Coffee With The Lord

THINK ABOUT IT… GOD’S “GLORIOUS RICHES”!!!

This was Apostle Paul’s prayer…

“I pray that OUT OF HIS GLORIOUS RICHES He [God] may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”  (Ephesians 3:14–21 NIV)

Let me tell you… “HIS GLORIOUS RICHES” would make the accumulated wealth of all the nations in the world for all time look like abject squalor and poverty!  “His glorious riches” are abundantly adequate to meet your deepest needs…

• All the inner strength you need to face all that life brings
• The consciousness of God’s abiding presence in every aspect of your life every day
• A deep and growing awareness of God’s absolutely unfathomable love for you
• The knowledge that God’s “fullness” is completely adequate to meet your deepest challenges and needs

And as if that isn’t enough… Paul declared this in another place was… “My God will meet ALL OF YOUR NEEDS ACCORDING TO HIS RICHES IN GLORY by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4.19)

I’M BLOWN AWAY by His complete adequacy today… Hey, I’m just savoring the significance of “HIS GLORIOUS RICHES”!!

I’m reading the prophecy of the prophet Ezekiel in the Bible during my time of “coffee with the Lord” right now… Over and over again I come across these words: “And they shall know that I am the Lord!” … interestingly those words are most often found in contexts of divine judgment (check it out for yourself)!

Here’s an important question it seems to me: What will it take to bring us as a nation to a knowledge that “He is the Lord”? I’m praying for America! And I’m praying for the American Church! Bring us back to that knowledge and awareness (even if it involves judgment!).

My “call to ministry” happened at a “kid’s kamp” (a Christian summer camp designed especially for children) in Western Montana (specifically Glacier Bible Camp in Hungry Horse, Montana).

I was 10 years old. During an evening camp service God powerfully made Himself real to me. We were invited to go to the “prayer room” located behind the “tabernacle” stage if we felt like we needed or wanted to pray. I did… and in that prayer time God made Himself very real to me – and “called me into the ministry.” In fact, I felt like if I didn’t say “yes!” to what I felt He was calling me to do, multitudes would be “lost!” … I did say “YES!” to God’s call that night…

Next morning during chapel… The camp speaker invited any of the children at the camp to share about anything they felt they had experienced with God the night before. I knew I had to share but was very timid and frightened. But I stood up and blurted out, “Last night I feel like God called me to serve Him in the ministry!” And then, because I couldn’t think of anything more to say, I sat down blushing and embarrassed.

When I did that, the camp director (a Montana “cowboy preacher”) stepped to the edge of the stage, looked out where I had sat down embarrassed, pointed at me and said, “Son, last night God told me He was calling you to serve Him in ministry!”

I thought of that experience again this morning during my time of “coffee with the Lord” as I read these words from Apostle Paul…

“Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of His power… to preach to the Gentiles [the people of the world] the unsearchable riches of Christ.” (Ephesians 3:7-8)

Paul didn’t feel worthy of that call… and neither did I as a 10 year old child (or now at age 77)! And my determination in light of that call is best expressed in my “life verse”…

“I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I have received for the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God!” (Acts 20:24)