Baggage

While recently re-reading the story of King Saul found in I Samuel a word jumped off the pages at me that I had not noticed in the story before: “baggage”.  This word changed my entire interpretation of this story. In case you don't know the story I'll give you a brief recap of what happened before Saul became king. Judges had ruled Israel up until Samuel grew old. The people of Israel demanded a king and the Lord told Samuel that the king was to be a man named Saul. When Samuel said to Saul "I am here to tell you that you and your family are the focus of all Israel's hopes", Saul responded "But I'm only from Benjamin, the smallest tribe in Israel, and my family is the least important of all the families of that tribe!" (I Samuel 9:20-21). The Lord even sent signs to Saul to let him know that this was God's will, and his heart accepted that it was the will of God. So now you are caught up, we can get on to the baggage. 

Samuel gathers all of Israel together to present Saul as their king. The people began asking the Lord where Saul was and "the Lord replied, 'He is hiding among the baggage'." (I Samuel 10:22) And this is where my heart started pounding and I had to stop and read that verse over and over again. I know that this passage is referring to literally baggage, but it made me stop and think how many anointed men and women of God are hiding in baggage afraid to step up to what God has for them because they feel inferior. 

I can't help but think about young men and women I see who have a clear anointing on their lives but feel undeserving because of the baggage they carry. Saul pointed out that he was from an unimportant family in a society where your ancestral line meant everything. How many times have I heard young people tell me they come from homes that are broken and dysfunctional? They get scared of the call God has placed on them and use their baggage as a hiding place. They say, "I come from a background of abandonment, abuse, or addiction. I can't do anything right." But I'm here to tell you that when God's power takes hold of your life there is nothing you can't do through Him. When you use the baggage of your past to hide, you can never find the will of the Lord for your life. You will never find peace. You will never find true joy. 

Saul's baggage led to a feeling of inferiority and that led him to disobedience to the Lord. (I Samuel 15:1-22) This disobedience resulted in the Spirit of Lord leaving Saul. (I Samuel 16:14;) This led to depression, jealousy, anger, paranoia, and even attempted murder. (I Samuel 16:14; 18:9,15; 20:30; 18:17) And it all started because he hid in his baggage. 

So here is the point: When God calls you, He doesn't care about your past. He put you in the home, town, and family He did for a reason. Remember Romans 8:28 "We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them." Your past is nothing to hide in or from. Wherever and whatever you have come from does not have the right to stop you from fulfilling the destiny and call God has placed in you.

Are You Baptized or Filled?

Having grown up in church I have seen my share of felt boards, object lessons, and power-points, each detailing some biblical concept that was over my head but there is one lesson that I still remember more than 15 years after seeing it. I was at church camp and my cabin leader was doing a devotion. We sat in a circle on the floor as she pulled out a poster with a picture of a tree on it that was labeled "sin". She used the poster to explain salvation, sanctification (the fact that this was discussed will seem foreign to some), and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. She explained that salvation is "cutting down the sin tree", that is, it erases the sin. Next, she said that sanctification is "pulling up the roots", meaning our desire to sin is removed. Lastly, she said that Holy Spirit baptism meant filling the space left by the roots with God's Spirit. I was probably around 10 years old when I heard this and although I can't remember anything else about that week (forgive me if you were my cabin leader and I can't remember who you were) but I remember that poster.

That picture has been in my mind this past week.  It brought me to a thought that had never crossed my mind before. If the Holy Spirit is the tree that replaces the "sin tree" then why are people who have been baptized in the Spirit not bearing new fruit? If church people were filled with the Spirit then wouldn't the churches be filled with people? Does the Holy Spirit not bring boldness to believers to share the Gospel?

Please understand that when I ask if church members are filled with the Spirit I am not accusing them of lying about being baptized in the Spirit, I am pointing out that there is a difference between receiving baptism and being filled. To be filled with something implies that there is no room for anything else. Filling a bucket with water implies that there is no room for anything else. But how many of us (even good church people) allow other things to take place in our hearts and minds and then expect the Holy Spirit to squeeze in too? I am preaching to myself. I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit (with evidence of speaking in tongues) at a young age but I have not allowed the Spirit to FILL me until recently. If you are filled with Him there is no extra room for hatred, envy, greed, lies, or any other manner of sin. The more I fill my mind and heart with God's word and the more time I spend with Him, the less time I have for the trash I had allowed to enter for so long. Perhaps if we set out to be filled with His Spirit instead of just baptized in it we would bear the fruit.

Don't misunderstand. I believe in the baptism of the Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. But if we seek the Spirit merely to speak in tongues, we miss the point. We should be empowered by His Spirit to share the Gospel. We should look, sound, and act different than those who are not filled. Please join with me in asking God to fill us with His Spirit so that we will bear the fruit.

The Photoshop Generation

Many of you know that I have recently become more involved in youth ministry. For some reason that I really don't understand my favorite part of this ministry is praying with students. It's not easy, in fact it is incredibly challenging to know what to say and when and perhaps that's why most people who work in youth and children ministries shy away from altar work. As I have prayed with more young people lately I have found a recurring theme. Many young people tell me they doubt not only their personal salvation but the existence of God entirely. Bear in mind, I'm not just talking about the "sinner kids", I'm talking about the ones who have grown up in church. The ones who were drug there on Sunday mornings, Sunday nights, Wednesday nights, and any other time doors were open. So the question becomes "How can kids grow up in God's house and yet doubt His existence?"

I am a part of what I would like to call the Photoshop Generation. My generation and those following live in a world in which almost anything can be fabricated. When was the last time you saw a picture on Facebook or on a website proclaiming a miracle that you actually believed was authentic? I assume everything is photoshopped. I assume everything is altered. My generation has grown up in a world where most prominent ministers seem to perform miracles for money. We watch men and women on Christian programming point at the camera with their hands dripping in diamonds and their wrists adorned with expensive watches saying "if you just had enough faith to send in your last hundred dollars to the number at the bottom of the screen God would see your faith and heal you." We are an incredibly cynical generation and perhaps it's not completely our fault.

In the bible God used miracles as a way to get people's attention and prove His power and existence. Maybe if we saw miracles and believed them to be real we wouldn't have such a hard time believing in this all-powerful God. But that is the problem. Our cynicism makes it almost impossible to believe. So perhaps we need to change our definition of what a miracle is. If God wanted to part the seas today like He did in the Old Testament He could, but we would assume it was caused by a machine pumping water out. If He wanted to speak through burning bushes He could, but we would check it for speakers.

Perhaps my generation needs to realize that there are miracles all around us. When an alcoholic gives his life to Christ and never takes another drink, that is a miracle. When a woman finds the strength in Christ to give up a promiscuous lifestyle, that is a miracle. When a teenager gives her burdens to Jesus and stops cutting herself, that is a miracle. I am asking you to join with me in praying for my generation and those behind me that God would reveal Himself in a mighty way to them. I am asking you to pray that He opens their eyes to His work all around them. And most importantly, I am asking you to be transparent and share the miracles He has done in your own life. We are made over-comers by the word of our testimony, and it is time for the church to over-come. Let God use you to show us that He is working miracles everyday, genuine miracles that cannot be replicated, duplicated, or photoshopped.