Last night, I stepped out of my comfort zone as a leader, and shared with the congregation during the gathering what I thought God was saying in that moment. This is something I do frequently with general concepts, but last night's impression was very specific. So specific that I walked off stage to type it out, and then brought the page back on stage to recite. It's an evidence of his grace that God included me in what He was trying to do in that moment. While nothing profound, it's still a victory in combining faith with listening to the Spirit. Read below for what I heard/read aloud.

There are a thousand things we live for. Our problem is not lack of passion, but desperate passion for other things.

 Most of us are desperately waiting for something to save us from loneliness, exhaustion, and weakness.

 Some of us are desperate for a job.

Some of us are desperate fora promotion

Some of us are desperate for this semester to be over already.

Some of us are desperate for a person to reciprocate the feelings we have for them.

Some of us are desperate to get out of our current relationship.

Some of us are desperate for a spouse.

Some of us desperately want to finally get pregnant.

Some of us are desperate for our kid to straighten up.

Some of us are desperate for a little more money.

Some of us are desperate for a little more free time.

Some of us are desperate for a sickness to be healed.

Some of us are desperate for a little more attention.

 None of things are bad.

But none of these things are God.

If we place any of these things at the center of our life then we can not be satisfied in the one thing we have been hard wired to be satisfied in:

 The King, the Healer, the Provider, the Lover, the Warrior: Jesus Christ.

Critical people are scared of themselves.  Their shame drives them to address the brokenness around them to avoid the brokenness within them.

I regularly run into folks that believe themselves spiritually mature, but within a very short conversation, you are given reason to question that self-assessment. They complain about this, they bicker about that, and all under the umbrella of learned wisdom.

I will say this: We are not given experience and time as a Christian to become a calculated critic, but instead a seasoned servant.

The mission is not solely to assess what is wrong with the world or Christ's bride, the church. Any coward can do that. It seems to me that Jesus calls us to be a part of the solution.

Let's champion more change and critique less.

A few thoughts on what God has been showing me recently.

Knowing Christ means walking His path.

Some days, the length of this path is daunting. On other days, the narrowness is ever present, with the scorching heat of either side grazing your face. Yet Christ is both here and off in the distance, walking along side and up ahead. He is our treasure now and the goal around the bend.

Sin's plan is always to alienate and jeopardize the things that you actually desire in your life.

His burden is light, but not always comfortable. He is our sole hope in each breath, and the only reason worth enduring the discomfort of His kingdom colliding with what wars inside us.

The optimist who finds their hope in frayed safety nets is just as endangered as the pessimist who insists that there is no rescue available.

Believing that God is powerful enough to do something about your condition is insufficient. Without also seeing His goodness for what it is, you will see Him as a jail warden, passively patrolling your life at best, and a vicious dictator who abandons you in times of despair at worst.

He's not a warden.  He's a perfect king.  A perfect Dad.  A perfect judge.  A perfect friend.

I want the hope of Christ to grip me more tightly. Hopeful and discouraged people are both contagious.