this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted him everything he asked, for the hand of the LORD his God was on him. – Ezra 7:6
Ezra is about to set out on a mission from the king. Because the hand of God was on Ezra, the king gave him everything he asked for. But he had to ask.
I find myself praying that God would give me favor. Sometimes that’s as far as my actions go.
“God, give me favor here or there.”
“God, I really think you might be leading me here, so show me favor by making something happen.”
Then I sit. I wait. And nothing happens. Then I figure that it is not in God’s plans. Must not be in his interest to favor me in this way. But I never ask. I don’t take any action. I don’t move ahead to see if the favor is there, I just stop and wait for some . . . some something to happen. Life wastes away.
My friend John Martens took a huge risk. He felt God stirring in his heart to plant a church in Vancouver. John said he came to the place where he had to decide if he would step out. They had talked about the move, prayed about it, but never acted on it. Then John started. He moved. Literally. He quit his church. Put the house up for sale. Made plans to move. Started planning a new church. All without any money. He met with people and asked for support. Notice the progression. Get God’s hand, move into action by asking. What if John would have come to our leaders and said “We are thinking about moving to Canada but not sure. If we did, would you support us? If so, how much? We need to know so we can see if God’s hand is on it.” How sad is that? It’s all backwards. John came in and said, “We are going, God is showing us favor as we are asking for you to do the same.” We jumped on.
John is three years into planting The Connection. It’s no surprise that he is getting everything he has asked. He is asking. God is granting.
I wonder what is just around the corner? What kingdom things are so very close? I wonder if they remain locked because I am waiting on God to unlock them. Maybe he is waiting on me to move, to act, to ask.
God, help me know the areas where your hand is resting and give me the courage to ask. Is there an adventure that I am missing because I have sealed my mouth and just waited?
[tags]lazy, ask, John Martens, church planing, Ezra 7, devotions, journaling, Bible[/tags]