In between devotional and Bible reading, week 8, day 1

Today's devotional is an in between chapters of Ecclesiastes devotional of something I read just recently titled "6 Reasons Why Church Leaders Must Go To The Mountain" by Chuck Lawless.

I gravitate to Chuck's lists.  This is especially because it talks about prayer and it is so important to the life of the church and to my life.  So many times it done but it is just to say that I did it or at the prescribed times in our weekly and monthly church calendar.  Prayer is so many times just left for those desperate times rather than a fixture in our lives whether we are in the valley or on the mountaintop.  Chuck has six points along with some commentary and it is so good that I am tempted to stop and just say, "Go read the article and I will shut up."  Here is the link by the way:  www.chucklawless.com/2018/02/6-reasons-why-church-leaders-must-go-to-the-mountain/

It is fresh after coming away from the Ottawa Prayer Center's one year anniversary of prayer and worship night on Saturday.  It was a time to do something very different than other Saturday nights and to gather with other believers to pray to God and for needs within our communities and nation.  So I will give you the 6 points with some personal commentary on each.

1.  Jesus is our example.  

What more can you say?  Jesus shows us the way many times and so we say again, "If Jesus prayed and got away specifically to do this then we better to."  Chuck said, "If we call ourselves by His name, we need to follow Him."  If Jesus, who was bombarded by people at His every turn, could get away to pray than I who am very less popular than He should be able to do the same.

2.  Our time with the Father is more important than our time with the crowds.  

Ouch!  As Chuck says, "Jesus pushed away from the crowds to get with His Father."  The true principle is that if I am going to be in front of crowds then all the more I need to be before the Father.  The time with the Father protects me when I am in front of those crowds.  It prepares me to be in front of those crowds.  It is an absolute necessary prerequisite if I am going to represent Him.

3.  We need to slow down if we want to hear from God.  

It is better to slow down and hear from God than to be knocked down by Him to get your attention.  This is usually what happens because we have filled our schedules so full that God get only the leftovers and sometimes if that.  The fact in our lifetime is that if we want to know God more than God needs more of our time or rather the time He has given to us.  

4.  Mountaintop experiences re-invigorate us to engage the needs in the valley.  

We need to have time with God for the sole purpose of being with Him so that when He throws something or someone our way that needs one of His ambassadors to stand in that place that we will have the energy to do it in a way that brings glory to Him.  Our tank needs to be full of God when those times come and that means going to the filling station on a regular basis.  The question is, "Where is your mountaintop with God?"

5.  Going to the mountain is an admission of dependence and a cry for relationship.  

Am I leading under my own power?  Am I leading under my own abilities and trainings?  Am I going to God just when I get over my head and maybe not getting in over my head so that I can handle it without Him?  Have I dialed back what I will do for God because it is in line with what I can do without regularly getting in front of Him?  So many questions and I can just keep going.  Cancer taught me to have a dependency on God as I crawled through each week of chemo to a Sunday to stand and speak for Him and of Him.  I needed help and the help was coming from Him.  I am certain it hasn't always been that way but it sure is better and more effective when it does.

6.  We need to teach others to go to the mountain.  

Chuck says, "We must show them, actually.  That's what Jesus did, so we should, too."  It is a challenge to get others to go with us.  It means a change of schedule and sometimes resources used for the sole purpose of growing in Christ.  It is taking a precious Saturday or an evening and setting aside the normal life seeking God's extraordinary life.  I think one of those precious memories to me was when my father decided that he was going to use one of his weeks of vacation and take us to family camp.  He took us to a place to learn more about God.  Normal vacations were to go fishing and we had great times on the lake but this one which was followed each year by another was life transforming for me.  "Thanks Dad for using the time God gave you to put yourself and your family in a place to be saturated with God's word, music, and people."

Chuck ends the article with, "How long has it been since you've gone to the mountain?  Or taken other leaders there just to pray?"  I hope this has been helpful to you and adaptable to your situation and position in life.  I pray you have a mountain top experience with God this week because you put yourself there.  Let us pray.

"Lord, it may have been a long time that we have met You on the mountaintop.  It is not Your fault but ours.  You have given us the time but we have filled it up with other things.  Help us to see the great need to not neglect those solitary times to be with You.  Amen."

Pastor Adam