See, feel, think, do

I went to The "U" last Friday, which is the college age ministry at my church, and Andrew Gard preached a message about the process of changing your city. He said the keys to change are see, feel, think, and do. Here's what Jesus says in Luke 6:46-49

"But why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord' and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock. But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great." (Emphasis added)

The modern equivalent to this would be a person who goes to church, worships God, hears a fantastic message from the preacher, but then wakes up the next morning and lives life the same as always. If you've been raised in church or you've been going to church for a long time you might gasp and think, "How could they?!" But let's pause and think for a second - how many things have we heard our whole lives that we haven't acted upon or perfected yet? We all hear things in church that make us want to change and want to help others and want to do something to change the world, but how often do we actually do those things? How often do we even take time to plan out how we would reach those goals and dreams? We see the problem, we feel compelled to do something about it, yet we fall short at either the thinking or the doing stage. Those are the most important! Hearing without doing is sin. Knowing and not acting is sin. It's a sin of omission rather than comission, so in our minds we feel like it's not as bad. We justify it with excuses like, "Well I'm not really doing anything wrong, I'm just not doing anything at all." All sin is equal; not doing anything is just as much of a sin as doing something wrong.

How can I begin to act upon the things I hear? What do I want to do but haven't taken the time to plan out how? And what have I made plans to do and not followed through with?

It's time to live our lives with God's higher purpose in mind. It's time to act upon the things that are most important. Where did our urgency go? The disciples had an urgency to see people saved, they lived every day like it might be their last. Do you have dreams and desires that you don't dare say out loud because of how outrageous they seem? Do you see celebrities as real people who are desperate for God's love and grace in their lives and you wish you could help them? Do you see the poor and needy and realize how much more you could be doing to help them? Is there something you're passionate about and good at but you keep it to yourself? It's time to act upon these things and make time for them. We need to get our priorities in order. Reaching the lost should be on our radar at all times, not just the day after church.

As you're reading this I challenge to exit out of this webpage and open up a word document on your screen, a memo on your phone, or a journal in your lap, and begin to write. Write what you're passionate about. Write of the injustices in the world that outrage you, write of the things that pain you and bring you to tears. Once you've expressed what you see and how it makes you feel, write about how you are going to make a difference. List 3 practical things you can do to see that particular problem or injustice rectified. Maybe you're going to recruit others to help you. Maybe it's something you need to do on your own. Maybe you're going to need to travel to make it happen. Maybe you're going to have to do some research before you can go any further. Whatever it is, go do it. Our beliefs and morals are useless if we don't act upon them. It's like having a cure for cancer and hiding it.

I am praying that God gives every single one of you the courage and boldness to accomplish what you set out to do for His kingdom! We only have a short time on this earth and it's our job to steward that time wisely.

Faith.Hope.Love.
Chelsea Rae