TRAINING FOR THE WORLD
God never intended the gifts of the Spirit to be confined to the four walls of the Church. But how easy is it for us to take the miraculous out of the confines of our christian communities? Most of the miracles in the Bible took place off the holy highway in the rugged backwoods of the marketplace! Thankfully, there’s a great transition happening in the Kingdom: we are moving from the ministry to the saints to the ministry of the saints.
Church is the place where we go to get equipped, and it’s a great place to practice until we get proficient, under the guidance of experienced instructors. But it’s important to equip, develop, and train with deployment in mind. The church should be a safe place to practice and grow in the Holy Spirit’s gifts, but if we train only for the Church we will be completely ineffective among those lost in darkness.
Have you learned how to carry God’s power and authority into the world? If we believers become combative instead of honorably confronting, we’ll reduce our influence to the small pond of the church and render ourselves powerless in the ocean of humanity. We must carry God’s authority into the lives of people and nations through invitation, not through intrusion or invasion.
MY PRAYER FOR YOU
Although we’re called to be combative when dealing with the powers of darkness, we’re to be honorably confronting with people, demonstrating the benefits and rewards of a superior Kingdom. My prayer for you is that you’ll find balance and approach the world with character, demonstrating the following attributes. I pray that you’ll:
1. Be humble, but not harmless.
2. Be honorable, but not a suck-up.
3. Be bold, but not brash.
4. Be patient, but not passive.
5. Be powerful, but not controlling.
6. Be encouraging, without flattering.
7. Be gentle, but not timid.
8. Be confident, but not cocky.
9. Be steadfast, but not stubborn.
10. Be discerning, but not suspicious.
11. Be confrontational, but not combative.
12. Be risky, yet wise.
13. Be giving, yet able to receive.
14. Be transparent, but able to keep a secret (and therefore trustworthy).
15. Be submitted to men, but following God.
Lord, help us to follow Your example in loving the world well. Teach us to be as fierce as a lion and as gentle as a lamb, always leaning into You and Your voice. Guide us into the places You want us to go, and give us power and wisdom so that we may be effective in bringing Your kingdom to earth!
