I read the book of Titus yesterday. I know what you're thinking. A whole book?! And I say yeah, a whole book. A whopping 3 chapters to be exact! But what I want to discuss is not my daring, day long excursion into the Word of God, rather the way that God speaks. Now, we have to go back in order to go forward.
"For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing the soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12
Believe it or not, God, the one we call LORD and YAHWEH or what have you, can talk. I mean really audibly speak. Crazy right? Try telling that to this guy I know named Paul. On his merry way to a place called Damascus when BAM! He sees a great flash of light and hears a voice that we know to be Jesus himself, who as we know ascended into heaven. He heard the voice of God.
Now let me tell you something. When we read that the Word of God is living and active, it means this…The Word of God is ALIVE and MOVING. It is the very voice of God. This thing we call the Bible is God flashing us with light and speaking, I mean really talking, with US. You better believe it or you will not be able to understand what I am going to tell you about my experience in Titus.
The same guy we talked about above, Paul, was writing to Titus about the church in Crete. He is giving instruction as to how Titus is to select elders and leaders there. Titus is given a huge task here. He has to use all his discernment and understanding of God's church to find the right people to lead it. Paul helped him along by giving him guidelines of what a leader should look like and if I were to list them all off right now, you would not want to keep reading, but he basically gave Titus an outline. Now for me, I am in a position where I am taking responsibility as a leader for a team while on the field that we call the World Race. And for the last few weeks, I have been lacking. I have been lacking in my efforts, time management, personal devotion, drive, among others. My team, we call ourselves Fire Disciples, does not deserve my lack of self-discipline for sure. So do you know what God was saying to me through his words on the page? He said, "This is who you need to be, Brandon. Take up the leadership that I have given you and get back in the game." I'm not sure if you can fee the power in that. Maybe you have been there before, maybe not. But I'll tell you what; I am certain that God knows exactly what to say, when to say it. I am getting there. I am checking myself and moving on, jumping back onto the chess board as a knight fit for battle. It takes time, but God is bringing me back to where I need to be. Your turn. Give Him your attention, let him speak to you. Find your devotion again too. Get Excited people, the ride of a lifetime is less than a month away!
The Man With Unclean Lips,
Brandon Barnum
