Finding God: Faithfulness in Small Things
October 21, 2009
Filed under Affirmative Prayer, Applied Spirituality, Attitudes of Blessing, Christian Living, Christian Meditation, Christian Optimism, Christianity, Conscious Cognition, Discipleship, Divine Mind, Divine Potential, God's Kingdom, Issues in Transformation, Jesus, Jesus' Teaching, Mainline Denominations, Morality and Values, Obedience, Optimism, Paul's Teachings, Personal Discipline, Personal Renewal, Positive Faith, Positive Living, Repentance, Sacred Character, Sacred Mind, Sacred Mind Ministries
Tags: Christian Living, Discipleship, Positive Living, Positive Faith, Mindfulness, Faithfulness, James Allen
Mick Turner
So often many of us are guilty of becoming preoccupied with the notion that we have to do great things for God. I know I am guilty as charged. There is, of course, nothing inherently wrong with this sort of thing, unless it becomes an obsession. When we become obsessed with the notion of doing great things, it has at least one highly deleterious impact on our lives: we either ignore or completely miss the myriad small things God may be attempting to have us do.
In practical terms, by focusing so much of our attention and energy of those big, earth shattering projects we are convinced God has in store for us, we may completely overlook all those seemingly mundane tasks that we figure are not worth our time or, for those of us who have a paucity of humility, beneath our exalted station. I am exaggerating here, but I think my point is clear. It is often in those seemingly small events that the will of God may be lurking. Further, the fact of the matter is this: scripture tells us that unless we are faithful in the small things, God isn’t going to give us bigger things to accomplish.
For those who may have forgotten this valuable lesson from the Master, I suggest you review the Parable of the Talents. In the meantime, it might also be highly beneficial to listen to these words from James Allen:
Not only great happiness but great power arises from doing little things unselfishly, wisely, and perfectly, for life in its totality is made up of little things. Wisdom inheres in the common details of everyday existence, and when the parts are made perfect the whole will be without blemish…..
One of the fundamental laws that God has placed in the universe is the principle that states that the small is the exact replica of the great. An example of this is the similarity between an atom and a solar system. Just as the electrons orbit the nucleus of an atom, the planets orbit the sun. And in an example that is both personal and biblical, we humans are made in the image of our creator. It boggles the mind, truly. These divine principles can be of great use to us if we comprehend them and the mechanisms involved in their practical application.
For our current purposes, however, let’s keep things as simple as possible. To do that, we return to the words of James Allen as he reminds us of the importance of giving attention to the small things in life:
Neglect of the small is confusion of the great. The snowflake is as perfect as the star; the dew drop is as symmetrical as the planet; the microbe is not less mathematically proportioned than the man. By laying stone upon stone, plumbing and fitting each with perfect adjustment, the temple at last stands forth in all its architectural beauty. The small precedes the great. The small is not merely the apologetic attendant of the great, it is its master and informing genius.
Our attention to matters small is intimately tied up with two issues: the discipline of responsibility and becoming the optimal version of who we are. Let’s briefly explore these two in turn.
Increasingly, it seems that our culture is placing less and less emphasis on the significance of meeting our responsibilities. Discipline is not a popular word in post-modern culture. Instead, we are encouraged to “follow our bliss” and “do our own thing.” The world pays lip service to the importance of discipline and self-control in daily living, but the over-arching message is in actuality much different. Often, instead of encouraging individuals to delay gratification, defer rewards, and develop character, our culture tells us, “If it feels good, do it.” No one ever manifested divine potential by adhering to this advice.
Scripture repeatedly stresses the importance of discipline, self-control, and personal morality. Without personal discipline, we squander our energies, waste precious time, and lose direction and focus.
Instead of putting forth the effort required to meet the obligations placed before us, either by God or our life situation, many conversely seek ways to avoid that expenditure of effort. As a result, there are many decent people who settle for mediocrity or even less in terms of their personal accomplishment. For all too many, phrases like “the pursuit of excellence” seem like a foreign language.
For the follower of Jesus, this kind of approach to life is not acceptable. We are encouraged by Paul, for example, to do everything as if we were doing it for the Lord. Further, it is a life characterized and motivated by a pursuit of excellence to which we are called by the Master. Anything less does not glorify God and certainly brings no glory and honor to ourselves. We must ever keep in mind that God calls us to be the optimal version of ourselves and our steadfast avoidance of personal responsibility and hard work makes this impossible.
It is precisely that consistent practice of paying attention to the small duties of our daily round that makes a life of excellence possible. Moreover, no one ever slouched his or her way to greatness. Again, let’s listen to the wisdom on James Allen:
The great man has become such by the scrupulous and unselfish attention which he has given to small duties. He has become wise and powerful by sacrificing ambition and pride in the doing of those necessary things which evoke no applause and promise no reward. He never sought greatness; he sought faithfulness, unselfishness, integrity, truth; and in finding these in the common round of small tasks and duties he unconsciously ascended to the level of greatness.
If you genuinely are committed to becoming the optimal version of who you are, you are in for a grand adventure. This adventure unfolds as you discern, identify, and meet the challenges that face you moment to moment each day. And it is there, in the context of the divine moment, that you find God’s work and God’s will.
Erwin Raphael McManus, pastor of Mosaic in Lost Angeles, makes the cogent point that the reality of God’s will can only be found in the present moment; “divine moments” he calls them. I could not agree more with what he says and experience, both my own and those of countless clients over the years, bears this out time and time again. The past is already a done deal and the future, at the very best, is but a fleeing fantasy. Reality is happening right now, under our noses, and it is happening nowhere else. Once you get that, and I mean really get it, you are well on your way to a most rewarding life, regardless of external circumstance.
As a brief sidebar, I also want to mention that a big part of finding our place in God’s scheme of things involves becoming the optimal version of ourselves and the context in which we accomplish that is also in the divine moment. McManus also speaks to this issue:
Earth’s unlimited resource is the gifts, talent, passions, imagination, and ingenuity of its citizens. You would think that we know this by now, but we often seem to miss the gift right in front of us. The world needs you to find the hero within you. The real battle is not between good and evil but between less and more. Most of us don’t choose the worst life; we just don’t choose the best. We can’t afford for you to sleep through your dreams…..The world needs you at your best. This planet is made better or worse by the people we choose to become. If you live a diminished life, it’s not only you who loses, but the world loses, and humanity loses. There is a story to be written by your life, and thought it may never inspire a graphic novel, it is a heroic tale nonetheless. Though you may not recognize it, there is a greatness within you.
I love these words by McManus. They reverberate through the inner fiber of my being, ringing loudly with both truth and relevance. I know that many times I forget that there is a God-planted greatness within me and within others. Fortunately, God has found ways to keep me focused enough to have at least one eye on the potential he placed within me.
Developing the ability to discern where and how God is moving requires more than merely taking time out for rest and relaxation. It takes a more radical and comprehensive reorientation of our approach to life in general and focus in particular. If you are to become more sensitive to what God is doing and where he is doing it, you need to become intimately acquainted with a practice that we in this fast-paced, multi-tasking world are not good at. In order to discover the movements of God in the context of the “divine moment,” you have to become more mindful.
Mindfulness is not stressed so much in our culture and it is stressed even less in our churches. This is unfortunate because no matter how much the post-modern world sings the virtues of multi-tasking this and multi-tasking that, the ability to fully focus on one thing at one time, to the exclusion of any distraction, is a highly useful skill. Our corporate world, in spite of its alleged genius, has yet to discover that mindful people are far more productive than multi-taskers. Their efficiency alone makes them more of an asset.
Even more relevant from a spiritual perspective, if we are going to find God’s will we are going to have to seek the epicenter of his activity. As we have seen, that sublime activity is going to be found in its purest, most pristine and discernable form in the present moment – the divine moment. It will be found here and nowhere else. As we have also seen, in order to discover this epicenter and God’s will, we may, indeed, have to reorient our perspective on several key issues. With certainty, we have to become more mindful.
Mindfulness, discipline, and character are essential ingredients in the establishment of a life of excellence and equanimity. By paying attention to the small things, we are often called upon to crucify our lower desires in favor of loftier themes. It is precisely by doing this, saying no to ourselves, that personal power comes about. And it is by denying “self,” with its clamorous cacophony of heckling demands, that we are walking the path of Christ – the path of the cross. By following the way of the Master, we are better able to master ourselves. Let’s visit James Allen a final time:
The man who sets his whole mind on the doing of each task as it is presented, who puts into it energy and intelligence, shutting out all else from his mind, and striving to do that one thing, no matter how small, completely and perfectly, detaching himself from all reward in his task – that man will every day be acquiring greater command over his mind, and will, by ever-ascending degrees, become at last a man of power…There is no way to strength and wisdom but by acting strongly and wisely in the present moment, and each present moment reveals its own task. The great man, the wise man, does small things greatly regarding nothing as “trivial” that is necessary. The weak man, the foolish man, does small things carelessly, and meanly, hankering the while after, some greater work for which, in his neglect and inability in small matters, he is ceaselessly advertising his incapacity. The man who least governs himself is always more ambitious to govern others…
I don’t know about you, friend, but when I first read those last two sentences I was strongly convicted – so strongly convicted that the Holy Spirit held my feet to the fire, so to speak, for several days. In the end, I made a strong commitment to devote myself to mindfulness in small things and spend less time hankering after great things. In doing so, I discovered two important lessons. First, I became a more efficient and responsible person and second, I became more tranquil and less reactive. Granted, I am still far from perfect in these areas, but I am much improved over where I once stood in these matters.
And herein is the key: we are to be mindful of the small things, presented to us in the divine moment. It is here, and only here, that we will find the epicenter of God’s activity in general and his will for us in particular. If we are faithful in the small things, then we can be trusted with greater responsibilities.
© L. D. Turner 2009/ All Rights Reserved
Positive Prayer and the Release of Negative Imprints
September 21, 2009
Filed under Affirmative Prayer, Applied Spirituality, Attitudes of Blessing, Christian Living, Christian Optimism, Christianity, Conscious Cognition, Discipleship, Divine Mind, Divine Potential, Healing, Holy Spirit, Identity In Christ, Inner Light, Issues in Transformation, Jesus, Jesus' Teaching, New Thought, Obedience, Optimism, Personal Discipline, Positive Confession, Positive Expectation, Positive Faith, Positive Living, Positive Thinking, Prayer, Renewal of the Mind, Repentance, Sacred Mind Ministries, Scripture, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Practices
Tags: Christianity, Affirmative Prayer, Prayer, Positive Prayer, Christian Optimism, Change Your Life, Negative Thinking, Personal Healing, Renew Your Mind
Mick Turner
When a person first discovers the principles and the power of the various spiritual laws the Creator has put at our disposal, he or she is often filled with hope, enthusiasm, and positive motivation. This is both natural and as it should be, because these principles are blessings that God has given us and intends for us to use, especially when we need to make major life changes in general and changes that help us to grow spiritually in particular.
However, all too often this initial burst of enthusiasm is dampened when, despite applying these powerful spiritual principles correctly, the spiritual aspirant seems to obtain minimal results. This can be a frustrating experience, especially for those who are sincere spiritual seekers that want to not only improve themselves, but the world around them. Invariably, however, most of us reach this point when we consistently work with the Laws of Manifestation. Indeed, this can be a highly critical crossroads along the journey of spiritual development. More than a few dedicated seekers have thrown in the towel when this sort of experience begins to repeat itself with regularity. Believe me, I know because I have been there – done that.
What is even more tragic about this situation is the reality that this crisis can be worked through without too much difficulty. All it takes is a degree of awareness regarding the less-than-pristine nature of our subconscious mind and knowledge of the proper prayer tools to deal with it.
The Laws of Manifestation, those principles at play when we work to bring something from the spiritual world into manifestation on the physical plane, would work perfectly all the time if they operated through perfectly pure minds in a perfectly pure world. The unfortunate reality is, however, neither the minds in question nor the world in which they operate are anywhere near pure. We all have subconscious patterns of belief that operate beyond our capacity to control them, largely because we are unaware of them. These patterns of belief can sometimes sabotage our best intentions and, if we want to become more adept at applying spiritual law, we have to deal with these subconscious themes.
Although these subconscious themes can be stubborn at times, I have found that the most direct, effective, and simple method of dealing with these obstacles is through positive prayer. In essence, we apply the principles of affirmative prayer to the very things that seem to be blocking our prayers in the first place. As ironic as it may seem, I have found this to be the most consistently effective tool.
With that said, let me share with you a simple prayer that I use when I run up against the sort of thing we are discussing in this post. If you so desire, give it a try. Like all affirmative prayer, the key is to generate feeling in your prayer and repeat it many times. Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither were your subconscious impediments and imprints. Likewise, they won’t crumble in a day, either. Here is the prayer:
Releasing Negative Imprints
Through the healing power of the God’s One True Light, I now release all negative imprints and impediments in my body, mind, will, and spirit. I release these personal delusions and they are no longer part of me, nor do they create obstacles to the perfect application of the Divine Laws of Manifestation. I am now cleansed and perfected – I am healed, healthy, happy, and whole.
By the power of the Holy Spirit and in the sacred name of Christ, so it is.
Amen.
© L.D. Turner 2009/All Rights Reserved
Optimal Thinking and Open-Mindedness
September 6, 2009
Filed under Affirmative Prayer, Applied Spirituality, Attitudes of Blessing, Christian Education, Christian Living, Christian Optimism, Christianity, Discipleship, Divine Mind, Divine Potential, God's Kingdom, God's Love, Gospel, Issues in Transformation, Jesus, Jesus' Teaching, Mission and Calling, Morality and Values, Optimism, Paul's Teachings, Personal Discipline, Personal Renewal, Personal Vision, Positive Expectation, Positive Faith, Positive Living, Positive Thinking, Renewal of the Mind, Sacred Mind, Sacred Mind Ministries, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Gifts, Spiritual Practices
Tags: Christianity, Discipleship, Positive Christianity, Optimism, Positive Thinking, Positive Faith, Open-mindedness, Optimal Thinking
Mick Turner
Here at LifeBrook International we have as part of our ongoing mission statement to provide publications, materials, and programs to assist individuals and organizations to:
Become the optimal version of themselves for the glory of God and the benefit of others.
After many years working with people that are sincere about living a life of excellence we have discovered many interesting things about what works with people and what doesn’t. Further, by the grace of God, we have been given enough wisdom to weed out those elements that are non-productive and, in contrast, strengthen those elements that seem to be beneficial.
Today, I want to talk about two principles that we have found that are absolutely essential if you want to make positive changes in your life and grow toward becoming the person God designed you to be, wants you to be, and equipped you to be. It goes without saying that there are more than two principles involved in our spiritual growth, but in the context of this brief article, let’s limit our discussion to a pair of principles that are foundational. These are: Positive Thinking and Open-Mindedness.
Let’s briefly explore the first principle, which can be stated this way: thought is the ancestor of action. What we do begins in our thoughts and eventually is translated into our actions. In light of this fact, if we truly wish to develop our capacities, grow more consistently with fluency and grace, and live more effective and productive lives the place we must begin is with our thinking. The formula is really quite simple. Positive thoughts translate themselves into positive actions. Negative thoughts translate into negative actions. Positive actions, in turn, promote growth and development. Negative actions result in wasted effort, stagnation, and lack of fulfillment.
The good news in all of this is that we are masters of our own destiny in regards to improving the level at which we live. Of course, all of us have natural limitations to our talent. However, the fact remains that we can stretch that talent much farther just by believing in ourselves and trusting that we have as a divine partner, a dynamic Spirit that will come to our aid.
Let me repeat the statement, “thought is the ancestor of action“. In applying biblical principles of spiritual growth we must keep this principle before us at all times. You learn to live the way you want to live when you learn to think what you want to think. It all starts in the mind. Granted, there are many things in the world that you cannot change through your thinking. But the one thing you can certainly change is yourself! So start with yourself. If you want to improve yourself remember:
Create your own positive thought and you become what you desire to become because the truth of the matter is that your thought creates your experience.
Let me repeat, it is your thoughts that determine your attitudes and it is your attitudes that determine your actions. The great American President Thomas Jefferson said it far better than I can:
Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal. Nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.
More than anything else, becoming the optimal version of yourself requires a positive mental attitude at the outset. Without it, failure is guaranteed.
Attitude is everything. The fact is that we often defeat ourselves before we begin a project or pursue a goal. The cause of this self-defeat is negative thinking. In order to grow and develop we have to embrace a more positive outlook on life. We must incorporate into our being the firm belief that I can if I think I can. It really is as simple as that. Base your life on this belief and you will see miracles happen every day!
I think it is tragic that many people fail to utilize simple, spiritual principles because of just that: they seem too simple. I remember reading in the autobiography of Robert Schuller an episode regarding this issue. Shortly before he was due to graduate from seminary, young Robert had the opportunity to go to a lecture being delivered by Norman Vincent Peale. Being the brilliant young theologian that he was, Schuller relates that he felt this would largely be a waste of his time because Dr. Peale was “too simplistic.” Schuller had just completed his major graduation paper, had studied deeply in arcane theological texts, and figured he pretty much knew all there was to know. Certainly, someone who wrote things as superficial and trendy could have nothing to say that would be meaningful to someone as deep as he was.
After the lecture by Dr. Peale, Schuller and his classmates joked about how shallow the message was and, like all good young students of religion, believed they were just far too sophisticated to be bothering with such petty lectures. My, how interestingly God works sometimes.
Schuller ended up receiving mail outs from Peale’s ministry and, to make a long story short, something Peale said hit Schuller right between the eyes. Eventually, Robert Schuller in a sense became Peale’s successor. And more amazing, Schuller began writing the same kind of simplistic books that Peale did. I recall that back in the early ‘70’s, when I first read Move Ahead With Possibility Thinking I believed it was far too simplistic, sophomoric, and a complete waste of my time. After all, I had two Bachelors Degrees, a Masters Degree, and was working on a second Masters Degree. The pop psychology offered up by Schuller was far beneath my great intellect. Now I know better, thanks to the Lord. I’ll get back to Dr. Schuller in the second part of this article. For whatever reasons, Robert Schuller is a controversial figure among Christians. I find this an unfortunate reality, but a reality nonetheless. Like I said, more on this later.
One of the greatest lessons that I have learned in my life, and learned with great difficulty I might add, is expect the best and the best will come to you. Get out of all your old negative habits of thinking and be open to new, positive patterns of affirmation. Develop a joyous and optimistic outlook on each day. Fall in love with life and live it fully. Above all, develop the habit of positive thinking. Believe in yourself! Believe in your abilities! Be confident! Be Proactive! Take the following affirmative words, by Robert Schuller actually, and plant them deep within your mind:
I am!
I can!
I will!
I believe!
This may seem very simple and, in fact, it is. Yet it is this very simplicity that makes positive thinking so powerful and profound. If you don’t believe, try it out for six months and see what happens. In fact, why don’t you, the reader, do that. Do a bit of research on simple practices like positive thinking. Work with affirmative prayer, praying the scriptures according to the positive themes contained in the Bible, and pray for the Holy Spirit’s assistance in helping you to think more constructively and optimistically. Give it six months and see what happens. The results will astound you!
In addition to being positive about our ability to be formed into the likeness of Christ, we also need to develop an attitude of openness. By this I simply mean that in order to make progress, we have to do things differently than we have in the past. This, my friend, means we have to encounter change. Many of us avoid change, choosing to stay with the familiar, with the status quo. Unfortunately, if we want to grow we have to change. And, if we want to change, we have to be flexible in our approach to life and open to new ways of doing things.
The one sure thing that can keep a person in everlasting ignorance is a closed mind. To live a life based on spiritual principles is to always strive to be open to new ideas, new concepts, and fresh and invigorating ways of doing things. So often many of us go about our daily rounds, living life in the same routine way and responding to the events of the day in the same old ritualistic ways that we always have. The same is true for our thinking. We think the same kind of thoughts, hold the same views and opinions, and approach life in the same timeworn way that we always have. No matter that some of these behaviors and thought patterns are non-productive and destructive. We cherish them because they are familiar and comfortable.
By living this way we never have to stretch our minds. The process of spiritual formation along biblical lines challenges this way of being and encourages us to venture out into new ways of doing things and fresh ways of thinking. We are challenged to look at things from a different perspective and, when we do, we are transformed – changed in a positive way. Paul called this “renewing the mind” and basically said this was the foundation stone of personal and spiritual development. Oliver Wendell Holmes said it so well: Man’s mind, stretched to a new idea, never goes back to its original dimension.
Making this worn out way of thinking worse is the fact that the Holy Spirit may be trying to communicate with us. The blessed Spirit may be trying to show us a new and healthier way to view a specific issue or theme or may be trying to get across an important truth that we need to understand in a fresh way. If we have a closed mind that allows for no “out of the box” thinking, then we may indeed be guilty of quenching the Spirit.
Open-mindedness and positive thinking are two fundamental qualities that are great aids in growing as a Christian. Without these two tools, we can, and many often do, end up existing rather than living. Rather than being renewed in our faith and branching out into new ways of serving the Master, we choose instead to remain mired in chronic negativity and close-minded imprisonment. As a result, many of us never use our God-given, Spirit-inspired gifts for the establishment of the kingdom. More than a few of us go to our graves with our dream still locked away inside of us, incarcerated in a prison of our own making.
The irony here, and at the same time the good news, is the fact that you hold the key. The question thus becomes: Will you use it?
(c) L.D. Turner 2009/All Rights Reserved
It’s A Question of Identity
June 7, 2009
Filed under Affirmative Prayer, Apostle Paul, Applied Spirituality, Christian Living, Christian Optimism, Christianity, Discipleship, Divine Mind, Divine Potential, God's Kingdom, Gospel, Grace, Holy Spirit, Identity In Christ, Incarnation, Issues in Transformation, Jesus, Jesus' Teaching, Paul's Teachings, Personal Discipline, Personal Renewal, Personal Vision, Positive Faith, Positive Living, Prayer, Renewal of the Mind, Revival, Sacred Center, Sacred Character, Sacred Mind, Sacred Mind Ministries, Sacred Study, Scripture, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spirituality
Tags: Christianity, Spiritual Formation, Discipleship, Identity In Christ, Jesus, Jesus' Teaching, Change Your Life, Paul's Teaching
Mick Turner
Robert H. Kraft in his book I Give You Authority: Practicing the Authority Jesus Gave Us, makes the following astute and pertinent observations:
I am convinced, through working in inner healing and deliverance, that the enemy’s primary area of attack is our self image. He does not want us to discover who we are. I work with victimized, abused and defeated people whose lives are often characterized by severe hopelessness or depression. Yet they are often brimming with hidden talents and untapped spiritual gifts given to them by God at conception. The enemy, knowing what these gifts and talents are, has done his best to keep these people from knowing their abilities. And he has destroyed or nearly destroyed their perception of who they are intended to be.
I can deeply relate to Dr. Kraft’s words because for years I was one of those people he describes, especially in regards to those powerfully devastating words he uses – words like hopelessness, depression, and defeated. Kraft uses the adjective “severe” in front of the word hopelessness. This is a horrible state of spiritual angst. Kraft goes on to list eight significant points relative to our true identity as new creations “in Christ.”
We are created only a little lower than God
- Although in Adam we gave it all away, God has stepped in a redeemed us.
- We who have committed our lives to Christ are the children of God
- God gives us the Holy Spirit to live within us
- Our position has been further dignified by the fact that God in Jesus has united with us for eternity.
- We are children of the King
- By His grace, God actually trust us!
- Spiritual authority is part of who we are
We have often been told, and it is true, that we appropriate the gospel message of salvation by having faith that it is so. Any reading of Paul will bear this out. However, this addresses only part of the gospel. Our sins were forgiven at the cross but we also died and rose with Christ that we may be part of new family, with Him at the head. It would seem to me that the operation of faith is also central here.
If we are saved by grace through faith, we are also sanctified and created in the image of Christ by the same faith. We are restored by faith; we are resurrected by faith; and we, especially our minds, are renewed by faith. Why is it that so many Christians focus on and believe that they are saved by faith, but fail to see that they are restored, resurrected and renewed by faith? I suspect that are many reasons for this omission, not the least of which is the fact that our renewal by faith is not stressed from the pulpit nearly as much as our salvation by the blood.
What we are talking about here is coming to a living, vital, and above all else, transforming understanding of our new identity in Christ. Once we accept on the basis of faith that we do indeed have this new identity planted within us, we are then in a position to begin to explore our true potential “in Christ” and further, develop strategies for realizing that blessed, God-given potential in the context of our daily living.
In addition to the above, I am increasingly aware of the flow of realizing our potential of who we are in Christ. This process of unfolding our true spiritual identity involves the following:
New Creation ->Potential -> Purpose -> Vision -> Glory -> Kingdom -> Incarnation
We begin by taking it on faith that we are exactly what God says we are: New Creations. Everything that follows hinges upon our acceptance of our new identity in Christ. I can’t stress this point enough. We need to have a deep conversation with God and with ourselves. The subject matter of that conversation is coming to a living, transforming awareness of the fact that the new has come and the old has passed away. Baptism is the sacrament that recognizes and symbolizes this act of grace in which we have risen with Christ, justified before God as new beings.
Next, we recognize and accept that God has placed a unique potential within each and every one of us. The realization of that potential is part of our personal mission on this planet and exists within the context of God’s overall plan and purpose for humanity. When we marry our potential to our individual purpose, our potential is activated and we begin to move toward becoming all that we were designed to be. When our purpose is connected to a specific personal vision, our potential is further unfolded in the context of our purpose and vision. As the process reaches fruition, we then realize our vision, our purpose, and our potential. In doing so, we manifest our glory. Our glory can be defined as becoming the best version of ourselves and claiming our already established identity “in Christ.” By manifesting our glory, we are able to fulfill our God-given role in the establishment of his Kingdom. The entire process is thus carried forward in the Kingdom Context. On a practical level, the kingdom context consists of the recognition that the primary reason Christ incarnated was to inaugurate the process of establishing his kingdom on earth. Our “glory walk” involves nothing less than having all of our actions flowing from the living awareness of our responsibility of carrying on the Lord’s kingdom mission.
Our glory walk is indeed just that: a walk of glory in which we manifest our glory by living our vision and we glorify God by actually becoming everything he created us to be. Our mission then becomes to continue to incarnate Christ on earth by carrying forward his kingdom mission in the place where he has planted us. Recognizing that we are where we are because Christ, in his wisdom, placed us there, we go about making an influential kingdom impact in the areas where we have been given the opportunity to do so. This may be at work, at church, on the bus or the train, and most certainly, in our homes and neighborhoods.
Walking in glory is not only a personal enterprise, but is a corporate issue as well. As the true Body of Christ here on earth, the Church is to incarnate Christ in his totality to a hurting world hell bent on destruction. These days much energy and talent is spent in criticizing the Church and, granted, there is much to take issue with. However, we must not lose sight of the fact that it is this tainted and fault-filled Church that is to carry out the corporate function of establishing God’s kingdom here on earth. As with most things, in our attacks on the church we must take care that we don’t throw the baby out with the bath water. Despite its problems, it is this very Church Universal that is charged with a huge responsibility and privilege. Let’s ever keep that reality before us.
All things considered, the Church is not so bad. And besides, this is Christ’s wife we’re talking about here. And let’s also keep in mind that we are not all that perfect, either. How was it that Jesus put it when he was drawing in the sand? Let him who is without sin…..
Finally, let’s also remember that just as we can be transformed and, miracle of miracles, eventually be blessed enough to walk in our glory, so also can the church. Can you imagine that? The Church eventually becoming the optimal version of itself, walking in its corporate glory and carrying out its corporate purpose, all for the manifest glory of God – truly my friends it boggles the mind.
Do you believe it can and will happen? I do. I trust what God has said in the Bible and even more, I know that with God, all things are possible.
Whenever I need living, breathing proof of that divine fact, all I have to do is look in a mirror.
© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved
Just A Few Thoughts On Potential
June 6, 2009
Filed under Affirmative Prayer, Applied Spirituality, Attitudes of Blessing, Christian Living, Christian Optimism, Christianity, Church, Conscious Cognition, Discipleship, Divine Mind, Divine Potential, Goal Setting, God's Love, Holy Spirit, Issues in Transformation, Jesus, Jesus' Teaching, Ministry, Mission and Calling, New Thought, Obedience, Optimism, Paul's Teachings, Personal Discipline, Personal Renewal, Personal Vision, Positive Expectation, Positive Faith, Positive Living, Prayer, Promises of God, Renewal of the Mind, Revival, Sacred Center, Sacred Character, Sacred Mind, Sacred Mind Ministries, Sacred Study, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual Gifts, Spiritual Practices, Spiritual Quotations, Success
Tags: Spiritual Formation, Personal Growth, Potential, Positive Faith, Spiritual Growth, Myles Munroe, Motivation, Sacred Mind Ministries, Positive Psychology
Mick Turner
It seems that the word “potential” carries negative connotations in some circles these days. Some experts seem to think labeling a person with having potential is unfair and places undue and excessive expectations on a person. I suspect these pundits have reasons for saying such things, but I, for one, feel they are a bit off base with all of this.
You see, I think that everyone has potential and not only that, it is a God-given and God-designed potential. Granted, singling out an individual and continually lamenting over how they fail to live up to their potential can be a negative thing. Sometimes this course of action ends up just frustrating the targeted individual more and makes them even less likely to seize their potential and move forward to a more productive life. I have found that rather than repeatedly pointing out where a person has failed to live up to their potential, it is more beneficial to assist the individual to find out what motivates them to make a firm and lasting commitment to becoming the best that they can be.
Finding what internal mechanism will turn the key of motivation for an individual is not always an easy task and, when you get right down to it, only that person can actually discover his or her personal motivator. If I am working as a coach with a person, what I normally do is ask the individual to spend quiet time with the Creator, seeking answers and direction. I have found without fail that this works, not always overnight, but with amazing consistency. This stems from the reality that it was God who placed this potential inside of the person, equipped that person with all they ever need to realize that potential, and is more than willing to provide motivation and direction in pursuit of that potential.
In my own case I have discovered that my “motivators” have changed over the years and sometimes change with amazing regularity. I have also found that this tends to keep me fresh in terms of my outlook and my overall approach to life. For example, a year or so back it dawned on me that whenever we fail to realize our God-given potential, we are not only hurting ourselves, and not only the world at large, but future generations as well. I had never thought of these issues from that angle before and, as I looked at my then three-year-old daughter I gained not only a new insight into the importance of realizing my potential, but a deeper sense of commitment and motivation.
A few weeks later, as is often the case, I was reading Dr. Myles Munroe’s excellent book, Releasing Your Potential, and discovered several passages that spoke directly to the issues of potential and future generations. These words by Dr. Munroe only served to strengthen my commitment to being the optimal version of myself for the sake of others, especially future generations. Here’s what Myles Munroe shared:
It is the awesome realization that if your potential is not released, it will affect this generation and all the generations of man yet to live. Even creation will testify against you. If you abort your potential, you will be robbing the world of the treasure you came to this planet to deliver. The fact that you were born is evidence that God knew earth needed the potential you are pregnant with. It is, therefore, imperative that you refuse to leave this planet without giving birth to those dreams, ideas, visions, and inventions you carry in the womb of your faith right now. /releasing 29/
What lies behind you is history and what lies before you is future, but these are both tiny matters compared to what lies within you. You may not be able to change your past, and your future is yet unlived, but the present provides you with opportunities to maximize your life and the ability that lives within you. You must take responsibility for your ability….Are you living a stillbirth? Are you aborting your entire purpose for living? I encourage you to take responsibility right now for your ability. Determine to activate, release, and maximize your potential for the sake of the next generation. Leave your footprints in the sands of the history of your country. Live fully so you can die effectively. Let your life write the speech of your death and give your potential to the family of man for the glory of God. Remember “well done” is much better than “well said.” Don’t just talk about your potential dreams, visions, and ideas. Step out now and determine to do them. Dare to believe that you have already accomplished is but a minute percentage of what you can do.
In closing, let me encourage you to spend time reflecting on the issue of your personal potential and take your reflections, your thoughts, and especially your questions to God in prayer and mediation. Discuss these themes with a trusted spiritual friend and/or mentor. And don’t forget to especially focus on what motivates you to get moving into proactive pursuit of your God-given potential.
All in all, it will be time well spent.
© L. Dwight Turner 2009/ All Rights Reserved