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Editorials
for Spring 2007

 Editorial by Anne Marie Faidley

 For as long as I can remember, our New Year’s family tradition was to set goals for the next year. As the old year came to a close and another began, we stopped to reflect and evaluate our lives. So…where are you on your journey to knowing Christ? That is a question we all should be asking. Recently, I’ve realized that in the Christian life, you cannot be static. You are either moving towards God or away from Him. You are either becoming more like Jesus or more like the world. You are either growing or back-sliding. You cannot rest on your past accomplishments, saying, “Well, I did great things for God last year.” Or “I shared Christ’s love with a friend six months ago.” We must be wholeheartedly pursuing God each and every day. Yes, New Years’ 2007 has come and gone. But it’s  never too late to take a thoughtful moment to examine your life. As Christians, we are to be “very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” 1 These are the things that I pray for each of you in the coming year.

That you would not forsake your First Love.

Remember when you first became a Christian?  It may have been recently or many years ago. Either way, I’m sure you recall the excitement…the joy…the desire to talk to God...the desire to tell the everyone you knew.  At a recent baptism celebration, our church baptized over twenty-five people. These new Christian believers smiled, laughed, and cried as they told their journey to knowing Christ. But for those of us who have been “born in church,” so to speak, our relationship with Christ sometimes becomes stale and routine. In Revelation, Paul writes to the Ephesians church. He lists many commendable things they’d done, including hard work, perseverance, and intolerance for evil. Yet, in the midst of the “good things” they were doing, they had forsaken their first love. Somewhere along the line, they substituted good works—religion—for a passionate relationship with Christ. And so, Paul pleaded with them to remember the burning love they once had for their Savior, to repent, and to return to their First Love—Jesus Christ.2

That you would live outside your comfort zone.

“Let me do it!” If you’ve worked with kids, I’m sure you’ve heard those words. Ever stopped to think that we sometimes sound like that, too? Ouch! Yet when we insist on doing things our way and in our timing, that is exactly what we’re telling God. As C. S. Lewis says, “We’re like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by an offer of a holiday at sea. We are far too easily pleased.” In fact, Paul writes “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him,”3 and Jeremiah reminds, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”4

Stepping out of your comfort zone involves surrender. We must give up our carefully arranged, neatly planned out lives. Sometimes, God calls us to do things that seem, well, strange, by the world’s standards. It requires thinking of others before yourself. And it demands complete dependence upon God and His Spirit for strength and guidance. Unlike some may think, moving out of your comfort zone doesn’t always involve moving to a third-world country to be a missionary. Oftentimes, God calls us to step out in faith in little ways each day. And sometimes those are hardest. To listen when a distraught friend needs to talk…to take time to cheer up the sad grandmother…to walk across the room and make friends with a lonely person…to care when no one else cares…to love everyone you meet with Jesus’ love…to always be ready to tell of the Hope you have.

That you would be still.

“Whenever I go at breakneck speed, I can’t hear God. And breakneck is something I do to myself. It’s something I can change,” said one busy mother. Breakneck. Does that sound like your daily schedule? God reveals Himself and His character in a myriad of ways—His Word, His Spirit, His creation, His children—but He speaks most effectively in the quiet. When Elijah despairingly cried out to God in the desert, He was not in the wind or the earthquake or the fire. No, He spoke in a whisper. “Be still and know that I am God.”5 The book of Psalms is filled with words like rest, wait, quiet, listen, and seek. In seeking to become fully devoted followers of Christ, we must make time. Time to rest and restore our souls. For we cannot truly love a Savior we do not know. Time to speak with Christ and time for Him to speak to us. And we will not really know Him unless we take time out to sit at His feet like Mary of Bethany did.

These are my prayers for each of you.

notes: 1Eph. 5:15-16. 2Sermon by D. Corner. 31 Cor. 2:9. 4Jer. 29:11. 5Ps. 46:10. All references niv.

Guest Editorial

Carol Anne Faidley

Fully alive people love adventure. The mystery. The anticipation. The excitement. The challenge. Adventures may require careful planning and preparation or they may be sudden and spur of the moment. They take us out of our comfort zone into the unknown. Awe and beauty. Danger and romance. Agony and ecstasy. Fear and victory.

Children especially love adventure. So do the young at heart, regardless of age. Learning new things. Seeking the truth. Becoming a more Christ-like person. Growing and changing. Living life to the fullest. Trusting Jesus more. Always ready for a higher adventure. “Mom, let’s go on a higher adventure.” That’s what my kids used to tell me when they were young. As grown children, their idea of a higher adventure has changed. Still, the desire remains the same. They long for something bigger, something harder, something out of their comfort zone (and mine—yikes!) You know what I mean?

What is it about adventure that we love? That inexplicably draws us like a magnet? That thrills out heart and satisfies our soul? Could it be Jesus Christ Himself…the Man of Joy and King of Adventure? Could He have placed the desire for adventure in our hearts for a good purpose? Setting eternity in our hearts so we would seek Him? Wooing us through His beauty and love? Drawing us to Himself in a sacred romance because He longs for friendship with you and me? Pursuing us like the hound of heaven because He is a relational God and desires a relationship with us? Have you ever thought of such wonderful possibilities?

You mean adventure is one of the good and perfect gifts that come from our Father above? Yes and no. God’s Word and our heart motives make the difference. Think of it like this: Our desire for adventure is a good gift from God. Some Christians have killed that desire, thinking it evil. In doing so, they killed part of their heart and turned their backs on abundant life with Christ. Adventure has many God-given purposes. Some of the most important are to draw us to Christ, to strengthen our friendship with Him, to build our Christian character, to deepen our trust in God, and to advance His kingdom. But not all adventure itself is good. Some adventures are really truly God adventures, and some are worldly, worthless, or even harmful pursuits.

What’s the difference? How can I tell? Just remember God’s Word and relationships. They are the gold standard for measuring all adventures. In fact, everything in life. Why? Because God’s Word and relationships are the two most important things to Christ. In Matthew, Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”1 God’s Word and relationships are the only things that will last for eternity. Everything else will burn. What we did with God’s Word, what we did with Christ, and what we did in relationship with others—these will determine our eternal destiny.

So what exactly is a God adventure? Here’s some good questions to ask in determining if your next higher adventure is a God adventure. Write them in your journal or in the front of your Bible. Discuss them with your parents, mentors, older siblings, or spouse.

1. Is this adventure out of your comfort zone?

“Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” (Luke 5:4)

2. Does the thought of it all scare you?

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Josh. 1:9)

3. Is God asking you to trust Him more?

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.” (Prov. 3:5-6)

4. Are you letting God be in control?

“  ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.” (Zech 4:6)

5. Has Jesus put a special love in your heart for these people?

“Love one another deeply, from the heart.” (1 Pet. 1:22)

6. Is God increasing your desire for this dream as you delight in Him?

“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” (Ps. 37:4)

7. Is the adventure supported by the principles of Scripture?

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (2 Tim. 3:16)

8. Are wise people and godly authorities giving you the green light?

“He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.” (Prov. 13:20)

9. Will the adventure bring glory to God?

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Cor. 10:31)

10. Are you answering God’s call to be a fisher of men?

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matt. 4:19)

11. Do you desire God’s will on the matter most of all?

“I desire to do Your will, O my God; Your law is within my heart.” (Ps. 40:8)

12. Will this adventure strengthen your faith and draw you closer to Christ?

“Come near to God and he will come near to you.” (Jas. 4:8)

Have you ever been on a God adventure? God adventures can happen to anyone who is willing to hear and heed the voice of God. Once you do, you will never be the same again. My God adventures are great stories that could fill a series of books. Right now, I’m busy living them out and telling others about Jesus. Someone told me once that all the hard things I experienced as a Christian were to prepare me for deeper waters and greater troubles. That’s partly true. But they forgot abundant life in Christ and the God adventures that come from being a friend and fully devoted follower of Christ. I’ve been in the deep water with Christ for twelve years. It’s very scary at times, but Jesus is always with me. He leads by His peace. “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”2 The joy of the Lord is my strength3 and He fills me with joy in His presence.4

In all the world, nothing compares with knowing Christ intimately and living every moment for Him. Walking by faith. Hearing His voice. Following His lead. Surrendering to His love. Sharing His grace and truth with others. Seeing Him change hearts and lives. Watching miracles happen daily. Hearing His well done now. Being close friends with Jesus. Please write and tell us about your God adventures and what Jesus has taught you. That’s the desire of my heart: to tell the stories of Jesus’ love and power and grace, for His glory.

notes: For further reading, see The God Adventure by Terry Meeuwsen and Your Exceptional Life Begins Now by Maryanna Young and Kim Fletcher [both for older readers] 1Matt. 22:37-40. 2Isa. 26:3 [nkjv]. 3Neh. 8:10. 4Ps. 16:11. All references niv unless otherwise noted.