4 reasons having brothers in Christ is crucial
1) A brother helps silence the voice of Self-Disqualification.
2) Motivates men to take initiative.
3) Brothers keep Brothers grounded in the Bible.
4) Brothers are in community. "My gifts are not for me to possess- they are for others."
During our first core group meeting, we touched on these 4 reasons we need each other to help us become the men of God he created us to be. We shared our own stories, where we've come from, where we're going, and who we want to be. We started a relationship with each other that will allow us to pour into each other’s lives, to lift each other up in prayer, to challenge us as we walk with the Lord, and to strengthen and encourage us to do that which the Lord is calling us each into. In Men's Ministry Iron sharpening iron is not always the process of the grindstone sharpening the axe, it is the process of honing the fine edge of a sword. This is what Brothers do, we hone our faith to razor sharpness.
Each week I would like to touch on different aspects of the topics we talk about at our monthly meetings. Please add your thoughts, experiences, challenges from the week, and encouragements.
This week let's think about Silencing the voice of Disqualification.
We've all listened to it; the voice that says "but - I'm too young... too inexperienced... too old, … too sinful, ...too busy, too unworthy...not educated enough...not well versed in scripture, blah, blah, blah.... Brothers, if God's Holy Spirit dwells within you and you sense God tugging on your heart to set out and do something- your qualified! God doesn't give us assignments that we, through Christ cannot accomplish (Philippians 4:13). But we have each, to some measure, like Paul learned contentment and trust in God through life experience (Philippians 4: 11-12). Realize it or not, those things to which God is calling you are things which He, through life experience and faith has prepared you to accomplish.
So our problem becomes fear and uncertainty to step out because we question whether God has called us to do that which we are drawn to do. This is where Grace comes into our faith. God's provision for failure is Grace. Without falling short (failing) there would be no need for grace. Grace is our safety net! Trying and failing is part of the process of learning to correctly discern God’s calling. Don't fear failure when you sense God calling you to do something and your desire is to honor Him. The frequency of failure decreases as the frequency of stepping out in faith increases. Men of God learn from our short comings.
Stepping out in certainty of faith is the result of a 3-fold process that teaches us how to "hear" God's leading.
So, brothers, let's...
1. be intentional about making time alone with God everyday a priority in our lives. Just sitting in His presence listening to His heart, feeling the love and strength of our Father gives us desire to do His will. (We can talk too...but we mostly need to listen!)
2. Everyday open His Word and meditate upon the truth and wisdom He has spoken to the ages. Not a race to get through so many verses or chapters, but time to meditate on each word or thought that God utters. This builds our faith and equips us for every assignment. Romans 10:17
3. step out and do the thing that God is calling us to do today. It is usually as simple as telling someone else about God's love and what He's done for us. This gives us increasing confidence and boldness.
Brother's, I believe God has specifically chosen each one of us to be a leader in His body and what we are doing is the equipping for whatever that means in each of our lives. Please add your thoughts and comments to this Note and let's hear what God is laying on each other’s heart.
Lonny
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