The Necessity of Experience

We might know about something (head knowledge), but we don’t really know something (heart knowledge) until we’ve experienced it. Without our experience, we really have no clue about the reality of the thing in question.

The same is true with our relationship with God. The people who knew the most about God, the religious leaders of the day, missed recognizing Jesus as the Messiah because they didn't know God. We can't say we know someone, even God, unless we spend time with them and share common experiences with that person.

We don't really know what we don't experience.

Saddest News from Iraq & Syria

As bad as the atrocities committed by ISIS are (and Boko Haram, al-Shaabab, etc), to me that's not the worst news coming out of ISIS controlled areas. The saddest news is that some Christians are actually converting to Islam at gun point. None of us know what we would really do until actually in that situation, so I don't condemn or blame those who made that choice.

But it means we in the West must pray hard for our brothers and sisters facing ISIS and their affiliates – that they do not shrink back and do not deny our Lord, even to the point of death. And may we ourselves never shrink back when given the opportunity.

Neville Chamberlain Rides Again

Our parent's were called The Greatest Generation because they fought and defeated the Nazis. The Nazis of our day are ISIS (and other violent groups who have sworn allegiance to them, like Boko Haram, al-Shaabab, etc). Most of the Nazi's atrocities didn't come out until after the war; but we know full well now the atrocities continually committed by ISIS and their affiliates, including murdering children by beheading. They only difference between the Nazis and ISIS are scale and opportunity.

By choosing to do the least we must to defeat ISIS, instead of the most we can, we as a nation are choosing to play the role of Neville Chamberlain. 

The Man Who Changed God's Mind

When God decides something, who can change his mind? The Bible says,

     Who has known the mind of the Lord? (Isaiah 40:13)

     I [the Lord] make known the end from the beginning. (Isaiah 46:10)

The Lord is not wishy-washy; he does not make up his mind in snap judgments like we do, without considering all the consequences.

So who can change God's made up mind? His friend can, that's who.

When the people of Israel rebelled in the wilderness for the umpteenth time, God had finally had it and told Moses, “Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” (Exodus 32:10) Sounds like a command to me. He wasn't asking for Moses' advice.

But Moses responded, in a nutshell, “Remember your promise!” And he reminded God of what God had promised. He prayed God's heart back to God. And God actually relented! Yes, in his sovereignty God knew Moses was going to pray that, blah, blah, blah. But Moses prayed in accordance with God's heart, which Moses could do because he knew God's heart, because of his close intimacy with him.

Are we close enough to God, do we spend enough intimate time with him, to know his heart? Are we close enough to change his mind with his own heart's cry? He yearns for us to be.

Oswald Chambers on Prayer

“Intercession means that we rouse ourselves up to get the mind of Christ about the one for whom we pray.”

How often do we pray asking God for what we want? We have it backwards. We should be praying asking him for what he wants. 

So God's like, “Hey, omniscient here! I know what's best in this situation but who ever asks me?!?” That must be so frustrating for him – to have all the answers and never even be consulted.

God has the strategy for our situation or for the loved one we're praying for. Rather than praying what we want, we ask him for his strategy. Once we have his heart for the person or situation, we pray it back to him and ask for that. That's praying according to his will, and is a prayer he'll always answer, because he loves to partner with us.