I can sit on that anger and complain or I can put the same amount of effort it takes to get and stay mad and pray. What if as Christians we all did that? It is so much easier to get mad and stay there, more than it is to pray. Pray continuously, maybe spend time fasting in prayer. Not because I want God to make "this" issue go away, but for the souls and lives that the enemy is blinding and taking captive. This is more than a "cultural" issue, it's a heart issue. It's a real issue. There are so many more real issues. The enemy is a real issue. BUT...so is the one who created our bodies, without making a gender mistake, or any other mistake for that matter.
I've kept quiet and generally keep quiet on "touchy" subjects for my own personal reasons. I just can't anymore.
I took my kids to the park tonight and on the way home tonight they were dyyyyyyying of thirst. Crying, mad, angry, hateful... Sounds familiar, right? Our bedtime bible story tonight, dated today's date (May 12th) was titled "Thirsty Souls." Funny how God works, right?! Keep reading...
Referring to John 4:14 that says, "but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst again. For the water I give them to drink will bring eternal life."
This world is thirsty. People in this world are thirsty. NOTHING can or ever will quench that thirst except for Jesus. You can search your identity through and through; question if there really is a God; mask your hurts with drugs and alcohol; sleep with every person that temporarily makes you feel good; watch things that give an immediate satisfaction; physically hurt yourself to make the real pain go away; but you're still thirsty.
Why, simply put, it doesn't quench that longing thirst.
How crazy would it be of my kids to sit there and continue to throw a fit at me and reject the ice cold water that I am trying to give them because they are soooooo thirsty, yet, I have what they need and ultimately want? This happens every day in people's lives. When we put a blindfold on someone we do it for a reason. We don't want them to see the surprise or whatever it is that is on the other side.
Satan works the exact same way.
Where I work I pass people living on the streets and begging for money at the street corners. Chris preached a message to our students a few Wednesday nights ago about Peter and John and the lame beggar. I have not stopped thinking about that message. They simply told the man, I don't have any money to give you but I have Jesus, take my hand and get up. The man got up HEALED, went leaping and running because he found his hope, his thirst was satisfied. Peter and John had an experience with Jesus before encountering this man and they didn't keep that experience to themselves. They took it and did something with it and that's exactly what we as Christians should be doing and CAN do.
This last week God has been impressing some things on my heart that are way outside of my comfort zone and I mean comfort as in stepping in shoes I've never walked in before. It's fixing to be summer and I felt like God told me to start carrying bottles of water in my car and when I'm at lunch or going to and from work to quickly stop and hand them a cold bottle of water. (Using wisdom here!) Through the tossing of this idea, I decided if I'm going to do this I want and need to pray over these bottles of water. Sounds silly to some, I get it. But, to pray that these bottles mean more to them than water they can physically touch. I've tossed this back and forth in my mind all week actually AND then I read tonight's devotional to my kids about thirsty souls. Giving these people a cold bottle of water may meet there immediate need, but... just what if it met their real need?
If you know Jesus and have encountered Him. I want to encourage you to quit keeping your experience to yourself. This world is full of hurting, angry and mad thirsty people and you have their answer. Maybe they are too blinded by the enemy to see the water in your hand. So pray over them. Instead of casting judgement and your angry opinions of their lifestyle(s) over them cast the love of Christ over them. They're dying of thirst and nothing you do will satisfy that until you offer them Jesus, and until they can see their need for Him.
If you haven't experienced Jesus before, I hope after you have read this your curiosity has turned into a desire to know Him. Maybe you have encountered Jesus before, but you're currently not present in the relationship. He is still there, waiting on and waiting for you.
Imagine that feeling you have when it's 110 degrees outside and your mouth is SO dry and parched and all you keep saying, is "I'm dyyyyyyyyyyyyyying."
Sound familiar?
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