Welcome to another beautiful day in the neighborhood. Good weather like this helps to keep the rough weather in perspective. When Ruth & I were living in Florida/Georgia, Pastor Doug would often tell me, “Bryan, you can’t fully appreciate these nice days until you’ve experienced some bad ones.” He must have felt we were guilty of taking our southern climate for granted. Perhaps he was right.

The humbled residents of Joplin, Missouri understand rough weather. I have wondered what was life like in the days, even moments, leading up to the horrendous storm that touched down & leveled their community 10 days ago. The twister that touched down on May 22, 2011 was not the typical tornado; It was as big as they get, a class EF5 tornado. An EF5 is able to sustain winds of up to 200 mph (321.8688 kilometers p/h). I am sure by now you have heard, if not, seen the startling reports of the wide-spread devastation. But even as the death toll climbed again yesterday, the sad truth is, many people have already moved on... At 3,000 clicks away, Joplin is simply out of sight & out of mind.

The truth is, if folks are not in a storm, then a storm is most definitely coming. My prayer is that we would work hard to prepare for our personal storms & for the storms of others. To do that we must be ready for some difficult work. Jesus outlines the type of work required in John 6, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.” ”Believe” is a Greek word, pisteuo, meaning - to have faith in, or upon. Mark 9:22 tells the story of a father who was dealing with limited faith (belief). His son had suffered violent attacks & oppression at the hands of demonic spirits. The desperate father spoke to Jesus and said… “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” ” ‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for him who believes.” Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” The truth is we all wrestle with the limits in our lives. But like this father, we too must learn to lean “completely” on the Lord. When we find ourselves face to face with our personal limitations & lack, the safest place anyone can be is in the presence of Jesus.

If we are going to be led by the Lord then we must learn to lean on Him. I’ve been carrying a burden these past few days that we would lean more heavily on the Lord. That’s not to say we don’t lean on Him now, but it is to say we must lean on him completely. The Holy Spirit took me back to that familiar story in Ezra 8:21, “…And there by the Ahava Canal, I gave orders for all of us to fast and humble ourselves before our God. We prayed that he would give us a safe journey and protect us, our children, and our goods as we traveled.” We too are on a journey. The Lord is leading us to a place where we have never been before. Ezra and his people prepared for their journey and called on God for His divine involvement. We must be prepared ourselves by calling on the same God.

Ezra called on God to grant them His divine protection & safety over 1. Themselves 2. Their Children 3. Their Possessions/resources. They were very specific with God. Today, I am calling on us to pray a specific prayer… that we become Better Believers. Help our unbelief... Lord, attack our lack. By becoming Better believers, we become better leaders, we bear better fruit, we help build a better church, & we are equipped to better serve our community. In Ezra 8, it says “We prayed…” We know prayer works, so may we be people who pray. May it be said of us… “They prayed.” Let’s call on God and let’s live just as Jesus did when he was led in/out of the wilderness by the Holy Spirit. Oh that we would live in such a way that the comfort of the Holy Spirit alone would be our closest companion. Let’s live in the Comfort Zone. 

Storms are strong, but God is stronger… He said that: “I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.” (Matthew 16:18) The gates of Hell will come against each of our personal lives, families, & ministries. But as long as we are being built up in the body of Christ, we will win. I don’t know about you, but I like winning. In the article, The Joy & Journey of Church Planting, Jonathan Smith said, "I have heard people say, “God has not called me to be successful, just faithful.”” Smith goes on to say, “With all due respect I disagree. I believe God has called us to be both “faithful” & “fruitful.”” Today, I am praying that you will be found both faithful & fruitful.

God help us to help others; to be concerned for the storms others are facing. Help our unbelief. We are yours Lord. This is not our church, but yours. May we lead it well & hand it over to the next generations better than we found it. May we reach more people with the message of Hope that is found in Jesus Christ. May we reach out with the relevant relationship provided through the cross.

Becoming Better,

PB