Monday, January 19, 2009

Are You His Errand Runner?

Remember, our Message is not about ourselves; we're proclaiming Jesus Christ, the Master. All we are is messengers, errand runners from Jesus for you. It started when God said, "Light up the darkness!" and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful. ~2 Corinthians 4:5&6 (The Message)
One of the things I talked about briefly with Yolanda at our lunch this past week was how hard it is to take the "me", the "I" out of my blog post. So many of you share your daily life experiences and apply it to a spiritual concept so beautifully. But we both, and I am sure you are with us in this, want our hearts messages to not be about ourselves but about God in our life...about God. One day in writing a blog post, I went back and tried to rewrite every sentence that had any reference to "I" or "me". Try it. It's hard. Sometimes the message cannot be written without it.

I don't think God is asking us to completely take the "I" factor out or otherwise we would not be able to be His warmth, His light, His fragrance in the cold, dark, and foul world that is trying to encompass God's creation. We are "messengers, errand runners" for our God, our God and Christ all bright and beautiful! We will never be able to measure up to our God's likeness but it is such a joy trying, don't you think?

As I have journeyed in my prayer devotional series "Praying with Purpose" by Stephen Nelson Rummage, he ended the book describing all that God is. The attributes Stephen listed are His glory to which we try to honor and praise Him for. When you sit back and examine this list, we fall short in our minds to truly take it all in...His magnitude, His power, His existence. But we have to attempt to, we owe Him that.

I am including this list of attributes Pastor Rummage listed on 214-215 in his book for you to reflect on as you carry on in your life, striving to be His messenger, His errand runner. Maybe take one of the attributes each day of this week and praise God for it throughout that day, glorify Him for who He is. The promise is that the more we try to know Him, the more we try to understand Him, the more of Him we will have in our life, the more we will reflect Him and carry Him out to other in this cold, dark, and foul world.
  • He is Self-existence. All created things have a beginning and a cause, but not God.
  • He is self-sufficient. God created all there is-not out of any need that He has-but simply because it pleases Him.
  • He is eternal. For God, yesterday, today, and tomorrow are all "now".
  • He is infinite. Everything about God is without limit. He knows no bounds.
  • He is changeless. God has no need to change, because He is perfect. He shines with unflickering perfection.
  • He is omniscient. God knows everything. He is never surprised and never amazed.
  • He is omnipotent. God has all power. There is nothing too difficult for Him to do.
  • He is all-wise. God sees everything in focus. His wisdom is without flaw.
  • He is transcendent. God is above all things. He actively sustains His creation, but stands apart from it.
  • He is omnipresent. He is fully and always everywhere. Though He is transcendent above us, He is ever present with us.
  • He is faithful. We may be unfaithful to Him due to fear, weakness, or our own desires, but God will never waiver in His devotion to us.
  • He is good. Because God is good, He takes pleasure in the happiness of His people.
  • He is just. God's perfect righteousness will not leave the guilty unpunished.
  • He is merciful. Through Christ, God extends compassion to those who have offended His justice.
  • He is gracious. God offers eternal and abundant life as a gift of His grace.
  • He is loving. God loves is personal, intimate, and transforming, having no beginning and no end.
  • He is holy. God is completely different from humanity. While we may fear God's power and admire His wisdom, we cannot even imagine His holiness.
  • God is sovereign. God rules His creation with absolute sovereignty. He alone governs the universe He has made.

WOW. Can you imagine if we truly could reflect all that God is to others? Our world needs us to.

We all, with unveiled faces, are reflecting the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit. ~ 2 Corinthians 3:18

As the "cloud filled the house of the Lord" the day that Solomon dedicated the temple of Jerusalem (1 King 8:10-11), I pray your week is filled with the blessed heaviness of God's presence.

His Maidservant~Pamela

6 comments:

elaine @ peace for the journey said...

Well, if I did the "remove the I" exercise with my blog, it would cease to exist. I know, I get your point. It is to be about our Father. He and I just had a great run together, and he told me again that I was his beloved, his bride, and that all is well between us.

I want to be his errand runner, without question and without complaint. God keep me equal to the task, I pray.

Happy Monday, Pam. Thanks for your kind words...again.

peace~elaine

LisaShaw said...

Pamela,

This is such a beautiful message. I appreciate the heart of CHRIST which speaks through the vessel that you are because of His grace.

Much love.

achildoftheking said...

Hello Pamela.

Reading through that list of God's qualities is so empowering to trample satan underfoot. Thank you for allowing God to use you this way to share with all of us.

Paula V said...

I love the list of the "He is". Amen, He is all that!

I know what you mean about taking the I out of things. I try to find a nice balance. I use I and me to relate to my reader to express experiences with God. Yet, at times, I feel removing the I from things may make my posts to preachy like a sermon. I never want to be preachy.

I believe He can use whatever we write when we are seeking Him with our words.

LynnSC said...

Hi Pamela,
I love the list you included... He is all....

I want to be His errand runner...
Lynn

Yolanda said...

Pam,

Good morning! Can you believe this time last week we were gettin' so dad gum excited! I can't even fathom what He holds in store for you and I, Friend.

I loved this statement in your writing...He is omniscient. God knows everything. He is never surprised and never amazed.

Humbling...that He knows everything...about me...and He still sent His Son to die on the cross for me. Not even imaginable...but I BELIEVE GIRLFRIEND I BELIEVE!

Love ya,
Yolanda