Know His Power

Worship Time this morning was especially moving. We were singing "Still" from Hillsong when God's power moved through the auditorium very sweetly. My attention was arrested by the second verse: "Find rest my soul in Christ alone; know His power in Quietness and Trust." I had one of those "Aha" moments.

My Christian upbringing emphasized His power. We celebrated -- enthusiastically, joyfully, watching God work in us and those around us. And I love to celebrate what God does and is doing in our lives. What we did not "get" as well, however, was the part about "knowing His power in quietness and trust."

It struck me again so forcefully that during these past two years of illness (first the liver donation, then the breast cancer) that God has been showing me His Power, in quietness and trust. Times of quietness are not as much fun as the joyous celebration of His Mighty Works, but those days, months, years are character forming. Those quiet days when all one can do is Trust, are times to get acquainted with God. Those times I was so ill I could only be quiet, only meditate. My body and mind could do no more. My body couldn't move, couldn't get busy. My mind couldn't think, couldn't go off on a tangent of it's own. Those days God ministered directly to my Soul. In quietness I learned to trust His power, trust His hand.

And today God, thank you for stopping me long enough to minister to me directly. Thank you for the reminder that it isn't ALL in the joyful moments, but also I can worship you in Quietness and Trust. Regardless.

Still

Words and Music by Reuben Morgan

Hide me now
Under your wings
Cover me
within your mighty hand

When the oceans rise and thunders roar
I will soar with you above the storm
Father you are king over the flood
I will be still and know you are God

Find rest my soul
In Christ alone
Know his power
In quietness and trust

- Hillsong United

Who owns it?

If your Thanksgiving feast doesn't match the picture, and relationships in your family get a bit rough about now, give the following story some thought.

A Question of Ownership
TGIF Today God Is First, by Os Hillman

Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. - Matthew 10:39

Otto Koning was a missionary in New Guinea. He worked among a native tribe that had known only their village ways. One of those village ways was stealing from others. When Otto and his wife arrived and moved into a hut, the natives often came by to visit. The Konings would notice that after the natives left the missionaries' home, various household items had disappeared. They saw these items again when they went to preach in the natives' village.

The only fruit Otto could grow on the island was pineapples. Otto loved pineapples, and he took pride in the pineapples he was able to grow. However, whenever the pineapples began to ripen, the natives would steal them. Otto could never keep a ripe pineapple for himself. This was a frustration, and he became angry with the natives. All during the seven-year period in which this took place, Otto preached the gospel to these natives, but never had a conversion.

The more the natives stole, the angrier Otto became. Finally, one day Otto had a German Shepherd dog flown in from another missionary to protect his pineapple garden after other frustrated efforts failed. This only further alienated the natives from him.

Otto took a furlough to the United States and attended a conference on personal rights. At this conference, he discovered that he was frustrated over this situation because he had taken personal ownership of his pineapple garden. After much soul searching, he gave his garden to God. Soon the natives started having problems among their tribe. They discovered that Otto was the reason for their problems because he gave his garden to his God. The natives saw a correlation between what Otto had done and their own lives being affected by calamities in their village. When Otto gave his garden to God, he no longer got angry and was free from worry. The natives started bringing him fruit from the garden because they didn't want any more calamities to come into their village.

The light came on one day when a native said to Otto, "You must have become a Christian, Otto. You don't get angry anymore. We always wondered if we would ever meet a Christian." They had never associated Otto with the kind of person he was preaching about because his message did not line up with his life. Otto was broken in spirit when he realized he had been such a failure.

At the end of seven years, he witnessed his first conversion, and many began coming to Christ once he fully gave his garden to God. The fruit grew so abundant that Otto began exporting it and growing other types of fruit, such as bananas. His village became the most evangelized in the whole region, yet for seven years he had not one convert.

Otto realized something each of us must realize: To gain your life you must lose it, along with your possessions. It was only when he gave all his possessions to God that he became free from them. God measured back to him manifold once He had complete ownership.

Do you have some possessions that you need to give up to God today? Let God have all that you have. Become a steward, not an owner. You will be surprised at how well God can take care of His possessions.

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THIRD DAY -- "WHEN THE RAIN COMES"