SERIES: IT: Finding It, Keeping It, and Sharing It
(freely adapted from Craig Groeschel’s It: How Churches and Leaders Can Get it and Keep it)
“GUARDING IT: How to Keep It Once You Have It”
SELECTED SCRIPTURE
OPEN
This morning, we finish up our series: IT: Finding It, Keeping It, and Sharing It. The first message was “What is it?” We defined it this way – “It is what God does through a rare combination of certain qualities found in his people.” Those qualities are: 1. A passion for his presence 2. A deep craving to reach the lost
3. Sincere integrity 4. Spirit-filled faith 5. Down-to-earth humility 6. Brokenness
Our second message began a study of the traits that marked churches that had it and for us to learn how we can develop those traits in our congregation The first trait was a God-given, God-breathed vision and we said that “You Can See It Clearly.” The second trait was the importance of teamwork and we said that “We Experience It Together.” The third trait was innovation and we said “You’ll Do Anything For It.” The fourth trait was about sharing the gospel because ‘You Want Others to Have It.” The fifth message was about failure being necessary to success and we said that “You Fail Toward It.” And the sixth message was about sharing it with others because when you have it, “You Share It With Others.”
Last week, we asked the questions, “Do You Have It and Does It Have You?” We looked at what Jesus had to say about losing you first love for Him and how to rekindle it. This morning, we’re going to talk about, “Guarding It: How to Keep It Once You Have It.”
Guarding it, once you have it, is a lot like boiling water. First, both take heat of a sort. Boiling water takes physical heat, while it takes the heat of spiritual passion. Second, as soon as you remove the heat, both stop boiling. It disappears. Third, to get back either one, you have to repeat step 1: do what you did at first – apply heat. And fourth, once you’ve got the water boiling and the it flowing, if you want to keep it, you have to keep on applying heat.
The apostle Paul says in Gal. 2:20 – “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in
me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
How do we continue to live in a way that shows that we died to our old self and that now Christ lives in us? Craig Groeschel, in the book from which this sermon series was adapted, gives three heartfelt but dangerous prayers that we can pray daily. Once we have the passion, the fire, the purity, the hunger for God, we can offer these requests to God and He will honor our requests.
Prayer Number One:
STRETCH ME
When you become comfortable in your relationship with God, you’ll lost it. By comfortable, I mean complacent, lazy, and distracted.
In many ways, comfort is an enemy of faith. Heb. 11:6 – “And without faith it is impossible to please God.” So Jesus pleaded with His followers in Mk. 13:33, knowing that the time was short, for them to always “be on guard! Be alert!” That’s why we constantly want to ask God to stretch us.
In his book, Groeschel tells that while he was swimming with his kids, he met another dad who was a swimming coach. After some casual conversation, the coach-dad asked Groeschel, “How long do you think you can hold your breath underwater?” Groeschel, excited about a little competition, said, “I don’t know. Maybe a minute.”
The coach-dad challenged Groeschel to give it a try and so underwater he went. He recounts that as the seconds ticked by, he could feel his lungs tighten. Panic started to set in. But he decided that drowning was better than losing. So he stayed under for a while longer.
The coach-dad smiled and said, “Impressive! You stayed under for one minute and twelve seconds!” Groeschel felt pride over his accomplishment.
But the coach-dad said, “What would you say if I told you that I could help you double your time?” Groeschel expressed his doubts. The coach-dad said, “If you pay attention, I’ll teach you something that will inspire you to do even more than you’ve ever done before.”
The coach-dad explained to him a calming technique that was sure to increase his time. He assured Groeschel, “You cn do much more than you realize. Your body can survive underwater for several minutes. Your mind doesn’t believe that. Your greatest limitation is your mind. You must silence your mind. Take four deep breaths. Slide slowly into the water. Close your eyes. Remain perfectly still. When your lungs tighten, don’t worry. You still have a lot more time. When you think you can’t go on, open your eyes. Focus on something. Count slowly to twenty. When you get to twenty, count again.”
Groeschel said that he did what he was told. He tried to turn off his mind. When he hit his limit, he opened his eyes and counted to twenty. Then he counted some more. Every few seconds, the coach-dad said, “More … you have more in you. More … you have more in you.”
Finally, when Groeschel came up for air, the coach-dad was beaming and told him his new record was two minutes forty-five seconds. Wow! Was he ever excited. He ask the coach-dad, “How did I do that? I stayed underwater for almost three whole minutes. I didn’t know I had that in me. Then the coach-dad looked him in the eye and said, “You have more in you than you realize. God has put more in you than anyone knows.”
I want to repeat that coach’s words to you. You have more in you than you realize God has put more in you than anyone knows.
Ask God to stretch you. And then let Him. God wants to stretch you. He want you to live by faith. To believe him. Now, that’s going to mean putting yourself in some new environments. Experiencing something new. Something different.
Ask God to stretch you. Then follow his direction. He might direct you to change something in your life. He might challenge you to go to a third-world country and leave behind part of your heart. He might ask you to give like you’ve never given before. He might lead you to do something your closest friends believe is foolish and impossible. He might introduce you to some lost person who is far from God.
Let him stretch you. Attempt what others say can’t be done. You have more in you than you realize. God has put more in you than anyone else sees.
Ask God to stretch you. And as he does, you might start to find it again.
The Second Prayer:
RUIN ME
On Sunday, October 8, 1871, Dwight L. Moody was finishing his evening sermon when the city fire bell began to ring. Realizing that much of the city was burning, Moody’s first concern was for his family. Rushing to a close, he asked the people to evaluate their standing with God and return the next week. Little did he know, many of them would never return. They would die in the worst fire in Chicago’s history.
Later, Moody agonized, wondering in any of the deceased died without Christ. They in his church building and he let them leave without confronting their own sin. Broken and changed, Moody vowed to God he’d never hold back again. Every time he stood before a crowd, he would plead with them to follow Christ. D. L Moody was ruined – in a very good way.
Do you want it? Ask God to ruin you in a good way. Let him break your heart. Allow him to give you what Bill Hybels calls “holy discontent.” Let God crush you with a burden.
As I look back on my life, the times that it was evident is when I was ruined. God messed me up for his purposes. When I was ruined, all I could think about was him – pleasing him, obeying, him, talking about him. When I saw people without Christ, my heart ached deeply for them. Sharing Christ consumed me. I wasn’t good for much else. I was ruined.
But as soon as I began to slip back into normal routines, I didn’t care as much about people and I didn’t care as much about God. What happened? I wasn’t ruined anymore and I didn’t have it.
Listen to what the prophet Isaiah said after an encounter with God. Is. 6:1-8 – “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him
were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet,
and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory.’ At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the
temple was filled with smoke. ‘Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live
among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.’ Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he
touched my mouth and said, ‘See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.’ Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am
I. Send me!’”
Do you see what happened? Isaiah would never be the same. He had experienced God. The experience squashed him flat, squeezed out all his pride. It emptied him of self-ambition. Now he has was suitable for God’s purpose, for the greatest fulfillment Isaiah could ever find. With it, Isaiah was now fully available to God. When God asked who he should send with a message to his people, Isaiah shouted, “Her am I. Send me!”
Many times, when God is trying to ruin us, we fight it. God is trying to break us down but we think we’re better off staying strong in our own strength. We think that if we allow ourselves to be broken, we won’t be able to lead in our families and in our church. We think that people who trust us will stop consulting with us..
But I want to challenge you this morning to let God ruin you. Your family might be overjoyed to share with you in your hurts. God might sustain you emotionally and spiritually in ways that have never crossed your mind. And those who look to you for help could be inspired by your vulnerability.
If you want to keep it, ask God to ruin you. Expose yourself to something that you know will move you. Don’t hold back. Don’t fight your emotions. Don’t lay another brick on top of your self-made wall of protection. Give in to the heart. Feed the hurt. Let it grow. Let it bother you. Invite it to overtake you. God loves to give it to ruined people.
The Third Prayer:
HEAL ME
You might be thinking: I’m not sick. Maybe not physically, but if you’re like most people I know, you have some wounds that God wants to heal.
Those who have it and keep it are those who are healing and growing. To be healed, we have to first admit to the ways we’re sick or in need. You might have to face something that you’ve stuffed away, ignored, or rationalized for years.
Is there an addiction that you need to deal with? It might not be an addiction to drugs or alcohol or pornography. You might have one of the “acceptable” addictions. Some are addicted to pleasing people. Some are addicted to perfection. Some are addicted to work. Some are even addicted to the Internet social sites like Facebook.
What is it that you need to face up to today? Will you be honest with yourself for a moment? Do you have a hard time trusting? Have you been burned by a friend (maybe even at church) and now find it difficult to have friends? Are you distant from your spouse? Do people tell you that you’re a control freak? Do you find yourself on a high when people brag on you and in a low when people criticize you? Do you have a secret sin? Or a fantasy life? Are you overly critical? Are you jealous? Do you feel like you never quite measure up?
Whatever the problem, trust God to heal you. 1 Jn. 1:9 tells us: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
CLOSE
I want to thank you for hanging in here with me through this series. Parts of these sermons may have been painful to hear. Hopefully God is stirring you, drawing you, speaking to you. I pray that when he does, you will follow his lead.
Once you do get it, never take it for granted. Embrace the power of the Holy Spirit working in you to do more than you can ask or imagine. Here is my final prayer for you in this area. It comes from a Franciscan benediction.
May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationship, so that you
may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppressions, and the exploitation of people., so that you may
work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, and starvation, so that
you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world,
so that you can do what others claim cannot be done.
That’s it. Amen.
