Last week I talked about the necessity of BEING vs. DOING. During the early years of ministry there is a lot of doing. But somewhere along the line, after you’ve done a lot of ministry, you need to come to the conclusion that it’s not about the DOING but about the BEING. It’s not about ministry, it’s about closeness with God. BEING is the position where you are intimate with the Lord, understanding you are fully loved and accepted because of God’s boundless grace and love, and not because of anything you do for Him.
How do you develop the being? You need to go back to the three non-negotiables of a Christian: Bible, prayer, and reflection. The Bible is where you learn the HEART of God, prayer is where you learn the VOICE of God, and reflection is where you learn your HEART towards God. These non-negotiables are best done when you are alone, when it’s only you and God. And this is when God does some of His best work…as long as you are humble and open to His teaching.
As you are reading the Bible, the Holy Spirit will spiritually highlight a verse that He wants you to know. I encourage you to journal that verse. I use the SOAP method (Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer). For example, I’m currently going through 1Samuel and I’m learning about Samuel, Saul, and David. In Chapter 26, David and Abishai sneak into Saul’s camp. While there, Abishai tells David now is his chance to kill Saul. It makes sense, doesn’t it? Saul has been on a rampage to kill innocent David. This would be a perfect time to stop that. Besides, isn’t David going to be the next king of Israel anyway? David’s response in 26:9, “Who can stretch out his hand against the Lord’s anointed? Surely the Lord will strike him.” In other words, “No, I can’t strike the Lord’s anointed. I’m going to allow the Lord to take care of Saul in His time.” As I was reading that, the Holy Spirit said I needed to learn to wait on the Lord’s timing. This is how I learn the heart of God…through the Bible.
My prayer times will then reflect what I’m learning in the Word. Based on how the Lord spoke to me through 1Samuel 26 I confessed my tendencies not to wait on His timing. As I asked for forgiveness, He assured me I was forgiven by Jesus’ finished work on the cross. That assurance gave me new hope for the day. Then throughout the day, I reflected on what I learned. As I was going about my different plans and projects, He came along and said, “Don’t forget what you learned…wait on the Lord’s timing.” Then I was challenged…could I wait and trust in His timing or should I move forward with what I wanted to do? Those times of reflection will show your heart towards the Father. This is why one needs to be humble and open to His teaching.
During these quiet times, the Lord will shape your character so it becomes more and more like Christ. It is during these times you begin to understand who you are in Christ…how you are fully accepted and fully loved, yet what needs to change in your heart to become like Christ. He wants to shape your heart more than your hands. These solitude times is when you find out who you really are. Who you are is a reflection of your being.
It is also during these quiet times when the Lord can bring character correction. There have been many times as I’ve read the Bible, the Holy Spirit would tug at my heart and tell me I needed to work on a certain area of my life. This is the gentle, gracious hand of God shaping my character and giving me a chance to change my heart. Although it’s sometimes hard to change, I know it’s necessary. Why? Because if I can’t be corrected in private, I will be corrected in public. Correction is part of the shaping of my being.
Therefore, this is where your being starts…in an intimate, open, sometimes gut-wrenching time with God. And when you have the right BEING, then you can move towards the right DOING.
Sometimes we don’t have good leaders who last because the BEING has been ignored.
Questions to Think About:
Has the DOING become more important than your BEING?
When the Lord corrects you in private, do you tend to make the necessary changes as soon as possible?
© Gary Lau 2013
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