This evening as I was spending a little time meditating, the Spirit kept bringing me to a familiar passage of Scripture.  There were some things that I had been praying about and I really needed to move beyond some hang ups that were holding me up.  So as I was seeking to get free, the Spirit brought me to this passage:

^“5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. ⁶ I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. ⁷ So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. ⁸ The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. ⁹ For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.”  1 Corinthians 3:5-9

The Corinthians were arguing about who they were because of who they followed and Paul was quick to point out that it was not about any man or any man’s plan.  It’s about our Creator and His plan.

We men are created as servants and called to complete a task given to us by God for His glory.  Each man does his part, but it is God that is responsible for the growth/increase.  Each man has a purpose and will be rewarded according to his own labor by God and not man.

This Scripture says that we are co-workers, we are God’s field, we are God’s building.  I have served in several different congregations during my ministry and I am thankful for each and every opportunity.  Every congregation has been a great blessing to me.

Calvary taught me the basics and gave me opportunity to grow.  College Churches opened my eyes to all the uniqueness of every congregation.  Tabernacle allowed me to experience real and meaningful ministry and taught me about leadership and team work.  Shamrock gave me opportunity to grow in my personal relationship deep and help me to understand the value of really caring about people.  Hillcrest encouraged me to cross whatever lines needed to be crossed and that the Gospel is for everybody – red, yellow, black and white.  Northwood taught me many things, but the greatest was the gift of faith, which opens doors that no one has seen.  Grace Place is teaching me that there is still so much for me to learn.

When you pray and ask God to bless the church, what church are you asking Him to bless?  Your church or His church?  There is only one and we are all apart of it, let’s work together to do our part, so that God get’s the glory!

My goal and desire is that the work and leadership I give to Grace Place will be a blessing to our community, an honor to God and an opportunity to bless other congregations and be blessed by other congregations.  In the last year, I have had the opportunity to see more and more of this and it is my prayer that it will increase greatly in the days ahead.

I am not sure if I am planting, watering, weeding or what I am doing, but I am glad that I get to be a part and I am praying for the part that each of us play, that it might be used in a mighty way for the great glory of our God and King!

I love each and every one of you and thank you for the blessing you have been, are or will be!  May you continue to live blessed!  😉

Some times a challenge comes your way that you are not expecting and with the challenge an opportunity to experince life in a new and better way.  The key is learning to accept the challenge as an opportunity and not a hinderance.  Most of us view challenges as hinderances, but if you look back on past challenges, you will notice that most all of them provided amazing opportunity for blessing, growth and meaningful purpose in life.  We are all going into, in the midst of or coming out of a challenge.  Determine where you are, face and deal with what you need to and get ready to go to the next amazing level!  Above all, make sure that you are living blessed!

It has been some time since I have written on this blog.  Part of the reason has been busyness and another part has been too many things in my head.  I have recently just gotten back to the place of emptying myself, so that I might focus on what really matters and so I have been desiring more and more to come back and write.

I used to think I was writing for others, but realized that the real joy is when I write for the One Who created me.  Recently, I have spent a great deal of time studying love.  My goal is to get a better understanding, so that I can not just do it, but more importantly be it!  Our Creator is love and so it makes sense that this is our purpose – to be loved and to love.

Love is what gives meaning to this human experience that we like to call life.  There is not real and lasting happiness without meaning and there is no meaning without love.  When I love, I am living my meaning.  When I love, I am living at one with the Spirit and know that I am right where I belong, where I was created to be.

I have a choice – I can live my life for what everyone else thinks is best, trying my best to live up to their often unrealistic expectations or I can live a life of meaning by making a shift and living the essence of the One Who created me.

To really love is to get in touch with Divinity and this is where we tame the ego and find the strength to head into a life of purposeful meaning.  This is where we abandon the false self and begin our trip back to the destination of our origination by living with a new/old set of guidelines.

When I realize that I did not begin at birth and I will not end at death, then I can’t help but realize that the only thing that really matters is love.  If you want to know yourself, then look for God.  Every glimpse that you get of your Creator, will reveal a little bit more about who you are, where you come from and what is your purpose.

An important question to ask ourselves all throughout the day is this:  “Am I becoming more like the One Who created me?”  1 John 4:8 says that “He who does not love, does not know God, for God is love!”

We need to find our way back to love, for it is the place of our origination and the destination of our eternity.  The closer we get to this place of our original nature, the more we will experience peace as we live according to our purpose and discover the meaning of life, which provides us with real, lasting and meaningful happiness.

Until next time – love and live blessed!