A few days ago Carol and I were at a
weekly prayer meeting here in our community. A group of 10 to 15 gather in a
home on Wednesday evenings to pray for the needs of our world.
As we were gathering, I conversed with one
of the couples; the husband is ninety-four and his wife is in her late eighties.
The wife excitedly told me that they are building a new home in the area, and
my first reaction was, “Oh, you’re downsizing, right?” After all, they’re both
advanced in age, and don’t you normally downsize when you get older?” The wife’s
response left me speechless. “No” she said, “we’re building a bigger place. We
need more room!”
The more I thought about this
conversation, the more I realized how it illustrates an important spiritual principle
that has been largely forgotten.
Most Christians, once they hit middle
age, go into neutral as far as spiritual growth goes. And then, after a few
years in neutral, they begin a slow slide downward as they prepare for
eternity. I’m not saying they are backsliding, I’m just saying they stop
pressing on, stop pushing for spiritual growth. They are downsizing or just
maintaining . . . and that’s a mistake.
Let’s talk for a minute about spiritual
growth and how it happens.
I like real easy growth. I enjoy being
able to stay in my comfort zone, in my spiritual easy chair, without ever
having to put forth any kind of effort to grow.
Say it any way you want
and talk as euphemistically as you can, but putting forth an effort/stretching
to grow is now, and always will be, a painful process. I am honest when I tell
you that I think I have been through enough pain, and the thought of going
through more does not thrill me. I think much of my apprehension of stretching/expanding
is the fear of giving up my hold on the familiar, the comfortable, and stepping
into the unknown of the new.
Two hundred and twenty years ago the Church
was largely dominated by extreme Calvinism that said, “If God wants the heathen
to be saved, He will do it without any help from us.” But swimming against the
tide of prevailing thought came a young Baptist preacher who delivered a
message that has become known as “the sermon that will not die.” The young
preacher’s name was William Carey and his sermon text was Isaiah 54:2-3 (NIV):
"Enlarge the place of your tent,
stretch your tent curtains wide,
do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes.
do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes.
For
you will spread out to the right and to the left;
your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.”
your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.”
Carey’s message was very simple, with
only two points:
One:
EXPECT GREAT THINGS FROM GOD
Two:
ATTEMPT GREAT THINGS FOR GOD
William Carey’s message ignited a worldwide
flood of missions and evangelism, and he became known as the Father of Modern Missions.
It was his faith, vision, and personal sacrifice that opened nations such as
India to the Gospel, and his dedication and commitment that inspired thousands
of others to leave their home countries, step out in faith, and follow his example.
So when Isaiah said, “Enlarge,
strengthen, lengthen and stretch,” just what was he talking about?
I believe that Isaiah was talking about the
conscious desire to grow as a follower of Christ, to improve oneself, to step
out in faith. Conscious growth is a choice that you make about your personal
limits, about how big you want to grow in Christ.
Unconscious growth is what happens
naturally and without your decision-making process being involved. I didn’t
make a decision when I was a child to grow to be six feet three inches tall. It
happened naturally. Isaiah is challenging us on the level where we can choose
to grow—to grow in faith and in our knowledge of God. We can choose to expand
our vision. We can choose to expand our levels of commitment. Isaiah is saying,
“Grow in God, grow in faith, grow in good works because you choose to. Set some
new personal markers farther out than you have ever gone before and then step
out and go for it.”
These areas of growth are our choice.
The Apostle Paul was talking in this same way when he said, “Forgetting what
lies behind and straining (stretching) forward to what lies ahead, I press on” (Philippians 3:13-14, ESV). Paul was
using the illustration of a runner who leans forward and stretches toward the
finish line. The Apostle was indicating that he had made a personal choice to
press on, to stretch toward the goal.
I have never seen this portrayed more
dramatically than during the 2004 Olympics. Michael Phelps, the champion
swimmer, was in one of his final races and as the swimmers came to the finish
line, it was anybody’s guess who would win. The camera shot we saw was from
underwater and it looked like the swimmer on Phelps’ left was a tiny bit ahead
of him. Both Phelps and the other swimmer reached for the electronic pad at the
finish line at virtually the same time, but Phelps was able to push himself and
stretch just a little quicker and farther than the others—and he won. It was
incredible!
William Carey heard the call to stretch,
and because he responded to the call, the era of modern missions in the Church
was born. What area of your spiritual life is the Lord speaking to you about?
Listen to Him and respond, as He says, “It’s time to step out; it’s time to
stretch!”
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