.  We've all faced times of calamity, uncertainty and pain that pressed upon so that we could hardly see beyond the present moment. No matter how spiritual we may be, we're all human; and I can remember times in which the fears of my circumstances were so gripping that I felt powerless. And I'm not talking about occurrences from years and years ago.  If you only knew how my faith has been tried within the past year and a half, you would be amazed that I'm still here AND committed to GOD now more than ever before.

Tis the Season | The Worshipper's Thought of the Day

On yesterday morning, a good social media acquaintance of mine, Jamil Willis, posted the following status update on Facebook:

"Thought of the Day: If you're trying to figure out the relationships that are ordained by God, look for people who are in the same season as you.  If you can find people, with whom you are already in relationship, that have the same struggles and testimonies as you, it is likely that those are the relationships God wants to grow!  Those with whom I have made covenant are in a season just like mine! Consecrate the covenant!"

There are two reasons why I was so excited to read those words: (1) I had never before looked at relationships from this perspective and (2) it was in perfect agreement with the message John Ragsdale (Pastor, The Hills Fellowship | Nashville, TN) delivered the night before at the Surge Men's Conference at Covenant Church (Carrollton, TX).  (To download the message in its entirety on iTunes, click here.) During his insightful explaination of the process of stepping into the power of the Spirit, Pastor Ragsdale mentioned how our experience of frustration is GOD's way of testing our calling to see if we will submit to the seasons of our lives.  We've become good at submitting to people and leadership, but we struggle in submitting to the seasons, especially if it's not what or where we expected to be.

In considering what both of these anointed men had to say, I realized that, in submitting to the seasons of our lives, we must also discern which fellowships have been ordained by GOD for the respective seasons.  It is this discernment that keeps us soberminded by guiding us in our awareness and knowledge of the seasons and each season's fellowships.  We need to be both clear about and sensitive towards relationships needing to be cultivated for growth, developed through resource allocation (e.g. time, energy, finances), and downgraded (or even dissolved) as the seasons change.

So what then happens when the seasons aren't submitted to?  We end up going in circles, making no progress in fulfilling our callings.  And we can't even get angry at GOD for our lack of progress.  Until we decide to submit to the seasons of our lives and adjust our relationships to the seasons, we'll continue circling the same mountains and repeatedly facing the same relationship drama.  Therefore, tis the season for careful evaluation of our relationships to ensure they are consistent with the current seasons of our lives.  If they're not in agreement with the current season, then changes must be made--and made quickly--to maintain the momentum of our journey's progress.  Otherwise, we run the risk of wasting our resources to maintain fellowships our lives' seasons have doomed to fail in their current state.

My suggestion?  Submit to the season.  Covenant with those whose seasons mirror your own. Move forward.

Once and For All | Part Four

"GOD's reputation for abiding faithful over His Word is more important than anything else."

As we saw in the last edition, we have been made righteous by Christ's sacrifice and should, in turn, live righteously. A lifestyle of holiness is not the means to an end (i.e. salvation), but rather a result of that end. We should desire to live holy simply out of appreciation for the redemptive work of Christ--not to be blessed, have our territories enlarged or to experience breakthroughs. Why? Because those things are natural byproducts of our fellowship with GOD: we're entitled to them simply out of obedience to Him (Isaiah 1:19).

Therefore, what we must understand is that there's a difference between relationship and fellowship. And, might I add, we must be careful as believers not to twist the two. I've heard too many brothers and sisters mistakedly use these terms interchangeably. (Doing so only creates confusion in the minds of the saved and unsaved alike, and our hands are already full with correcting the plethora of existing mistaught doctrine.)

So let's start with this key principle: Relationships are BINDING connections. For example, no matter what happens, I will ALWAYS be my father's son. There's nothing I can do to destroy that binding connection because I came from him. He and my mother birthed me into the earth realm. Fellowship, however, is the state of being an associate. When fellowship occurs, there exists a connection of ideas, sensations, even memories that's more loosely held than the binding connection of a relationship (1 Corinthians 1:10). (As a side note, I encourage you to adopt this principle and apply it to your life, as it will ensure you maintain the proper perspective concerning the various people to which you are connected.)

When we accepted Christ and were adopted into the beloved (Ephesians 1:5-7), we became the sons (and daughters) of GOD (2 Corinthians 6:17-18). We were birthed by the Spirit of GOD into GOD's family, thereby becoming heirs of GOD and joint-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16-17). That's a relationship that CAN'T be destroyed because we can not with our own hands mess up what we couldn't create. After all, it's Christ who adds to the church, not man (Acts 2:47).

However, fellowship can be broken. When we're no longer connected to GOD's ideas, His way of doing things, etc., then we're no longer associated with Him. It doesn't mean that our relationship is broken, only the fellowship. He will always be our Father, even when we go astray and turn to our own way; and we'll always be His children. Why? Because He's a covenant-keeping GOD--His reputation for abiding faithful over His Word is more important than anything else. For His name's sake, GOD will not save someone and change His mind about their salvation when s/he sins. 

We must come to an understanding that relationship carries more weight than fellowship with Him. (Sidenote: When it comes to eternal life, too many believers have flipped the script and prioritized fellowship with GOD over a relationship with Him.) If relationship didn't carry more weight than fellowship, then GOD would have thrown Israel away a long time ago...but His arms--even at this very moment--are still outstretched to His chosen people, just as they are to us when we misalign ourselves with His righteousness. It's the relationship that makes fellowship possible, necessary and desirable.

So, by all means, know this: when GOD adopts you, you're in the family for good. Yes, the two of you are going to fall out, disagree and even get upset with each other at times; however, that doesn't get you excommunicated from the family. Thanks be to GOD!!! Even if the two of you don't talk for a while or maybe go some length of time without enjoying each other's presence, the fact can't be denied that He's your daddy. Although you're not perfect, other people (even the unsaved) can see the familial resemblance as they catch glimpses of His likeness in you simply because you carry His spiritual DNA. And that's the power of relationship: it establishes a deeply embedded, lasting connection once and for all.

The Power of Agreement - Part Three

"Believing and agreeing are two remarkably different actions."

Just as we saw in Part One of this series how the power of agreement can bring forth Eden out of desolation and waste, there are times when the power of agreement can actually produce undesirable results. Our father Abraham is a great example of what can happen when people agree to something that is not ordained of GOD.

In Genesis 15, GOD speaks to Abram and assures him that his heir will be a son from his own body. GOD goes so far as to make a covenant with Abram concerning his seed, during which He prophesies the 400 years of bondage Abram's descendants would endure as well as the concluding mass exodus that would strip their oppressors of much wealth. Less than ten years after Abram received GOD's covenant promise, his wife Sarai took it upon herself to proclaim to her husband that, "GOD has not yet seen fit to let me have a child" (Gen. 16:2, The Message Remix). However, her proclamation was followed by the suggestion, "Sleep with my maid. Maybe I can get a family from her" (Gen. 16:2, The Message Remix), and Abram agreed.

Now back in the fifteenth chapter of Genesis, the Word declares that Abram believed GOD and it was counted to him for righteousness. This was before GOD made the aforementioned convenant with Abram concerning his seed. Abram took GOD at His word, believed Him and, as a result, was made right with GOD. Yet, over time it appears that Abram's faith wavered. With each passing week, month and year minus any sign of a son, doubt slowly chipped away at Abram's resolve to wait for GOD's promise to be fulfilled. In the meantime, Sarai -- in her impatience and desperation -- devises a plan according to her own reasoning to get what she wants and influences Abram to come into agreement with her.

So how does Abram go from believing GOD to agreeing with Sarai? GOD's word ("a son from your body will be your heir") was consistent with His identity ("I'm the same GOD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldees and gave you this land to own"), both of which were consistent with his
actions ("GOD made a covenant with Abram"). Abram believed GOD, but he agreed with Sarai -- two remarkably different actions. Believing and agreeing.

The Word of GOD clearly states that all things are possible to them who believe. However, it also says that when we touch and agree, things happen. Believing transforms impossibilities into possibilities, but agreement manifests the reality of that which is possible. Our call to a life of consistency is clearly illustrated by this particular example. It is when we both believe GOD and agree with Him that we can see the plans and purposes of GOD for our lives manifest before our very eyes. But when we believe GOD and agree with someone else concerning how what we've believed GOD for can be manifested by our own means, we run the risk of creating an Ishmael, a seed of contention that will rise against the promise as a constant reminder of what happens when we try to manifest GOD's promises in our own strength and on our own terms. Be blessed, friends!