A Holy Experiment
I’ve taken to listening to audio books, lately, while riding my bike in the early mornings. It’s easy to disappear into a story while thinking about my own. Reading with my ears feels similar to praying without words; it sets me in a reflective mode.
This month marked another year to my life, and while outwardly I may seem active, inwardly I feel kind of lethargic and slow. I guess they don’t call it the dog days of summer for nothing.
Gliding through the thick morning air, I’ve been listening to the real-life stories of Martin Luther and William Wilberforce, to name a few. They’ve wonderfully inspired my heart and mind. It’s amazing what God chooses to accomplish through the lives of individuals fully given to Him. It’s breathtaking when looking in hindsight, perhaps less so in the everyday moments.
Oswald Chambers once wrote, “If you give God the right to yourself, he will make a holy experiment out of you. God’s experiments always succeed.”
I’ve launched such heartfelt prayers over the years and am again, silently, while peddling under the awakening sky. Somehow, it’s harder to believe for a life that “counts for more” when it feels like you’re stuck “in the thick”. But should it?
The book that’s gripping me most is one I’ve read in the past, but recently found on audio. The Heavenly Man, by Brother Yun. It’s the incredibly dramatic life story of a Chinese man God used to enflame the passion and power of the underground church in China. It reads like a modern-day version of the Book of Acts. His simple devotion of trusting and obeying God in all things led to many signs, wonders and miracles but also to great persecution, abuse and imprisonment. The lessons of those years are timeless and helped propel the growth of Christians in China by the tens of millions in the last decades. The faithfulness of people like Brother Yun demonstrates the lengths God reaches to use those who desire Him fully.
It’s sobering to realize that this extraordinary life account occurred during my lifespan—he’s only six years older than I. How much more of God is available to those who seek Him with their whole heart? I’m exhilarated by Brother Yun’s love for Jesus, captured by his humble servant heart and provoked by the breadth of his obedient sacrifice.
I’m questioning: how given to this “holy experiment” am I? I know there’s more to this Christian life than I’m experiencing now, but how much am I asking for? The Lord decides where we are to be born and to whom but, regardless, He requires a fully devoted heart and that determines the story that is told.
Jesus rarely writes short stories with our lives. He’s an expert at injecting artful plot components so that our stories are filled with intrigue, mystery and adventure. He alone is the master author, able to bring to completion your storyline in fantastic ways. Stories have power, the kind that convince us of things in ways that straightforward teaching can’t.
“When you live a story, you obtain profound ownership of the journey. Every challenge you overcome leaves its own indelible imprint upon your heart. Then when you talk about it, your entire being radiates the story. You become the message.”
Bob Sorge
This is the gift of story that God has been offering me these early summer mornings that feel thick.
One of my favorite experiential authors is also a friend, Bob Sorge. His most recent book, Between the Lines — God is Writing Your Story, is a good reminder for when days feel anything but heroic. He gently frames the truth, that God is writing chapters in our life, and that He isn’t finished yet.
I love Bob’s final chapter — it’s the story of how God convinced him of His hand on his life, even when there were more questions than answers. The essence of that story is dramatically retold in a video. If you have 15 minutes, click here and be encouraged.
God is writing a story with our lives, regardless of what it may feel like. Don’t quit now, let him finish what He started.
The next Prophetic Prayer and Communion is this Sunday! Join us for a sweet time of listening and prayer.
September 9th at 7pm.
Childcare will be provided.
Rus will be taking a short ministry trip to Monterrey, Mexico on September 20-23. Keep him in your prayers as he ministers to the Back2Back staff and students!
Registration for the next round of School of Kingdom Ministry is now available! Submit applications by September 14. Get info at: golovelive.com/sokm
Northstar is excited to once again offer the School of Kingdom Ministry(SoKM). SoKM is a training program hosted across the country that trains everyday people how to minister in the power of the Spirit. It has proven to be a powerful way to train people in how to recognize and flow in the gifts of the Spirit while living a naturally supernatural life. We believe that this will help us develop the ministry of the Spirit in our churches.