Excitement in seeing new projects...

I'm starting to get excited. I recently finished installing the prayer-board at teleos.net - the idea is simple - but one that has been on my heart for a long time.

I've seen so many people looking for their destiny - not wanting to admit that there's a great big hole in their spiritual lives called 'the will of God'. Lots of cults would love to fill it - but not with what God's will is though.

It's that dark, dirty secret that spiritually minded, young, energetic, enthusiastic people with leadership potential don't want to admit. So, I want to shine a light there and say, "Look - here's how you can know God's will for yourself - now!" I want to pray in faith for these folks, encourage them and show them they're not alone.

Excitement and Encouragement

One thing troubled me when I was younger. How can I communicate enthusiasm effectively? How can I infect others with the excitement I feel? It sounds silly. Like the comedian who agonises over whether he is funny. But there is a serious point to it.

This is where encouragement fits into the picture. We all crave attention. If we can't get positive attention, many of us, from childhood have settled for negative attention. At least it gets you noticed. And everyone else suffers from the dysfunctional ripples. Fortunately, that doesn't have to be the end of the story.

Many of us who trained as teachers learned about behaviour modification through praise. People who crave attention lap up praise. But there's a catch. Play-acting (or to give it a longer name: hypocrisy) does not work.

They say that, in ancient Rome, when sculptors made a mistake, they would cover over their chipped holes with wax, mixed with dust from the original stone. It looked marvellous - until the sun beat down upon the statue and revealed it for what it was - imperfect, broken. So, the word sincere (sine cera - without wax) was born.

For this reason, the Apostle warns us: Love must be sincere. Praise must come from the heart, enthusiasm has to be real because phony excitement and half-hearted praise will be seen for what they are when exposed to the elements.

For me, the tension eased up hen I realised that the important thing was not to play at being enthusiastic. But to be myself - the excited person onsumed with a genuine love for his subject and his students.

I was positive!

A result! There as a sitution I wasn't happy about. I had every right to moan, to be mean - but I resisted the temptation. I was nice, I was witty without descending into sarcasm - now that's an achievement in itself. I was polite and...

The problem still persisted.

Then a bit of divine inspiration. And...

No more problem. What I did shouldn't have worked. But what I was doing originally should have ;)

Nevetheless, I'm very happy right now.

Power of the Positive

Put it to the test.

Will being positive change the situation you are in? Will it change you? Will it change those around you?

Will it just result in an alteration of your perspective, or will it have a more funamental effect on the roots of any problems you face?

There is only one sure way to find out!

Launch yourself into positive mode. Look for things to praise. Be genuine in your affection. Be consistent in finding something to build up. Expect to see a change for the better!

Laughing at the Darkness

Sometimes, the futility of selfishness makes me laugh out loud.

To see how the sinful nature tries so hard, but because it is essentially working against the design of the universe, so frustrating people who put enormous effort into unrighteousness - only to see their plans come to nothing.

There's a tragic comedy in such waste.

Psalm 2 spells it out clearly. Whether on the international scene, or small-scale workplace politics. The correct perpective is to sit back and have a giggle at the absurdity of it all, while reaching out a hand to restore correct order. You know they will fail. You have the promise of an unfailing, all-poweful Benefactor that All will be Well. You can afford to be magnanimous, you're not the one who is receiving discipline or dispensing it.

Reconciliation to Prosperity

We have been entrusted with a message of reconciliation. That the Creator of the universe is inviting us to enter into a restored relationship of faith in Him - that He has determined to enlist fallible humans like ourselves with this responsibility, that He will not leave us to do this alone in our own strength, but instead empowers us though the Holy Spirit dwelling within us transforming us to Christlikeness - these truths are overwhelming in their impact.

This is true prosperity - for the Good Lord has not brought us out of a meaningless existence just to make us more comfortable, but instead to challenge us, transform us and work through us in order to bring about the redemption of the human race.

The responsibility is great, so are the rewards - they make material riches pale into insignificance as a means to the greater end of reaching out to the world.

Feeling great

I am in a thankful mood - the Good Lord has blessed me with a mind that can solve problems and a measure of creativity. I've been working on couple of simple programming projects - just writing a couple of Bible memorization games; and I achieved what I set out to do with a minimum of frustration. It set me thinking:

It is humbling to be reminded of God's greatness - compared to our meagre efforts. As creator and sustainer of the universe, He demonstrates His great power every moment of the day, but we often overlook this because we're just too busy. Then, out of the corner of the eye, we glimpse something. Our thoughts focus on a simple truth, and we gasp in wonder at something that others would consider trite or of little consequence if we tried to explain it outside of the context of our experience of His presence.

It may not be an earth-shattering revelation, but it's enough to convince us of the reality of a God whose love for us is constant. There is a great deal of truth in the old cliche that God is more willing to communicate with us and work powerfully through us than we are to allow Him to do so. Our perspective colours our view of this idea though. We can view this statement with despair, hope, cynicism, resignation or as a personal challenge.

What I do know though, is that even when feeling on top of the world, I see One who would encourage me to seek Him more, know Him better - leaving me unsatisfied with earthly achievement and looking for true greatness in a deeper relationship with Him.