I’ve really lost track of this blog. Recently, God has really been working on me. I’ve been working with a local builder framing houses (which I might add is harder than the last house I built… out of legos). It’s given me alot of time to think and pray. Not a lot of time for reading and writing however. Today was exceptionally long going from 7:30 to 5:30.

I’m trying my best to keep up with illustrations that come to me during this time of dormancy. I’m also doing what I can in order to continue preparing messages.

One house that I saw recently looked really great. The foundation had been poured and the walls for the basement were almost completely up. Everything looked great. The problem was that the foundation had been poured two feet short. Though structurally the house would be strong and still very livable it would not be the house that the builder intended it to be.

How many times have we jumped the gun? God gives us a plan and we go in head first without taking a thorough look at what God has planned. As a result we still do God’s work, but sometimes not as God would have liked.

This is one of the problems with preaching. My friend Russ recently preached at our home church. People commented that “it didn’t seem rehearsed” and that “you would think he hadn’t written anything on paper, but had everything written already in his head.” This is because of good sermon prep. Not only did he know what he preached, he believed it, prayed over the message, and sought after God. When he stepped into the sanctuary for worship he had already allowed God to take over far before he started preaching. Often pastors pray before they preach “God be with me.” I hope God is with you, but I hope this is not the first time you have prayed this prayer.

By neglecting to consult God throughout the time of preparation we may say some great things in the sermon, but it’s just that… we have said good things, and we have failed to allow God to step in and use us completely.

It is my hope and prayer that God will continue to use me as an instrument that advances the Kingdom of God. I know that in time His plan will be revealed, but until that time I will continue to prepare for the road ahead.

Grace and Power