CREATURES OF COMFORT AND FANS OF THE FAMILIAR

In my previous blog post, STARBUCKS AND PEOPLE OF THE SPIRIT (October 28), I explored the boldness and creativity of Starbucks owner Howard Schultz. Who would have ever imagined you could build a coffee empire on a $4 drink? What caused Schultz to ever believe people would make their local Starbucks a “third place” in their life and use it as a place to have meetings, relax or as a mobile office?

I’ve been raised in a spiritual tribe which believes in ministry of the Holy Spirit. We believe God the Spirit provides clear spiritual direction to our lives, gives us supernatural strength to pursue God’s good plans, and can impart to us insights which are far beyond our learning. I believe I am privileged to have been associated with people of the Spirit my whole life. But (you knew it was coming, didn’t you?) amazingly I have found among the people of the Spirit many individuals who are among the most rigid, close-minded and unimaginative people on the planet! If you ask them for an idea, it’s always something they’ve already done, so it’s familiar, or something they’ve seen somewhere else. It’s almost as if they’ve concluded all the Holy Spirit can do is inspire people to recycle, as if He’d never move someone to do something new and original.

On some level all of us are creatures of comfort and fans of the familiar. Most of us have a favorite piece of clothing that if it’s clean, or at least not disgustingly dirty, we’ll wear it. It doesn’t matter that we have closets and drawers full of clothes, we choose our favorite. We don’t wear it because it’s our best, or even because it helps us to look good. Sometimes we wear what we wear because we want to be comfortable and it’s the easiest thing to do. Unfortunately, I think many of us, even those of us who believe in the ministry of the Spirit, approach our lives in a similar way. The path or plan we’re following doesn’t necessarily represent what we think is best or even how we’re being directed by the Spirit, it’s simply the most comfortable and familiar. What a shame! Too many people, who claim to be led by the Spirit, are living far below the spiritual gifts, anointing and calling God has upon their lives. Too many people have chosen the comfortable and familiar, and are completely missing out on the amazing things the Spirit of God desires to do in and through their lives. Let me say it again, “What a shame!” 

The scripture I am prompted to share with you today is from Daniel 11:32 (NKJV): “…the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.” In the New American Standard version the same verse reads: “…the people who know their God will display strength and take action.” I believe God the Spirit desires to do much, much more in the Church and in the lives of devoted disciples of Jesus Christ. There are “God appointments” and open doors for each of our lives. To move towards these opportunities we have to deal with our desire to be comfortable and to only do things which are familiar. Advance warning: In my next blog post I am going to challenge you with a DARE. See you next time…

"You cannot stay where you are and go with God. You cannot continue doing things your way and accomplish God's purpose in His ways. Your thinking cannot come close to God's thoughts. For you to do the will of God, you must adjust your life to Him, His purposes, and His ways"  *Henry Blackaby

"Keep your feet on the ground, but let your heart soar as high as it will. Refuse to be average or to surrender to the chill of your spiritual environment"  *A W Tozer

"We are all faced with a series of great opportunities, brilliantly disguised as unsolvable problems. Unsolvable without God's wisdom, that is"  *Charles Swindoll