Pastor Glenn’s Sabbatical

You know Jesus instructs us about little children and how we just need to come to him with innocence, faith and trust, love and purity of heart. This little girl just walked up to me just before a service in Ecuador and I reached out and picked her up in my arms. I don’t even know her name, but felts loved and accepted by her. It’s a wonderful picture. I got to thinking; isn’t that just what Jesus does to us. We come to him in unconditional faith and after we repent, He welcomes us into His family, no strings attached, just as we are. With all our blemishes and warts, pain and issues, struggles and doubts. 

I have been really meditating on this verse. In fact, I am pretty sure you will see it again and hear things from me about this passage. Philippians 1:6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Read it slowly and again.

Isn’t that powerful, He began a good work in me almost 40 years ago. And He began a good work in you. And He will carry it to completion. We are all still in process. I like how the Message renders it. Paul writes; there has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.

Well, I am absolutely convinced that God is doing something in me and I am so excited to bring that back to share with everyone. I miss you all terribly and will see you very soon.

At His Feet,

PG

Also, I finished a great book by Dr. Henry Cloud called “Integrity”. I am also halfway through a book called “Blue Like Jazz” by Donald Miller. Also very interesting.

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This is a view from a hill on a remote site in Guayaquil, Ecuador. They were some of the poorest homes I have ever been in. I had an absolute perfect week. Our team did such an outstanding job. All total there were 939 professions of faith, 343 Discipleship meetings, and 13 new church plants. God did an incredible work in such a short time. It is so true that HE is ABLE!! And He did immeasurably more than we asked or imagined. It was good seeing some friends and family from RHCC. I miss you. I am learning much and am processing the application to my life of it all. Will share much in a few weeks.

Janice, me and Duane on a hill walking to a church service at our host church.

David my translator saying good bye until heaven!!

I spent most of this week up in Green Lake or “big Green Lake” as the locals call it. On Monday I read Isaiah 45:5-6 which states “you have measured the water in the hollow of your hand…” I began reflecting on that fact as I was looking over the waters of the deepest lake in Wisconsin. When you think about that that is pretty amazing to wrap your arms around just how big our God is. And He considers us his masterpiece. Amazing.                                 I finished reading a book called “Striking the Match” which is about God using ordinary people on short-term mission trips to change the world with a Kingdom impact. He states this mission strategy = “God is Central. Others before ourselves.” It was encouraging to realize that millions of Americans are going to the nations to spend the gospel. I have been in 1-2 Corinthians this week and just finished reading Proverbs. I also listened to a great podcast about people pleasing, boy did God speak to me through this pastor. Great stuff…can’t wait to share. I am also about half-way though this book called “Under Cover” which goes through biblical authority. Again, I am learning tons and I am truly appreciative for this incredible opportunity.

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This past week I was at a very still place on a lake in Wild Rose…I think the lake was called Silver lake. I didn’t see any roses in Wild Rose but I actually saw some Elk which was really cool. Boy, they have some huge antlers. Anyway I am at my friend’s cabin and had utter silence most of the day. Other than the birds waking me up each morning at 5:30am. In fact, I actually asked God one morning if he could please silence the chirping as I was doing my quiet time ( was really distracted) and would you beleive that it did get very quiet for about a half an hour. I did thanked God for that amazing expereince. Anyway, James 4:8 says Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Well, God did come nearer to me because I think I was really coming nearer to Him. He is such a God of promise and promises. I heard a lot from Him this week. Mostly about joy, that has really been a theme running throughout this sabbatical. Joy….it comes in the morning, true but Joy is a decision, a choice we chose. And I need to chose joy more often. EVERYDAY! In fact, joy is at the heart of God’s plan for human beings. The reason for this is worth pondering awhile: Joy is at the heart of God himself. That was a quote from John Ortberg’s book, “The Life I’ve Always wanted” I finished it on Thursday and would highly recommend it. He also made this statement, which I have never considered. “God is the happiest being in the universe” and “God’s intent was that his creation would mirror his joy”   C.S. Lewis writes “Joy is the serious business of heaven.” Lewis Smedes also wrote “to miss out on joy is to miss out on the reason for your existence. So, I have been asking myself about joy and am I rejoicing today, because if I don’t rejoice today then I won’t rejoice at all. And I will miss out on God’s will for me. I read this Proverbs last week 15:13 “A happy heart makes the face cheerful”

Susan and I attended the Broom Tree retreat in western Michigan, which was absolutely wonderful. We met wonderful Pastor’s and spouses from around the country and even a really neat guy from Canada. Cool accent too! This was a time of renewal as we both unplugged from all electronic devices. I never even heard a cell phone ring all week…can you actually imagine that? We worked really hard at quieting our spirit and spent time being still. We spent time in the Word, listening, praying and just submitting to what God was teaching us. It was also a time of much adoration and thanksgiving to Him for being such an incredible and involved God in our lives.

I read a couple of books and began some more as well. I gained great insight from Henry Blackaby’s book “What the Spirit is saying to the Churches” it was about what he experience in Canada and his little church. The church just waited on God as they saw Him move them to plant a bunch of new churches. It was very encouraging to read, knowing  that God desires us to deeply and profoundly follow Him, even when at times it makes no sense at all.

I also continued reading Chip Ingram’s book “Good to Great in God’s eyes” –ten practices great Christians have in common. This is a good read on what great Christians do to be all that God wants them to be. Very practical and applicable book.

And then I also began reading John Ortberg’s book “The life you’ve Always Wanted” I am only in the begin chapters but it’s about life transformation.

Here are some verses that I read this week that I am letting get into me. Kind of just marinating deep within my soul!

Romans 8:37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Philippians 1:3-6

I thank my God every time I remember you. 4In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

Philippians 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

Jeremiah 33:3 ‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’

I have always enjoyed wearing a watch. Ever since I was a little kid I loved getting a new watch for Christmas or for my birthday. I have never known a time when I didn’t have a watch on my left wrist. A few years back I bought myself a Lance Watch from Nike with some birthday cash. Not because Lance Armstrong wore one like it, but because I liked the way it fit, felt and looked, not to mention the cool functions it had. I tend to like big faced watches. Well, last week I discovered that the watch was dead. You see the back cover to my favorite watch, where the battery is located, was loose which was a shocking discovery because we had taken our family to Noah’s Ark (USA’s largest Water Park) in the Dells and found out water got inside the watch. We took it down to Country Side Jewelry store and got the horrific news that the watch was beyond repair. So on Sunday last week I began wearing my Polar heartrate monitor watch. I got up to the cabin Sunday afternoon after church and began this sabbatical. On Monday morning I woke up and discovered that the watch battery was dead. No watch, no clock watching, no telling time. I initially just looked at the watch for a few seconds and thought about whether I even needed a watch for the next two months. I concluded I did not.

Then I began to reflect on time and I thought about all the phrases that we tend to use and hear regarding time.

“It was the time of my life”

“We had a great time”

“Running out of time”

“Let the good times roll”…

“Its about time”

“Only time will tell”

“Time heals”

Week One is about “Being Still” before God. No agenda, not expectation of personal time…..all God and all His time.  The Bible teaches that we need to be still or be quiet before the Lord. How can I really do that when I am so concerned with time. Which isn’t even mine in the first place.

Psalm 46:10 (not verse 18) says “Be still, and know that I am God;

I can only be….before a Holy God….utterly still in my Spirit when I acknowledge that God is on the Throne and I am just his….his creation. I belong to Him and I should be more concerned about His timetable, His agenda for my life (a marker of time for sure)

God took me to this passage in Psalm 62:8 Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.

Psalm 69:13 But I pray to you, O LORD, in the time of your favor; in your great love, O God, answer me with your sure salvation.

God is eternal….no beginning….no end. And the amazing thing is that He made time for us….I think of the markers. Sun up, Sun down, the seasons, full moons which reflect His incredible glory.

And I love what Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”

That verses seems to be saying to me that time is a gift of grace and that I need not worry about things related to time. He can make things increase at ALL TIMES!!

I put this verse in Galatians in this blog because we/I need to be reminded that there is a proper time and that I will reap a harvest if I don’t give up. Galatians 6:9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

I realize that if I am to be truly quiet before the Lord of the universe in this moment then I need to rid my habits of time watching completely. I need not become weary regarding this as I wait upon the Lord because I will reap a harvest, a benefit and a blessing if I wait on God’s time.

Greetings, Starting July 1st I will be gone for 2 months away from the ministry of Real Hope. I’d like to keep you update on what God is teaching me during this time. Please check back from time to time and read my posts. If you have any questions about what a Sabbatical is all about or if you’d like to pray for me during this time, please follow the appropriate tabs listed above. Thanks to all of you!

PG